Should girls train their arms?

Author: Timko Ilya - master of the whole project and fitness trainer.
2014-10-05

This question is purely aesthetic, as from a physiological standpoint: if something can be worked out, then it should be worked out! )) But actually, this question needs to be asked a bit more precisely: Do girls need to pay attention to biceps and triceps?

So, we all understand that toned arms do not necessarily enhance a girl’s appearance. However, arms are the part of the body that is the most difficult for women to tone. Even if they really want to. This is because, by nature, their lower body tends to respond better to training than the upper body. So, my personal opinion is this:

For girls, to create a beautiful and proportional body, in most cases, there is no need to specifically focus on arm training.

What does this mean? By "specifically training," I mean exercises aimed specifically at the arms. But triceps are indirectly engaged in all presses and push-ups. For example, in

the main load falls on the chest, while the triceps are secondary. And in

the main focus is on the shoulders, with additional effort on the triceps. The same goes for biceps. They also work during rows and pull-ups. For instance:

– in addition to the back, they also train the biceps.

So, the picture that emerges is that even if you remove all exercises targeting the arms, they will still receive a workout from back, shoulder, and chest exercises. And this will be enough to keep the arm muscles toned. But it won't be enough for growth. That is, if your goal isn't to increase the size of your arm muscles, then there is no need to specifically train them. If you want to tone your arms a bit, then 1 to 2 exercises per week for both the biceps and triceps will be quite sufficient.

Personally, in my workout programs for girls, I rarely include bicep exercises (exceptions mainly apply to mass-building workouts), but I do use tricep exercises. Mostly to add variety to the workouts. Besides, arms visually appear larger mostly due to the biceps, not the triceps. But I reiterate that you can also skip exercises focused solely on the triceps.

Conclusion

There is no need for girls to specifically focus on arm training. The exception is if you plan to compete in bodybuilding or body fitness competitions. In all other cases, you can limit yourself to exercises for the back, chest, and shoulders.

However, if you do start specifically training your arms, you will find it quite challenging to gain size. So, if you do 1 to 2 exercises per week for the biceps and triceps, it is unlikely that you will overtrain your arms. For that to happen, you'd have to put in a significant effort.

And once again, I want to emphasize that I’m not saying that women should never train their arms! I'm just stating that in most cases, it isn’t necessary. In other words, it's something you can choose to skip. Good luck!