Upper Body Workouts for Women: 5 Exercises to Try

Looking for the best upper body workouts for women? Well, there are several exercises that can help you achieve a strong, toned, and well-defined upper body.

Upper body training is important, especially for women, as it helps build strength in the arms, chest, shoulders, and back, and also makes daily chores easier to perform. Studies also suggest that upper body workouts for women help improve overall posture and prevent osteoporosis too.

Top upper body workouts for women

The following five exercises are some of the best ones to target every muscle in the upper body.

Before you start, though, prepare your body by performing some quick warm-up moves to increase your blood circulation and activate your muscles. Let's get started:

#1 Mountain climber

Mountain climbers target the shoulders, chest, back, core, and arms. (Photo via Pexels/Karl Solano)

Mountain climbers are one of the best upper body workouts for women. Not only does the exercise target the shoulders, chest, back, core, and arms, but it also works wonders on major lower body muscles, like the hamstrings and glutes. The best part is that you can do this upper body workout at home without any exercise tools.

To do a mountain climber:

Take a plank position with your hands under your shoulders, glutes and core muscles engaged, and feet at hip-width distance.
Bring your left knee in towards your chest, and as you move it back, pull your right knee in towards your chest.
Alternate between legs at a quick speed, and complete a few more reps.

#2 Dumbbell pullover

The dumbbell pullover is among the best upper body workouts for women that help build strong pecs (chest) and lats.

Although the exercise looks simple, you will definitely feel your core muscles fire up. To do this exercise, you will need a pair of dumbbells and an exercise bench.

To do a dumbbell pullover:

Lie down on the bench on your back, and grab a dumbbell with both hands.
Plant your feet on the floor, and keep your core muscles engaged throughout the exercise.
Extend your arms towards the ceiling while holding the dumbbell together near your chest.
Slightly bend your elbows, and lower your arms overhead till the biceps get near your ears.
Bring your arms back to the starting position i.e., above your chest, and repeat the exercise a few times.

#3 Triceps kickback

Triceps kickback is one of the best upper body workouts for women. (Photo via Pexels/Andrea Piacquadio)

Triceps kickbacks are one of the best upper body workouts for women that particularly engage the triceps muscles and help strengthen them. This exercise works on the shoulder muscles too and helps improve their flexibility.

To do a triceps kickback:

Stand straight with a dumbbell in each hand, with palms facing in towards each other and knees bent.
With the spine straight, slowly hinge forward at your waist till the torso gets parallel to the floor.
Keep your upper arms close to your torso, head in a neutral position, and forearms bent forward.
Straighten your elbows by slowly pushing your forearms backwards while keeping the upper arms still.
Pause for a few seconds, and return to the starting position. Repeat the exercise.

#4 Regular push-up

Push-ups are amazing upper body push exercises that target each muscle in the upper body, including the shoulders, chest, forearms, biceps, core, and back.

If you find regular push-ups difficult, you may start with knee push-ups or wall push-ups and slowly work your way up to a more advanced level.

To do a regular push-up:

Start in a tabletop position, and place your wrists under your shoulders and legs extended straight behind.
With the core muscles engaged, slowly lower your upper body towards the floor, and push back up by pressing your palms.
Repeat for a few reps.

#5 Chin-up

Chin-ups are an amazing upper body pull exercise. (Photo via Pexels/Anastasia Shuraeva)

Chin-ups are the ultimate upper body pull exercise that target the deltoids and lats while also strengthening the biceps and improving grip strength.

To do a chin-up:

Hold a pull-up bar using an underhand grip, and position your arms slightly wider than shoulder-width distance.
Pull yourself up till your chin reaches the bar while keeping the core muscles tight and back straight.
Pause at the top movement, and slowly lower yourself back to the starting position.

The aforementioned upper body workouts for women will challenge the chest, shoulders, arms, biceps, forearms, core, and back in new ways to help you achieve your fitness goals.

By doing a variety of bodyweight and strength training upper body workouts, you can target different muscle groups at once to attain a result-worthy workout training.