20: Upper Body Ladder

Hey, everybody. I'm Amy from Bodyfit by Amy. And this is your upper body ladder workout. In this workout we are going to use weights, dumbbells or kettlebells or both. Whatever you have available to you to work your entire upper body, your arms, your back, your shoulders. We're going to get some core in there as well and we're going to do it ladder style. So we'll have timed intervals going up in reps as we go. Of course, I'm going to give you lots of different options to work to your level. Are you ready? Let's do it. Go ahead and start just by moving your body. March, Pump those arms. We're going to get the blood flowing, get our muscles warm, get that energy up. Of course, this is a short workout, so we're going to keep the warm up short. If you need more of a warm up, please get it on your own. We're just going to get some mobility through the upper body. We're going to be adding in some core as well. So we'll get a little bit of back mobility as well and just get our bodies ready to move and to add some load. You can see that I have both my dumbbells and kettlebells out today. I'll probably mostly be using dumbbells, but you use whatever you have available to you, whatever you are most comfortable with. Let's take one arm to the back just like this, three times and then reverse it to the front, right through here. One more time to the back and to the front, right through here. Let's take down and round it up. So here's what we got today, team. We are taking it with a ladder format. So a lot of our exercises are going to feature two different exercises. So for instance, a reverse fly and a curl. That's your very first one. Let's hold it here and roll those shoulders. And we're going to do timed intervals where one of them will be a ladder, as in going up and down in reps. So we do a fly and then a curl. And then the next time maybe we would do two flies and one curl. The next time, three flies, one cur. Let's take it right here. Big step, arms out, arms up and so forth. And then directly after that we'll have a 45 second interval. Directly after that we do the opposite. Same exercises, but the other exercise will be the ladder. So one fly, one curl, one fly, two curls, one by three curls in that timed interval. If you don't feel like counting, don't worry. You could just alternate. Let's take it right here. Reach and reach. But that way we will get some repetition, we'll get a good burn, and we'll get it over with. Right? Go ahead and take it right here. If it feels good for you, we're gonna inchworm it out. If you'd rather not come down, you can come down on your knees and just walk your hands here to here. But if you can, that way we get our core fired up and ready to go. Some of the things we will mix up with maybe some longer intervals. Some of them will do a traditional ladder where we just go up with both. It's going to be a fun workout where we get a lot of different things. So get excited. Take it down to those knees. We're going to sit back in the child's pose while we reach one arm under and bring it up just like that. So we get that stretch through our shoulders, rotation through our spine, and again, just getting ready to move. Short workout. Getting it done right through here. One more each way, and then go ahead and come back onto your feet. Slowly roll it up. All right, team. Tap and reach. All right, so we are starting with a reverse thigh and a curl. Everything we're going to start with is going to be in the standing position, and then we will take it over and down to the mat. I think you're gonna like this workout. It's gonna move fast, and we're gonna have a good time doing it. Cross those knees right through here, Little hamstring curl, and then we're going to grab those weights. So with that reverse fly and the curl, I want you to do the weight that you would do a bicep curl with. Your reverse fly is here out wide. Then we're coming up and out of it, and then we're going to do the curl. You can do the hinge, or you can decide to do the biceps from here. Whatever feels more comfortable for you. If you want to come up and do the curl or if you want to stay down and curl from here and stay in the hinge. That'll keep your back working. But if that doesn't feel right for you, then just come up and down in between. Core engaged. Hinge it here. We're gonna take the fly with the ladder. Here we go. One reverse fly. Bring it up one bicep curl back down. Two reverse flies. Bring it up one curl. Hinge it here. Three. And again. If you don't feel like counting or if you're going slower or faster than me, that's okay. You do you. It's your workout. Be where you are today. This reverse fly always gets me. Bring it up. One curl, nice and strong. Here we go. Five seconds. Finish out wherever you are, and then curl. Breathe for a second. If you need to set those weights down, set those weights down. We're gonna do it again. This time, our curl is going to be the ladder. So one fly, one curl. One fly, two curls. Let's do it again. 3, 2, 1. Bring it up and curl right here. One fly, two curls, and three curls. And if at any point you want to switch to a hammer curl, that's okay too. I like just doing one fly. I don't know about you. 4, 3. Now you can kind of feel, even though it's not that many reps all together, it's doing these Back to back. 5. Yes. 4, 3, 2. What do you got? Can you get one more? Boom. And relax. Set those down. Little stretch back. All right? Yes. Team. How about we get a little core? Now, this one is just going to be a regular ladder. So 1 and 1, 2 and 2. Here's what we got. One weight. I'm gonna go kettlebell. No, I'm gonna go one dumbbell. We're gonna go twist knee, twist knee, side knee, side knee. Then we're gonna go 2, 2, 2, 2. So we're not gonna get very far. We got 60 seconds on the clock. One weight in the center or no weight. Core, as well as a little bit of shoulders. We're going cross and cross, side and side. Three, two, one. Here we go. Cross, cross side. Right here. Double on each side. Now, if you want, you can move your arms a little bit more. If you want more of the upper body, if you want more of the core, you just want to keep it here. Keep it here. 3, 2, 1. Cross it. Shoulders and abs standing, abs to the side. 3, 2, 1. You don't have to actually touch it. Just get that core working. Are we gonna get four in right here? Four, three, two, one. Four, three. We got 15 seconds. Finish out whatever number you're on. Really feeling both my arms and my abs. 4, 3, 2, 1. And relax. Set it down. Yes. Team. All right, so one or two dumbbells this next round, we're gonna get shoulders and tries. So we got our upper pull, we got some core. Now we got our upper push. So hammer press, arms are in. We're gonna go up behind the head. Triceps, if you can do two dumbbells, do them. If you want to do one heavy, that's What I'm gonna do, we're going to start with our press with the ladder, and then we'll switch to our tricep for the ladder. Core engaged. One or two weights. Here we go. Press behind the head and bring it down. Two presses. Keep that core working. One tricep right here. I want Those elbows in. Three. Remember, we're back to 45 seconds. Elbows at three. Oh, no. Right here. We got four. If you need to stagger like I just did to keep that core in check, keep your back in place. Go for it. Yeah. Five. Five, four, Three, two. Five seconds to go. And triceps. Here we go. Burn. Shake it out. This time we're doing the opposite. All right, one press, one tries. One press, two tries. I think we're gonna feel the burn in those triceps. If you need to switch down to one dumbbell or a little lighter, go for it. Otherwise, 45. Here we go. Up and down. And here, two triceps. Two. One. Right here. Up. Three tries. Burn. Kind of wish we'd done this one first, right? I know. That was intentional. Take it up. We got four tries. Three, two. Good. Burn at your own pace. You don't have to be with me here. We get five tries. In the. In these moments, it's hard to remember that we do entire sets of this. Boom. And down. Relax, team. I know. Shake it out. No weights. Here we go. Little cardio mobility. That's also core and arms. That exact move we just did. Side, side, just for cardio. 30 seconds to shake it out, then we grab some water. My arms. Three, two, one. Here we go. Cross, cross, side, side. Really twist it with your core, and then pull it up laterally. Right. If you want more mobility, take it nice and slow. If you want to take it with that cardio, pull it up strong. Right here. Oh, I know it's supposed to be mobility for those arms, but my arms are just. Just feeling tired. But we love it. One more each way, and boom. Shake it out. Grab some water. Yes, team, that was your first circuit. Cheers, y'. All. Grab some water. I know it was a long one. Woo. Yes. Long circuit. You did it. Let's hit it hard again. All right, team, so with this round, we're going to take it down onto the mat. All right, we're going to start with a. A row with some core. All right, so one heavy weight in the middle. And if for some reason this is not right for you, you can stay on your knees or you can keep it standing, but if we can, we've got right and left for one. We got knee cross for one. Then we go two, two, knee cross for one. We're gonna go that, and then we'll double up on our core. Okay, so 45 and 45. If you need to rest your knees or your wrist at any point. Totally understand. Then we'll take it onto our back. So upper body pull with some extra core. Then we got some presses coming and some core. All right, so hang with me. Starts to feel like too much for your wrists. You can always do your row from here and pop it up. Or you can go back with those knees instead of the cross. 45 seconds. Row and row, knee cross, three, two, one. Here we go. Pull it up strong to the hip. Take those knees across and across right here. Two on each side with your row. Go heavy if you can. And then single knees right here. Three on each side. Three, two. That's where that core has to work hard to stabilize, right? So stay center. Three, two. Bring those knees across right here. Just singles, singles. Four. Yes, you can. Can we get them in? In 10 seconds? Right here? Yes, you can. Toonies. Stretch it back. Rest those wrists, stretch your shoulders, whatever you need to do. This time, it's just a single row on each side. Then we'll double up on those knees. When we double up the knees, two on each side, two on each side. And then bring it up. Here we go. Take it up. One and one. Single knees across. Across single rows. One each way. Two knees right, two knees left. Single row again. If you need to drop to your knees for the row, you can. Three knees, right. Three, two, core. You can even twist it if you want. Yes, team, single row. Can we get four knees? Four, three, two, one. Four, three, two, Stretch. All right, team, keep with the heavies. In fact, let's get. If you want to work with one heavy kettlebell in the center for a close grip press, you can. Otherwise, if you want, you can have two again with the core. We're going to get a press and a bicycle. We'll start ladder with the press. Then we'll take ladder with the bicycle. When we get to ladder with the bicycle, each side is one. Here we go right here. So press up for one, bicycle for one. Press up for two, bicycle for one. If you'd rather three presses, you can just do a little march. A little march? Maybe that's better for you. Or you can do a bridge. Oh, man, I'm glad I picked this kettlebell. Five, four, three, two, up. You can even keep that weight you want Right. And relax. All right, team, same thing, except we're going to go one and press. One and two and press and so forth. So that core, make sure it's not all over the place. Really strong and controlled. Tuck the pelvis core. Engage. Here we go. Up for one here for twine. Here we go. Up one and two and again. If you want to have your kettle bell here. Three to add a little more of a challenge. I love it. Strong. Up, up. 4. Three movements coming from the center. Yes, you can. Can right here. One, press. Can you take it for five? Finish it out. Four, three, two, one. Relax. All right, team, stretch it out right through here. All right, let's hang out here. Why not? We're going to get a chest fly into those triceps. I know that doesn't exactly feel fair cuz those arms are tired, but you can do it. But before we do that, we will just get a little scissors to stretch everything out. 45 seconds, no ladder, just scissors. All right, then we're going chest fly into triceps. And we're almost done on the mat. Here we go. Take it here. Stretch. So we get the core, but we open up those shoulders. If you'd rather just get the mobility, you can just go here. Boom. Yes. Right here, team. Strong little crunch. Strong little leg lower. If you want to keep the shoulders up the entire time. Right here. Up to you. I know that core is tired. It's gonna get a break in just a second. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Hug those knees. All right, team, so just like when we did that reverse fly and bicep curl. Remember how I told you to use your curl weight? Use your tricep weight. So we're gonna go fly into tries. We'll do ladder for both. Almost done on the mat. So pick a weight that you can do triceps with. I know they're tired. You're being up top, but let's finish it out right here. Here we go, team. Fly. Watch me into triceps. So you want to shift those shoulders back just a little bit. Everything else can stay in place. Three, two, one. Here we go. Fly into tries. So chest and shoulders and then all tries. Back of the arms, Right? Two triceps right here. So ladder with your tries. Sorry, I forgot to say that we're gonna get the tries out of the way first this time. Three, two, one. Here we go. One fly, four tries. You got it. I know, I'm feeling it too. Can we get five triceps to finish it out? 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Relax. Stretch them out over your head. I know. Team. Burn. All right, this time our ladder is with our fly and only one tricep. Let's get it done in three, two, one. Fly and triceps. Two flies. Breathe. One triceps. Remember, shift those shoulders back just a bit. Three flies. Take your time. Remember, we're not sacrificing range of motion. We're keeping full range of motion. Good form as we go up this ladder. Yes, right here. Can we get. Ah. I know. Yes. Finish it out and relax. Stretch, team. Oh, man. All right, up onto your feet. Let's grab some water. We are almost there. Burn. Here we go, team. So quick step, last thing. Now these are going to be some longer intervals. We're using a band, if you have it. If you don't have a band, we're just going to get the motion. But if you have a band, this is what it looks like. We're going to put the band here. We're going to do one pull, one push, one core finisher. So we're going to go here. We're gonna go out, up with the row, out for two, up with a row. We're gonna go 30 seconds and 30 seconds back to back. So no break in between just to make it a little quicker. So if you have a band, grab it. Otherwise you're just going to move those arms out to get a little of that tension in your back. Heavy weights, if you got them. We got 60 seconds. 30 and 30. That band is right above the wrist. Core engaged. Hinge it. Here we go. Out and up. Out for two. Little pulse. And up right here. Out for three, two, one. And up at that 32nd mark. Four. Right here. We're gonna switch it and we'll do our row with the ladder right here. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Row. Bring it up. Stretch your back. Here we go. We're out. Row for one. Out. Row for two. Squeeze out. Row for three. I know. Squeezing those back muscles. Upper body pull. Press out. 4, 3, 2. This is your bonus circuit. Hang with me. Press out five. Finish it out. Three, two. Oh, man. Set them down. Shake it out. All right, team, 60 seconds upper push. Here's what we got. So we get chest, shoulders, and tries. We're gonna do a 45 degree press. So out at 45 degrees. And just like we talked about, we're gonna squeeze out this way so our weight is here. Squeeze out, up and down. Squeeze out for two, up and down and so forth. So I'm gonna go one kettlebell, you go one kettlebell. Or one dumbbell. If the band is not right for you, just go through the motions. 60 seconds. In three, two, one. Here we go. Squeeze. Out, press out. Out. Two. Press right here. Squeeze. Burn. And up. Now, if that band is moving around, feel free to shift. You can put it up here. Right? Squeeze. That might be worse, but keep it going wherever you want. Squeeze. Pulse, pulse and press. I don't know where we are, but squeeze it out. 3, 2, 1. Let's switch it right here. Squeeze. Press, squeeze. Press for two. Squeeze. I know. I feel it too. 45 degrees, so you pressing away from your body. Four. Yes. You got five seconds. I told you, team. That's okay. Boom. Relax. All right, team, shake it out. Last thing. Let's get it moving. Here's what we've got. Put that to the side. Superman. Press up to a plank so it's a little bit of a push up. 30 seconds. Only looks like this. Superman. Push it up and hold. No ladder. If you'd rather, you can go bird dog. And push up. 30 seconds. Let's finish it out strong. In 3, 2, 1. Squeeze. Bring it up. Squeeze. Bring it up. I know those arms are tired. Pull and push. I really want you to use your core to lift right here. Use your core up strong. Yes. 10 seconds. Lift. Yes. I'm feeling it too. Last one. Stretch it back. Yes, team. I know. Sit back into the child's pose. Side to side. Had to finish strong, right? We'll consider that whole last one a bonus circuit, but we're gonna keep this cool down really short. Let's take it under just like we did in the beginning. Hold that stretch. So of course, please get some stretching on your own through your back, through your shoulders. Expect little upper body soreness in the best way. Maybe tomorrow, maybe the next day. Other side. So get that mobility. Work those arm slides. Maybe check out my shoulder mobility 10 minute mobility series. Things like that can be really helpful. Roll through your back. Cat, cow. Right now and on your own. Right, team, Whatever you need to do. You can also do a little band work to get that mobility. Come back onto the feet. Let your upper body hang. Just relax into that. Feel that stretch. And then let's slowly roll it up. Make sure you leave me a comment. Take those arms up. Do you like this format? Are you feeling it? Did you feel like you like the ladder? You could feel the tension. We're just hanging out in that time under tension, which is one way to get progressive overload. Right. It's not always about going heavier. Sometimes it's increasing our volume in different ways. If you can reach behind. So this is one way to do it, let me know. Do you like ladders? Do you like this way? Or the old ladder format we've done before where we do 1 and 1, 2 and 2, 3 and 3, up and down, take it across, roll through that wrist. Leave me a comment. Leave me a like. Don't forget to subscribe to the YouTube channel. Join us in the Body Fit Athletic Club if you're not here already. And make sure you check out everything in the description below. Follow me all in all the places so you don't miss a beat. Thank you so much for being here today. One big deep breath in and out. You did it. That was your upper body ladder workout. Great job everybody.