35-Minute Upper Body Strengthening Circuit

This 35-minute upper body workout will help you burn calories, build muscle and burn fat through circuit training.  Target muscles in the back, chest, arms and shoulders in this minimal equipment home workout.

The Workout Video

As a personal trainer, I love a good circuit training workout. Circuit training allows you to get a good workout without having to spend hours in the gym. It’s also a great way to keep workouts interesting and beat boredom!

This workout is one of the many full-length workouts I created for members in my free Facebook fitness group which you can join here! Every week I share new workouts, recipes and tips on weight loss and nutrition.

This 35-minute video workout features three upper body circuits, with each circuit containing four movements. I’ll walk you through everything from the warm up to the cool down in the video below!

For a written breakdown of the workout (it’s moves, rounds and reps), keep scrolling through this post to get to the circuit breakdown.

Recommend equipment for this Upper Body Workout

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• Medium weight dumbbells: Between 8-15lbs 

We’ll be using these dumbbells for seven of the movements in this upper body circuit workout. I’m using two 8-pound dumbbells because they’re what I had available at the time. You could also get creative and use weighted household objects.

• Light weight dumbbells (or household equivalent like canned food): 2-5lbs

We’ll be using these weights for two of the movements in this upper body circuit workout. I didn’t have any available at the time I filmed this (during the middle of the 2020 coronavirus shutdown in my city), so I got creative and used cans of food as a household alternative!

• An exercise mat

Make sure you have an exercise mat or comfortable place to get down on the floor. If you need a standard exercise mat, try this one (click here). If you have sensitive joints and need a bit more cushion in a mat, try this one (click here).

Where to Find Exercise Equipment

At the time I’m writing this (during the 2020 coronavirus pandemic), it’s hard to find gym equipment available in stores. But you can still find a good range of home gym equipment available online!

You can buy individual sets of dumbbells,like these ones (click here).

Or equip your home gym with a full set of dumbbells, like this set (click here).

If you’re short on space, then an adjustable dumbbell set is the way to go. It’s like have a multitude of different weights built into one,like this set (click here).

Upper Body Workout Circuit Breakdown

For beginners, perform three rounds of this upper body workout. For intermediate exercisers, try four rounds and fore more advanced exercisers, try five rounds.

Warm up: Five minutes of dynamic movement and stretching (see demo in video).

Circuit 1:

• 12 Wide push-ups
• 12 Neutral grip bent over row
• 12 Wide dumbbell chest press
• 12 Renegade row

Circuit 2:

• 12 Narrow decline push-ups
• 12 Reverse grip bent over row
• 12 Narrow dumbbell chest press
• 12 Dumbbell pull overs

Circuit 3:

• 12 Sphinx push-ups
• 12 Pronated grip bent over rows
• 12 Chest flies
• 12 Rear delt flies

Cool down: Static stretches targeting the arms, shoulders, back and chest (see video for demo).

More Awesome Home Workouts

Ready for your next workout? I’ve got plenty of awesome home strengthening workouts as well as full-length yoga classes. Check out the list below!

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