Ah, dreaded armpit fat. Summer’s here and that means wearing swimsuits, tank tops and spaghetti strap dresses. It can kill your confidence to look in the mirror and notice a bulge under your armpit. Fortunately, there are great armpit fat workouts that will help you tighten and tone the area and lose fat so you don’t have to worry about feeling self conscious. Ready to check them out? Let’s go!
What is Armpit Fat?
Armpit fat is the extra fold of skin between your arm and your boob that becomes particularly noticeable when you put on a bra. It’s extremely common, and nothing to be embarrassed about, but if you’re not feeling good about your armpit fat, there are a number of things you can do to get rid of it.
Every woman has their problem areas, and some struggle with armpit fat more than others. However, you never just accumulate fat in one area. Armpit fat is the result of excess fat throughout your body. Bigger breasts can also contribute to fat in the surrounding areas since the breast tissue can push up or down, causing fat to crease and become more noticeable.
What Causes Armpit Fat?
1. Genetics
Just like gaining weight in any other area of your body, if your mom or grandma is prone to armpit fat, you may likely be as well. Fat accumulation in certain parts of the body has been proven to be genetic in nature, especially from mother to daughter.
2. Ill-Fitting Bras
Ill-fitting bras can cause armpit fat to look much worse than it really is. If you put on your bra and notice a big bulge between your armpit and boob, you may not be wearing a bra that fits properly. If you’re wearing a bra with cups that are too small for your breasts, it’s likely the excess tissue will move to the armpit area. This can also happen if the band is fitted too tight to your body.
3. Inactive Upper Body
Inactivity is a leading cause of obesity. As we mentioned, different people accumulate fat in different areas of their body, and if you don’t consciously work your upper body, it’s one of the places that can accumulate the most fat. If you’re not very active with your upper body, you’re likely to notice armpit fat.
How to Prevent Armpit Fat
1. Change Your Diet
When you want to lose weight, the general rule of thumb is that you have to burn more calories than you consume. If you need to work on consuming less, cut out bad for you foods like processed foods, sugary drinks, pizza, potato chips, pastries, pasta and anything that’s super unhealthy. Eat smaller, healthier meals more frequently throughout the day to make you feel fuller. Focus on consuming whole grains, fruits, vegetables, healthy fats like avocado, and lean proteins such as fish.
2. Wear The Correct Size Bra
As we mentioned above, one of the biggest culprits of armpit fat is wearing the wrong size bra or an ill-fitting bra. To fix this problem, get a professional bra fitting to make sure you’re wearing the correct size bra. This will prevent excess bulge in the armpit area.
3. Strength Training
Strength training is a great way to burn fat. A big goal with weight loss is increasing your metabolism, and increasing your muscle mass will help you do just that. Focus on working the biggest muscle groups to burn more fat overall. When it comes to armpit fat, the two best muscle groups to focus on are your chest and back. Pull ups, chin ups, pushups and shoulder presses are great moves to do!
4. Cardio
Cardio exercises help you burn calories and lose fat overall. The best cardio workouts to help you burn more calories are high intensity cardio exercises like interval training or bootcamp classes. These workouts will work better than running at the same pace on a treadmill for 30 minutes, so work them into your weekly routine!
5 Armpit Fat Workouts That Work!
10 Min Get Rid of Armpit and Back Fat | Emi Wong
If you have armpit fat, you may be experiencing back fat as well since it accumulates in the same area. These ten exercises work your back and chest to target armpit fat and burn calories overall.
How to Lose Back Fat and Get Rid of Bra Bulge | Rebecca-Louise
This workout requires dumbbells, but that’s pretty much all you need! Follow her through these amazing exercises to tone your back and reduce armpit fat. These upper body exercises will help you blast bra bulge once and for all!
Armpit Fat Workout | Live Lean TV
This workout will help you target and tone armpit fat so you can wear tank tops and bikinis without worrying about your bulge. It’s a ten minute workout you can do at home, and all you need is light dumbbells and an exercise mat. She takes you through a range of exercises to really work the area, plus surrounding areas like the back and chest.
Bra Bulge and Back Fat Workout | Love Sweat Fitness
In this video, she explains the importance of working your back and chest to get rid of bra bulge. She takes you through 4 simple exercises for the back and chest, and you don’t need any equipment other than dumbbells for one of the exercises. Repeat this workout 3 times with 12 reps per exercise to reap the best results!
Eliminate Fat Under the Armpits | Upper Back Exercise | Susana Yabar
This workout focuses on the upper back to eliminate armpit fat. The routine consists of 4 exercises, each done for 30 seconds and repeated 3 times. You’re sure to get a great workout and tighten and tone the area underneath your armpit!
If you’re struggling to eliminate armpit fat, try these workouts to tighten and tone!