You only need light dumbbells to build strong arms, according to this trainer

Grab a pair of light weights and try this strength workout

man facing sideways to the camera holding a light dumbbell in each hand held up laterally at shoulder-height. wearing a blue tshirt indoors with windows behind him.
(Image credit: Getty Images)

It’s a misconception that you need heavy weights to tone your arms. You can absolutely build upper-body muscle with lighter dumbbells, especially when targeting smaller muscles like your biceps and triceps.

Certified personal trainer Heidi Neal has created an eight-move circuit using light weights to sculpt your arms and shoulders. She recommends doing each move for 30 seconds and then repeating the routine. Scroll down to see the exercises.

How to do Heidi Neal’s arms workout

New to exercise? I’d recommend starting with six to eight repetitions of each move instead of 30 seconds as Neal suggests. When six to eight feels too easy, you can increase it to eight to 10, then 10-12. When 12 repetitions feel comfortable, it’s time to go up with the weight and back down to six to eight repetitions. Aim for a 2.5 pound increase when you're ready.

How to use lighter weights to build muscle

Neal's workout targets small muscles like the biceps, triceps and deltoids (shoulder muscles). Her exercises often isolate these muscles, forcing them to take on all of the load. This means you only need a light weight to challenge them.

Even if you're targeting larger muscles you can still use light weights to improve your muscle mass; you just need to increase the number of repetitions of an exercise to get a sufficient challenge.

As a personal trainer, I always tell my clients the most important thing for muscle growth is to follow the principle of progressive overload. This simply means increasing the intensity, volume or frequency of your workouts to continually challenge your muscles. That could mean lifting heavier weights, doing more repetitions or working out more frequently as you get stronger.

Maddy Biddulph

Maddy Biddulph is a freelance journalist specializing in fitness, health and wellbeing content. With 26 years in consumer media, she has worked as a writer and editor for some of the bestselling newspapers, magazines and websites in the US and UK. 

She is also a qualified L3 personal trainer and weight loss advisor, and helps women over 40 navigate menopause by improving their physical and mental strength. At Maddy Biddulph Personal Training, she runs one-to-one and small group training for menopausal women who want to get fit to ease symptoms and feel like themselves again.