If you’re focused on enhancing your upper body power, ensure not to overlook your arms! Enhancing the muscles in your arms significantly aids in carrying luggage, throwing a football, or wielding a tennis racket, while also contributing to long-term bone health.
Which Muscles Make Up the Arms?
Mecayla Froerer, an executive at the fitness technology company iFIT and a National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM)–certified personal trainer located in North Salt Lake, Utah, emphasizes the importance of training the three primary sections of the arms: the anterior (front), posterior (back), and shoulders.
According to StatPearls, the front area encompasses the biceps brachii (known as the biceps), the brachialis muscle, and the coracobrachialis muscle, while the back houses the triceps brachii. The shoulder area consists of the deltoid muscle at the top and the rotator cuff at the back, comprising four small muscles: the supraspinatus, infraspinatus, teres minor, and subscapularis.
Each of these muscles has a distinct role in facilitating the various movements our arms perform daily.
Different actions such as pushing, pulling, reaching, or swinging engage specific sets of muscles. Targeting these muscle groups can assist in tasks ranging from carrying groceries and lifting pets to sustaining yoga poses and managing heavy doors.
Froerer highlights that training all upper body muscle groups enhances the range of motion, aiding in injury prevention.
Additionally, these arm muscles play a crucial role in supporting wrists and elbows. Samantha Parker, an integrative health specialist for the U.S. Air Force and an AFAA-certified personal trainer based in Pointville, New Jersey, emphasizes that stronger arms help reduce stress and pressure on joints during everyday activities such as scrolling on a phone or chopping vegetables.