Strap-worthy shoulders

Get your arms in shape for tank-top season

By Elaine Paoloni | amNewYork Features Editor

May 17, 2006

Tank-top season is just around the corner. Are your arms prepared?

Rob Piela, personal training manager and director of education at Crunch Fitness on Christopher Street in the West Village, suggests doing the following exercises to get your arms in prime shape.

"These moves incorporate aerobic as well as anaerobic exercise," Piela says. "By training aerobically, you strengthen the heart and increase lung capacity for oxygen consumption. Anaerobic workouts strengthen skeletal muscle tissue, which increases the body's overall metabolic rate."

Jab-cross-hook

Start with your feet shoulder-width apart and step your dominant foot back about 18 inches. (If you are a righty, this is your right foot.) Bring both hands up to your face and make a fist; turn your hands inward. This is your fighting stance.

Extend your lead hand (if you are a righty, this is your left hand) forward, palm down as you extend your arm to hit the bag. After you connect, return your hand to your face. This is your jab.

As your hand comes back to your face, punch your dominant hand straight forward, palm down, as you extend your arm. Rotate your dominant hip forward while you rotate your heel outward. Return your hand to your face. This is your cross.

As your hand returns to your face, punch your lead hand in a circular motion to the outside, then forward, then inward. Keep your shoulder, elbow and wrist at a 90-degree angle as you connect. Your elbow and wrist should be shoulder height. When you connect with the bag, your palm should face toward you. Return your hand to your face. This is your hook.

Repeat the full combination 10 times.

Bicep curl with shoulder press

Choose dumbbells at a weight manageable for 10-12 repetitions. Hold them with your palms facing forward and your elbows at your sides. Lift the weights toward your shoulders. Keep your elbows at your sides.

When the weights reach your shoulders, rotate your palms in toward your head. Then push the weights above your head directly over your shoulders. Avoid hitting the weights together.

Bring the weights back to your shoulders, rotate your palms back out, then return to the starting position.

Repeat this move 10-12 times, then start the boxing combination again. Repeat the entire circuit four times.

Beyond buff

Crunch trainer Rob Piela recommends these arm exercises to:
* increase balance
* improve cardiovascular endurance
* burn fat
* tone the upper body
* improve coordination
* strengthen muscles