Bored of bicep curls? Try this 20-minute dancer arm workout instead

When you think of a dance workout, “arms” aren’t exactly the first muscle that comes to mind. What you may not realize, though, is that there are plenty of ways your dance cardio routine can double as way to get stronger, and you don’t even need weights to get it done.

In this week’s Trainer of the Month workout, DanceBody founder and CEO Katia Pryce sweats her way through a dancer arm workout that will spike your heart rate and sculpt your upper body in under 20 minutes. In addition to being so much fun you’ll practically forget you’re working out, the series requires zero weight, which means you can do it anywhere, any time.

While we’ve all been conditioned to believe that you need to be curling dumbbells for the sake of strengthening your arms, that’s actually not the case. “No-equipment arm workouts are a great way to get in a burn while on the go—especially if you don’t have any weights with you,” Sarah Grooms, a trainer at obé, previously told Well+Good. “Using your own resistance against the air can be an effective and efficient way to focus on form and proper alignment, all before adding any extra weight as an option to level up.”

For Pryce’s dancer arm workout, you’ll start with a few moves to raise your heart rate and get your muscles nice and warm. “The back of the body, the front of the body, the arms, everything is all connected here, so we’ll want to warm up the entire body before we kill those arms,” says Pryce. Once you’ve got that done, you’ll spend the next 15 minutes working your arms to the beat of the music.

As you’ll realize within the first few minutes, “it kills,” she says. While you can get some seriously good work in with no weight at all, you can also up the ante with a set of weighted arm bands and some light weights (even holding a water bottle or a can of soup in each hand will do). The moves primarily target your arms, but like any good dancer workout, you’ll also feel it in your legs and core… and by the end, your heart will be racing.

To try it on your own, pop on your favorite playlist and press play on the video above. You’ll feel stronger all over (but especially in your arms) in no time.