(PHOTO: DAVID MARTINEZ)
It’s happened to the best of us: You wave to a friend and your upper-arm flab flaps away. While batwings may make you want to spend all winter under wraps, there’s no need to avoid sleeveless tops and holiday dresses. Instead, tone arms with the Dolphin, an easy yoga pose that firms this problem area (and more!) by simultaneously toning the biceps, triceps, and shoulders. For best results, do this move three times a week.
How-to: Begin on your hands and knees, then lower your elbows to the floor, shoulder-distance apart. Interlace fingers and press sides of hands, forearms, and elbows firmly into the floor. Tuck your toes, and press hips up to create a long line between elbows and sitting bones. Lower your heels toward floor, and press thighs back. Allow your head to relax. Without moving your elbows, squeeze your upper arms toward one another to strengthen the muscles. Hold the pose for 5–15 breaths, and repeat up to 3 times.
Sara Ivanhoe has been teaching yoga for more than a decade. She teaches at YogaWorks in Santa Monica, Calif., and is the featured yoga instructor on VH1’s Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew. Read more about Sara on her website.
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Comments (6)
i will like to do yoga it is ahealth excise for the body andi will like to see more yoga excise so i can do some ofit ho invent yoga is it the chineys ijust loveit well that all for now. rosy/
my comments about yoga i love it that all.
I think Yoga is great. I started two weeks ago and thought it would be easier than water arobics but I was wrong.I hope to continue it and I would recommend it to anyone and I am a Senior Citizen.
Wow I have just found your website.
I do yoga each evening at home, but it doesn’t matter what pose I use, I cannot get my lower abdomin
toned, I have been operated on with children three times, and wonder if it is a problem area that cannot be toned, everywhere else is good, but its frustrating, can you help me. thank you awefully. Kim
I’ve been practicing yoga for about 7 years now and while it’s important to get just the right move or pose for the desired area, it’s equally important to realize that trying to build muscle on top of fat cells or pudge only makes the pudge bigger. Try incorporating some cardio in with your yoga then when it comes to working your abs, you should concentrate on isolating different parts of your abdominal muscles – top, obliques, & lower.
I am getting married next year, and I am finding I can’t get rid of these arms! I get bored easily with different exercises, so is Yoga good for someone like me? My thighs and arms are the worst, and my dress is strapless. I’m scared!