How to Get Rid of Upper Arm Fat (10 Best Exercises)

If you’re looking to get rid of the upper arm fat then you’re not alone. Arm fat can seem like the first place you gain weight and the last place to lose it. It’s disheartening!

Wouldn’t it be great to look in the mirror and see slim and toned arms? Having stubborn arm fat that doesn’t go away even if you’re making progress on the rest of your body is frustrating. Having arm fat can make anyone feel insecure, especially if they look out of proportion to the rest of your body.

But as you may have already found out, weight loss alone isn’t the answer. And you could be doing the wrong exercise routine that’s not even working. Cardiovascular exercise also won’t slim and tighten your arms any better.

Here, you’ll discover how to lose arm fat using the best diet, exercises, and workout methods. So keep going to uncover how you can get rid of arm fat fast so you can proudly wear sleeveless tops again.

The Secrets to Losing Arm Weight Quickly

There are a few reasons you may struggle with big upper arms that seem impossible to get rid of. Losing the arm fat and getting slim and thin arms is more than doable once you start doing what works.

Genetics will play a role in carrying a lot of weight in your arms and upper body.^1,2 Women tend to naturally carry more weight in the arms, hips, and thighs than men, who store more in the belly.^3,4

Arm fat can seem the hardest to lose if you notice you gain weight there first. Our bodies genetically distribute fat to certain locations, which also means they’re usually the last place to leave.

If you focus only on weight loss, you’ll also lose muscle and fat.⁵ Depending on how much fat you want to lose on your arms, you’ll also need to have some muscle to tone up and tighten them.

Without muscle, your arms can become flabby, jiggly, and unhealthy.⁶ Skinny fat is when you lose weight, but still have a high body fat composition. This allows stubborn body fat to remain and near impossible to lose arm fat.

You’ve probably heard that spot reduction doesn’t work for toning up certain parts of your body. It’s true that depending on how much fat you have to lose. You’ll need to reduce your overall body fat, in addition to doing targeted exercises specifically for your arms.

Don’t make this mistake when trying to lose arm fat…

Why It’s So Hard to Lose Arm Fat

The theory behind spot reduction is that if you train a certain spot on your body, you’ll lose fat from there. So, for example, if you do a bunch of sit-ups, you should expect to lose a beer belly.⁷ But it doesn’t work like this!

That’s because just doing these exercises that strengthen the muscle doesn’t mean it will also burn much fat from that area directly. Crazy enough, if this is all you’re doing, then you could very well make the area look bulkier than it should.

If you have too much excess fat on your body, you’ll also need to reduce your overall body weight to really start slimming down your arms. But just losing weight won’t lower your body fat very much.

Many people lose muscle along with fat during the weight loss process. This muscle loss results in flabby, stubborn areas like big arms that won’t go away. Commonly referred to as “skinny fat,” this thin yet fat problem still results in stubborn fat areas like the upper arms.

This is what really works for getting rid of arm fat…

What You Need to Do to Lose Arm Fat

So now that you know weight loss isn’t really the answer, it’s time to get down to brass tacks. The first part of the answer to how to lose arm fat is to lower your body fat.

I’d recommend picking up a smart scale to measure your body fat. They’re not always the most accurate, but they’ll help give you a ballpark picture of your progress. Also, be sure to measure your body inches. This will let you know if you’re getting results in slimming and toning your body.⁸

You’ll also need to put your body into a caloric deficit to really move the needle with fat loss. Your diet is really going to make up the bulk of your results with this, so it’s best to consume fewer calories than you’re burning off.

Try a low-calorie, low-carb, and high-protein healthy diet.⁹ In my experience as a personal trainer and nutrition coach, this formula works best for those who have trouble keeping the weight off. For a complete nutrition plan to lose stubborn fat, check out my Flat Belly Formula system.

Most women do well on 1200-1500 calories per day, but this will need to be adjusted based on the individual.¹⁰ Consume about 0.8 grams of protein per pound of body weight per day.¹¹ If you have trouble reaching this daily goal then try adding a low-carb protein powder.

These targeted arm exercises will give you the best results when combined with high-intensity training.¹² When combined with the HIIT workouts, these targeted exercises below will give you the best results possible for toning and slimming down your arms.

Afterward, add in a traditional slow-go cardio workout to promote fat burning to your arm region even more.¹³ 20-40 minutes of brisk walking, jogging, biking, etc. can help to lose arm fat further as glycogen stores have been depleted and these targeted exercises have promoted fat burning to the arm area.

Hammer Curls

1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, holding a dumbbell in each hand with your arms fully extended and palms facing your body.
2. Keeping your elbows close to your sides, slowly curl the weights up towards your shoulders while maintaining the palms-facing-in grip.
3. At the top of the curl, squeeze your biceps and hold for a brief moment.
4. Gradually lower the dumbbells back to the starting position with control, completing one rep. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Close Grip Pushups

1. Get in the push-up position, with your hands under your shoulders and closer together than you would a regular push-up.
2. Keeping your elbows tucked close to your body, lower your chest towards the ground while maintaining a straight line from head to heels. Your inside upper arms should touch the side of your torso as you lower your body down.
3. Push through your hands to raise your body back to the starting position, completing one rep. Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Zottman Curls

1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, holding a dumbbell in each hand, arms fully extended, and palms facing forward.
2. Curl the weights up towards your shoulders, keeping your palms facing up (supinated grip) and elbows close to your sides.
3. At the top of the curl, rotate your wrists so your palms face down (pronated grip), then slowly lower the weights back to the starting position.
4. Rotate your wrists back to the palms-up position and repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Lying Tricep Extensions

1. Lie on a bench or the floor with a dumbbell in each hand, arms fully extended above your chest, and palms facing each other.
2. Keeping your upper arms stationary, bend your elbows to lower the dumbbells towards your forehead in a controlled motion.
3. Stop when your hands are just above your forehead or slightly behind it, feeling the stretch in your triceps.
4. Push the dumbbells back up to the starting position by straightening your elbows, completing one rep.

Superband Curls

1. Stand on the middle of a superband with your feet shoulder-width apart, holding the ends of the band with your palms facing forward.
2. Keeping your elbows close to your sides, curl the band upwards towards your shoulders by contracting your biceps.
3. At the top of the curl, squeeze your biceps and hold for a brief moment.
4. Slowly lower the band back to the starting position with control, completing one rep.

Chair Dips

1. Sit on the edge of a chair with your hands gripping the edge, fingers pointing forward, and your legs extended out in front of you.
2. Slide off the chair, support your weight with your arms, and lower your body by bending your elbows to a 90-degree angle.
3. Lower until your upper arms are parallel to the floor, feeling the stretch in your triceps.
4. Press through your palms to raise your body back to the starting position, completing one rep.

Halfway Dumbbell Curls

1. In the standing position, hold a dumbbell in each hand with your feet hip-width apart.
2. Bend one elbow to 90 degrees with your palm facing towards your body.
3. With the other arm, perform traditional biceps curls with your palms facing up (supinated position).
4. Perform a few curls before switching arms. Try to do this for a few times per side.

Dumbbell Kickbacks

1. Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent, and hinge forward at the hips. Hold a dumbbell in each hand, palms facing your body, and elbows bent at 90 degrees.
2. Keeping your upper arms stationary and close to your sides, straighten your elbows to extend the dumbbells back until your arms are fully extended.
3. At the top of the movement, squeeze your triceps and hold briefly.
4. Slowly bend your elbows to bring the dumbbells back to the starting position, completing one rep.

Side Lunge Curls

1. Start off standing and holding a pair of dumbbells.
2. Take a big step out to the side with one leg. Squat down on that leg towards the ground while keeping your other leg straight.
3. Lower the dumbbells down towards your ankles while keeping your back straight and your chest up.
4. Begin to bring yourself back up to the starting position and curl the dumbbells up towards your shoulders.
5. Repeat on the other side.

Plank-to-Pushup

1. Begin in a forearm plank position with your body in a straight line from head to heels, elbows directly under your shoulders.
2. Press up onto your right hand, then your left hand, coming into a high plank position with arms fully extended.
3. Lower back down onto your right forearm, then your left forearm, returning to the starting forearm plank position.
4. Alternate the leading arm and repeat for the desired number of repetitions.

Use This Workout Plan to Lose Arm Fat

Now that you know the best exercises, start putting them together on a plan. While spot reduction itself doesn’t work very well, you can lose arm fat by:

1. Putting your body into a calorie deficit
2. Use high-intensity training combined with…
3. These targeted exercises

Unless your body is already thin but still have upper arm fat, then these exercises alone will only do so much. If you have excess body fat, then add these targeted exercises with a body fat burning diet and high-intensity workouts to get the best and fastest results possible.

The best workout plan combines the above targeted arm exercises with a high-intensity workout. So for example you could do the biceps curl exercise along with doing stair sprints. You could also do the close-grip pushups along with jumping rope.

The trick is to get your heart rate up high with fat-burning workouts and pepper in these targeted exercises. Your body will be in a fat-burning mode, which will make it the ideal moment to use these exercises to build some toned muscle.

Then, if you can, add 20-40 minutes of slow-go cardio after this workout to further burn fat. For optimal results for losing arm fat, try to do this workout plan 2-5 times per week.

Summary

• Combine HIIT and Targeted Arm Exercises: The key to slimming down and toning your arms is to combine high-intensity with these specific targeted arm exercises. Combining the two, you’ll lose arm fat the fastest while toning and tightening your upper arms.
• Lower Body Fat and Add Lean Muscle: Simply losing weight isn’t enough to eliminate arm flab or your body can become skinny fat. Focus on reducing overall body fat by putting your body into a caloric deficit and building lean muscle throughout your body.
• Avoid Muscle Loss During Weight Loss: Losing weight can also mean losing muscle, which can make your arms appear flabbier. Just doing these exercises alone can possibly make arms look bigger if carrying too much excess body fat.
• Holistic Approach for Better Results: Genetics may influence fat distribution, but using this plan that combines targeted exercises and body fat-burning strategies, you can get fast results and confidently wear sleeveless outfits.