This Trainer-Approved Arm Workout Requires No Weights (And No Push-Ups)

There’s no getting around it: Using weights (or resistance of some kind) is key to getting stronger arms. “In order to build muscle, you need to progressively overload those muscles,” says Meredith Witte, CSCS, CFSC, a New York City-based personal trainer and founder of The Playground. 

But what if you’re traveling? Recovering from an injury? Don’t have access to heavy weights or equipment? That’s where arm exercises without weights come in, which Witte says have their own set of benefits. 

Chief among them: there can be less of a mental barrier around doing weightless arm exercises. You can fit a few in while sitting at your desk, taking a short movement break, or even while you're walking without feeling like you have to put on your matching athleisure set and head to the gym. 

Here’s how to maximize your next no-weights arm workout—plus our favorite exercises to try.   

What are the muscles of the upper body? 

The upper body contains dozens—yes, dozens!—of muscles. But when we talk about upper body workouts, we’re usually talking about major muscle groups like the anterior deltoid (the front of the shoulder), the posterior deltoid (the back of the shoulder), the major and minor pectoral muscles, the biceps, the triceps, the lats and the rhomboids, says Denise Chakoian, a certified personal trainer and the founder of CORE fitness studio in Providence, Rhode Island. “Around these big muscles, we have small accessory muscles that work in tandem with the big ones.” 

Muscle anywhere in the body is really important, says Witte. “It keeps us strong, it keeps our bones healthy, it’s great for metabolic health.” When it comes to the upper body in particular, having strong muscles is key for so many life reasons, she says, from putting a suitcase in the overhead compartment to carrying around a small child to doing the activities you love. “We’ve gotta have strength to be able to move through life,” she says. “You know you’re doing things right when you’re never being pulled out of life thinking, I wish I could do that, or, I wish I could carry that.”

The benefits of arm exercises without weights 

Better posture

Witte says that many of the weightless arms exercises she recommends can help develop better posture. “When we sit for long periods of time and hunch over the computer, our upper back tends to lose a lot of strength, because those muscles are being lengthened, and then they just live in that position,” she says. “There are things we can do to target some of the muscles in the upper back to help with that posture.”

Improved mobility

Weightless arm exercises often move through the full range of motion of the shoulder, helping develop and maintain joint mobility. Shoulder mobility exercises and shoulder blade stretches, for example, can make a big impact. “The more that we can open up our mobility, the more comfortable you’re going to be in your body,” says Witte. 

Lower impact

For strength training beginners or those who are coming back from an upper body injury, weightless arm exercises can be a great way to start building strength and mobility, and to focus on form, says Witte. “If you’re starting at ground zero, the weight of your arm is going to be enough to stimulate the muscle,” she says. 

Convenience and fun

Arm workouts with no weights can be more accessible and more convenient than using weights. Plus, they can feel more fun, which Witte says is reason enough to do them. “I think anything that’s going to get someone moving for the joy of moving is fantastic,” she says. “That’s a really undervalued reason why we’d want to do these exercises. If it makes you feel a little bit better, that’s worth taking the time to do it.”

The best arm exercises without weights 

Witte likes to think of weightless arm exercises as opportunities for movement rather than a traditional workout. “It doesn’t need to be sweaty,” she says. “It doesn’t need to be on an exercise mat. These exercises are going to serve as a two-minute break in the middle of your workday, or a way to give your body a little bit of stimulus while working on your mobility and posture.” She says these exercises are also a great way to warm up for a more intense strength-training session.

Shoulder Controlled Articular Rotations (CARs)

• Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, your knees slightly bent, and your arms by your sides, palms facing forward and shoulders externally rotated. 
• Lift your right arm straight up, going as high as you can while keeping your shoulder externally rotated.
• With your arm in the air, internally rotate your shoulder, and bring your arm back behind you, going as low as you can while keeping the shoulder internally rotated. 
• Reverse the motion, bringing the arm up while in internal rotation, then externally rotating once you’ve hit the end of your range of motion, continuing to bring the arm up, then forward and back down by your side. 
• Throughout the exercise, fight for your full range of motion and try to keep your arm as close to your body as possible. Be sure not to arch through your back.
• Repeat on the left side, then twice more on each side. 

Shoulder taps

• Sit or stand with your arms out in a T-shape and the hands extended, palms facing up. 
• Curve the fingers towards the shoulders, tap the shoulders, then extend the hands back into the T-shape. 
• Repeat 10-15 times. 

Shoulder rotations

• Sit or stand with your arms out in a T-shape.
• Slowly rotate from your shoulder joint, internally then externally. 
• Though your hands will naturally rotate, too, make sure the rotation is coming from the shoulder.
• Repeat 10-15 times. 

Arm circles

• Sit or stand with your arms out in a T-shape, palms facing backwards.
• Slowly bring your arms down, bringing your hands behind your back as they reach backwards and towards the opposite shoulder blade and pulling your shoulders backwards (your hands shouldn’t touch your back).
• Reverse the motion, bringing your hands back to a T. 
• Externally rotate the shoulders so the palms face upwards, then circle the arms up overhead, and reach for the shoulder blades as you pull the shoulders back.
• Repeat six times, staying neutral through the spine. 

Floor slides

• Lie on your back on the floor, with the knees bent and feet on the floor, and the arms in a cactus shape (elbows at a 90 degree angle). 
• Take a breath, and as you exhale, press the forearms down and slide the arms towards the shape of an overhead “V,” only going as far as you can before your ribs begin to splay or your hands begin to pop away from the floor. Slide the arms back to the cactus shape as you inhale.
• If you can’t get your forearms on the ground while in a cactus shape without splaying your ribs, adjust the exercise by just pressing the forearms down for five seconds rather than sliding them up.
• Repeat five times.
• To advance the exercise, do it standing against a wall in a squat position. 

Prone arm lifts

• Lie on the floor on your stomach, with the arms extended overhead. 
• Lift the arms up, pressing and holding for a few seconds as you exhale, then bring the arms back down.
• Repeat 8-10 times. 

Prone rotations

• Lie on the floor on your stomach, with the left hand resting under your forehead and the right arm in a cactus shape.
• Externally rotate the right shoulder to lift the right forearm off the ground, keeping your elbow on the floor. Press and hold for a few seconds as you exhale, then bring the arm back down. 
• Repeat 8-10 times on each side. 

Tips for maximizing arm exercises without weights

Once you’ve mastered no equipment arm workouts, there are ways to increase the challenge and get even more out of your weightless workout, says Chakoian. One way she loves: playing with the tempo of an exercise, which might look like taking three slow counts to bring the arms up and one quick count to bring them down, or vice versa. 

You can also be in control of how much resistance you create in your own body, says Chakoian. To add more, you might focus on activating through the hands and fingers as you reach, or pressing down harder with your arms. (This 8-minute Pilates arm workout is a great way to kick things up a notch.)

Depending on the exercise, Chakoian might also recommend changing the positioning of the legs to add a challenge: If you were doing tricep dips, for instance, you might do some with your right leg lifted, and then some with your left leg lifted. But ultimately, she says, executing the exercises with great form is the best way to get the most out of them. “How the muscles are activating will all depend on form,” she says.