Flabby underarms are a spot of bother for many of us, and in our desire to develop toned underarms, we often end up doing exercises that allegedly focus on reducing underarm fat.
If you think you can exclusively work on eliminating your underarm flab, then sorry, but we will have to disagree with you there. It is a common misconception that we can work on isolated areas of our bodies to remove fat.
This is called ‘spot reduction’, which most reputed studies have already debunked. So when you are talking about exercises for flabby underarms, you are actually referring to exercises that target fat loss in your whole upper body, including your chest, shoulders, back, and crucially, the underarms.
In this article, we are going to talk about a few such exercises which will help you to shred your underarm fat along with negative fat in other parts of your upper body. In this list, we have included both exercises that can be done without any equipment and also exercises that can be done with minimal equipment like dumbbells.
What Causes Flabby Underarms?
Flabby underarms can be a result of a combination of factors.
- It can be from genetic reasons if you have a family history of negative fat accumulation.
- It can be due to leading an unhealthy lifestyle and not following a proper diet.
- As you age, you might end up losing some of your muscle mass and that, combined with lack of activity, causes fat accumulation in the underarms.
Can Flabby Underarms Really Be Toned?
If we are completely honest, you cannot lose your underarm fat overnight by miraculous means. But you do, however, have several courses of action to improve the situation, if not transform it entirely.
How Can You Make Underarm Flab Go Away?
Since we have established that you cannot work on your underarms in isolation, you need to focus on ways to decrease your overall body fat and exercises that will target the muscles of your armpit region.
The first consists of maintaining a healthy diet, staying away from junk food, keeping a healthy sleep schedule, etc.
The second consists of some specific exercises about which we will now talk in detail.
Dumbbell Training for flabby Underarms
Dumbbells are one of the best means of doing underarm-related exercises because they are easily available, safe, beginner-friendly, and also improves grip strength.
Where Can I Buy Dumbbell Weights?
Most of these exercises to rid of your flabby underarm fat are going to require weights. If you do not have any weights or dumbbells laying around you will have to find a place to buy some. For many of us this is where it gets a bit confusing. But I can help you out.
There are many places where you can buy a pair of weights and some basic cheap dumbbells but the best, and really the most convenient places to buy them is going to be from Amazon, Walmart and Dickssportinggoods.
Dumbbell Exercises for Flabby Underarms
Here are some exercises for flabby underarms that you can do with a dumbbell:
Bicep Curls
This is one of the basic exercises that you have to accommodate in your workout regime at least three times a week to see tangible results.
How to Do Bicep Curls?
To do the bicep curls, follow these steps:
- Your starting position would be standing with your feet spaced apart by a hip’s width. You would hold a dumbbell on each hand, and your chest should be erect.
- Now bring the dumbbells towards your shoulders by bending your elbows.
- Lower the dumbbells back to the starting position in a slow and controlled manner.
- Repeat for at least 12 reps.
Muscles Worked
The bicep curls mainly work the following muscles:
- Biceps
- Brachialis
- Brachioradialis
Benefits
- Bicep curls build impressive strength in your upper arm.
- They induce you into using your arm muscles properly and to engage with your core muscles more effectively.
Common Mistakes
- Do not try to complete the movements too quickly. Focus on maintaining proper form, not how many or how fast you can do.
- Be careful of your elbow position during the exercise. They should stay attached to your body.
If you find your elbows flailing or moving in an unregulated manner, you need to decrease the amount of weight you are using.
Dumbbell Row
The dumbbell row allows you to isolate specific muscles for a high-intensity workout. It is a huge favourite among athletes who strive to increase their fitness and strength.
Muscles Worked
The Dumbbell row works the following muscles
- Latissimus Dorsi
- Biceps
- Spinal erectors
- Stabilizer muscles
How to Do the Dumbbell Row?
To do the dumbbell row properly, you have to follow these steps:
- Your starting position will require you to put one knee on the bench and the other leg, in a slightly bent position, placed rigidly on the floor.
- To stabilize your body, you will hold the top of the bench strongly.
- Grab the handle of the dumbbell with your thumb.
- When you are starting the row, your goal would be to put your elbow behind at a 90-degree angle while you pull the dumbbell.
- After completing the upward movement, you lower the dumbbell until your elbows are fully extended.
- Do at least 12 reps.
Benefits of Dumbbell Rows
- Apart from working your back muscles, the dumbbell row also activates your core to a large extent.
- They are extremely effective for burning calories, reducing fat, and building muscle mass.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- One common mistake is that you fail to keep your neck and your spine aligned.
- Many people make the mistake of arching their lower back during the exercise. It is extremely dangerous.
Bent-Over Row
The bent-over row is one of the most highly rated exercises for building muscle mass in your shoulders and back. It gets rid of unwanted fat and also builds up the overall strength of your body.
It is arguably the best exercise for flabby underarms.
How to Do the Bent-Over Dumbbell Row?
To do the bent-over row, follow these steps:
- Holding a dumbbell in each hand, lower your body at an angle of 45 degrees. Keep your back upright through the movement. Now take a deep breath in.
- Lift the dumbbells upwards while exhaling. Be careful of the movement of your wrists during the lift.
Also, remember that the legs do not move during the entire exercise.
- Now lower the dumbbells down slowly while letting the breath out.
Muscles Worked
The bent-over row targets the following muscles
- Latissimus Dorsi
- Teres Major
- Rear deltoid muscles
- Rhomboids
- Trapezius or traps
Benefits of the Bent-Over Row
- It is a compound exercise and lets you work various muscles in the upper back, lower back, and shoulders.
- It builds stability in the body, enhances grip strength and helps to fix recurring back pains.
- It prepares your body for other advanced exercises like pull-ups and pull-downs.
Common Mistakes
- It is inadvisable to attempt this exercise until you have acquired reasonable experience in weight training. This is because you need to have an extremely strong lower back for this exercise.
- You must not lift the dumbbells beyond the level of your shoulders.
- Your body should not bend more than an angle of 45 degrees. Bending more than that can damage your back, especially if you are working with heavy dumbbells.
- Do not lift too much weight in this exercise unless you are extremely confident about your body is up to the task.
Exercises for Underarm Flab at Home
In this part, we will mainly talk about simple exercises that you can do at home to reduce underarm flab. These exercises are mostly without equipment, but you can use equipment in some of them if you want to.
Planks
Planks help you to develop a strong core and can also boost your performance and agility if you are a professional athlete. More to the point, they are extremely effective in reducing armpit fat.
Planks have a lot of exciting variations, so you will never get stagnant while doing these exercises. After two weeks of planks training, you can even use dumbbells for further optimization.
How to Do Planks?
To do planks, follow these steps:
- To do planks, start with your body in the plank position with your legs forward and your elbows beneath your shoulders.
- Lift your body by engaging your toes while your forearms are pressed to the ground.
- Holding for 30 seconds, and go back to your starting position.
Muscles Worked
Planks work the muscles of the whole body, from the core muscles to the trapezius to the quadriceps and gluteal muscles.
Benefits of Planks
- Planks are one of the most effective endurance training routines for removing armpit fat by decreasing your overall weight.
- Doing planks regularly improves the overall flexibility of your body, fixes posture issues if you have any, and also has a beneficial effect on your body’s metabolism.
Mistakes to Avoid while Doing Planks
- A common mistake that you should avoid is hunching your back while doing planks, which significantly reduces the effectiveness of the exercise.
- Do not continue doing planks if you find your hips are sagging.
Push-ups
Push-ups are a basic exercise that increases the functional strength of your body and activates the major muscle groups of your body.
They are one of the best exercises to do at home for armpit fat because they are easy to execute and do not require any equipment.
How to Do Push-ups?
To do push-ups at home, follow these steps:
- Your starting position would be prone on the ground. Place your arms at a distance marginally wider than your shoulders.
- Your feet should be extended behind so that you are practically balancing on your toes.
- Use your hands as support to prop down your body on the ground, and then lift yourself back again.
- Repeat as many times as seems feasible
Benefits of Push-ups
- Push-ups are a compound exercise that engages diverse muscle groups and gives you good value for the effort you put into them.
- Push-ups eliminate negative fat from your body and improve the functionalities of your stabilizer muscles.
Muscles Worked
Push-ups work the chest muscles, deltoids, triceps, and abdominal muscles.
Mistakes to Avoid
- While doing push-ups, keep in mind that you must not put much pressure on your lower back, as that can cause spinal injuries.
- A common difficulty that arises while doing push-ups is that you might not be able to do them well because of a weak upper core. In such a scenario, you should practise planking for a few sessions, which will strengthen your upper body, and you will then be able to do push-ups.
Cat-Cow
This is an easy enough exercise that you can do at home if you can procure a Yoga mat or something similar. It mainly targets the unwanted fat in your back, underarms and chest.
How to Do the Cat-Cow?
The cat-cow involves the following steps:
- Drop on all fours into a Yoga mat. Your hands would be placed beneath your shoulders and your knees tucked under the hips.
- Take a deep breath out, and arch your spine in a position that is also called the ‘cat position’.
- Next, take a deep breath in, and raise your chest up. Your spine and abdomen will form a curving position towards the floor, a position known as the ‘cow position’.
- Alternate between the two positions as you inhale and exhale.
- Repeat as many times as feasible.
Muscles Worked
The Cat-cow works the following muscles
- Shoulder muscles
- Lower back muscles
- Hip flexors
- Latissimus Dorsi or lats
Benefits of the Cat Cow
- It is especially beneficial for those with recurring back issues as it fixes posture and balance problems.
- It is extremely effective in getting rid of unwanted fat quickly.
Mistakes to Avoid
- There will be no benefits from this exercise if you do not get the breathing movement correct.
- Do not attempt this exercise with bad form.
Final Thoughts
We have listed the exercises that we think will be helpful for getting rid of underarm fat.
If you do these exercises regularly as part of your workout routine, and if you combine that with a healthy diet and a proper sleep schedule, you should see tangible changes in your underarms soon.
