Let's continue the home-gym program from last week!
Biceps: Barbell curls
Stand balanced with feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent, abs tense, and shoulders down/back. Grab the barbell with a comfortable space between your hands (wrists shouldn't hurt). Keeping your elbows against your sides, curl from a fully stretched position to full contraction. Make sure to keep them elbows still, and avoid swinging your upper body. You might want to try standing with your back against a wall.
Biceps & Forearms: Hammer Curls
Sit down with your knees apart, back straight, and abs tense. Keep the shoulders down/back. Let the arms hang down at your sides, and curl up with your palms facing each other throughout the movement. Keep the elbows at your sides as if they were glued there.
Triceps: Skullcrushers
Lie down on your back on the bench, abs tense, shoulders down/back. Grasp the barbell (6-8 inches apart) and hold it above your head with straight arms. Keeping your upper-arm still, bend your elbows so that the barbell almost touches your forehead. For an extra stretch, continue the movement by bringing the barbell behind/below your head, and then straighten the elbows as you go back to the top position. Remember to keep the elbows parallel and close all the way through.
Triceps: Pushdowns
Stand in front of the pulley with knees slightly bent, abs tense, shoulder back/down, and grasp the bar about shoulder width. You may keep your feet parallel or not - whichever makes you feel the most balanced. Keeping the elbows to your sides, press down to the very bottom and squeeze for a second before going back up to a full stretch. A full range of motion is essential!
Abs: Cable Crunches
Attach a rope to your pulley and hold both ends with a steady grip in front of your shoulders (if you're making the rope-attachment yourself, make sure to make sturdy knots at the ends so your hands won't slide off). Kneel in front of the pulley, lean a little bit forward, and consciously try to bring your ribcage as close to the pelvis as possible. This is slightly different than bringing the forehead to the floor, so make sure to target the abs properly.
Quads: Squats
This is a fairly advanced movement, but very effective. Start out light and make sure to get the form right before increasing the weights. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent, abs tense and back slightly overextended. A training-belt may be a good idea to provide extra protection for your back. Shrug a little, and balance the bar on your shoulders before you unhook it from the rack.
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