Take a quick walk wherever people are exposing their arms, and you're bound to see extra folds of skin and tissue, also known as armpit fat.
Extra fat around the chest and underarms can affect people of all ages, weights, and sizes. Also, tight clothes can cause the chest skin to rise up, giving the appearance of armpit fat.
Fat in the armpits is completely normal, whatever its cause.
If you are concerned about underarm fat, keep reading to find out about the causes and how to reduce its appearance.
What Are the Causes of Armpit Fat?
Here are some of the reasons behind armpit fat:
1) Obesity: If you are overweight, the probability of fat deposition in your armpit area will be high.
2) Genetics: It is one of the main reasons for armpit fat as your genes determine your body’s whole structure, including where fat deposition would be higher.
3) Lymphedema: Swelling in lymph nodes because of infection or injury can be a cause of armpit fat as well.
4) Hormonal Changes: A disbalance in estrogen and progesterone levels in the body can cause breast swelling, leading to excess armpit fat.
5) Axillary Breast Tissue: Although very rare, breast tissues sometimes develop outside the breast area and cause excess armpit fat.
How To Reduce Armpit Fat?
Here's how to reduce underarm fat with yoga and arm fat exercises:
1) Jumping Jacks:
This exercise requires no equipment or special guidance and can be easily done at home. It involves jumping by spreading your hands and legs outward simultaneously.
2) Triceps Stretch:
Take a dumbbell and lift it with your hands bending across the head. It reduces armpit fat and tones arm muscles.
3) Skipping Rope:
One of the simplest forms of arm fat exercises is skipping rope or jump rope. It not only removes excess fat from the armpit, hips, legs and hands but also reduces sagginess and provides strength to muscles. You can jump rope with both legs at the same time or alternate between two legs.
4) Inchworm Exercise:
This is a 5-step exercise and requires practice, but it effectively reduces armpit fat.
a) Stand straight with your arms raised upward.
b) Now touch your feet with your palms.
c) Pull your legs backward so that your body gets in plank position.
d) Now take your body downwards, touching the ground.
e) Hold for 10 seconds and then start again from step 1.
5) Push-ups:
A regular push-up routine reduces armpit fat and strengthens the core as well as lower back muscles.
6) Triceps Pushdown:
Also known as triceps press down, this exercise involves the use of spring-like resistance equipment. You are required to pull the spring downward with your hands and bring it back up slowly until your arm is parallel to the ground.
7) Sideways Bending:
When you bend one of your hands sideways over the head, you put extra pressure on your armpits. As a result, extra deposited fat burns down. It can be a part of yoga for reducing arm fat.
8) Jabbing:
In this exercise, lift dumbbells of the weight you are comfortable with and jab your hands to the sides alternatively like a boxer. This exerts pressure on the armpit and thus reduces fat.
9) Bicep Curl:
This is another solution on how to lose armpit fat that involves dumbbells. It helps in muscle toning and the reduction of armpit fat. You are required to lift dumbbells up to your shoulders. Ensure there is a variation in the number of reps you do.
10) Superman Stretch:
As the name suggests, this exercise involves lying down in a flying position like a Superman for at least 10 seconds. You should stretch your hands and legs horizontally upward while your chest should touch the ground.
11) Upright Row:
It is a weight lifting exercise beneficial for reducing armpit and biceps fat. Hold a barbell (with/without weights) with your hands, and then lift them to your chest. Hold for a couple of seconds, and then slowly bring your hands down.
12) Mountain Climbing Exercise:
Lie down straight and then raise your body with the support of your palms and toes. Then bend your left knee towards the chest and pull it back immediately. Repeat the same with your right knee.
13) Chest Press Exercise:
Lie facing front on the yoga mat. Hold dumbbells in both hands and keep your arms beside your chest. Take your hands up straight and bring them down towards your chest again slowly. This works on your chest and arm muscles.
14) Seated Cable Row:
You have to pull a spring cable rope tied to a pillar or some equipment towards yourself for generating resistance. This strengthens and tones the arms and lats. It is a good exercise for the back and arms.
15) Battle Ropes:
In addition to reducing armpit fat, battle ropes increase cardiovascular health and strengthen arm muscles. You must stand in a squat position holding a rope in both hands and then forming a wave with them by hitting the rope on the ground.
16) Circling Arms:
Rotating arms in full or semi-circle helps in reducing armpit, shoulder and arm fat. Perform this 20 times daily in both clockwise and anti-clockwise directions for best results.
17) Chair Dip Routine:
Take a stool or a chair and sit on its edge. Now stretch your legs forward, holding the chair firmly with your hands. Get down towards the floor and then go upwards slowly. You will feel the pressure on your triceps. Ensure your back is straight and close to the chair. You can repeat this 2 to 3 times a day to reduce armpit fat.
18) Elbow Pressing:
It is a stretching exercise. It can be performed as a warm-up or cool-down. You have to lift your left hand up, bend your elbows behind your hand with support from your right hand. Stay in this position for 15 seconds. Then repeat with your right hand. It helps in losing fat by extra pressure on armpits and hands.
Also Read: Yoga for Heart: 15 Yoga Poses You Should Try for a Healthy Heart
When Should I See A Doctor?
Armpit fat usually doesn't indicate a medical condition. It could be reduced by yoga, weight training and a healthy, sustainable diet. You should consult a doctor if you feel a lump or excess pain in that area.
Summing Up on How to Reduce Armpit Fat?
In adults, it is common to have armpit fat. Excess weight is often to blame, but hormones and genetics may also play a role.
Armpit fat may sometimes be a condition known as axillary breast. The axillary breast grows in or around the armpit, as its name suggests.
Talk to your doctor if excess breast tissue is causing problems for you.
FAQs
1) What Foods Reduce Armpit Fat?
To lose weight and get rid of excess body fat, especially around the arms, you must follow a healthy diet. So make sure you consume fresh vegetables, whole grains, nuts, lean meats, fish and superfoods like sabja (chia seeds), rajgira (amaranth), and quinoa.
2) Does Armpit Fat Go Away?
Unfortunately, armpit fat doesn't disappear by itself. The only way to lose fat from any part of your body is by improving your diet, followed by an exercise program to tone those areas.
3) How Long Does It Take to Get Rid of Armpit Fat?
It takes anywhere from 3-6 months to lose the fat underneath your arms, depending on how much fat you have to lose and how committed you are to do it. The fastest way to lose it is to make changes in three different areas at the same time -
- Monitor your calorie intake and improve your nutrition.
- Moving more (i.e. walking, doing a light cardio workout, etc.),
- building more lean muscle with strength exercises.
4) What Is the Purpose of Armpits?
You may not be aware of this, but your armpits have a surprising number of lymph nodes, about 20 of them in each clump, which is essential to your body's immune system since they filter toxins out of tissues. They also produce immune cells known as lymphocytes, which fight infection.
5) How Do You Lose Armpit Fat Without Exercise?
Here’s how you can reduce armpit fat without doing exercises -
- Follow a healthy diet - Diet accounts for 80% of your weight loss. Including some fat-burning foods in your diet will reduce your fat reserves and decrease your arm fat. Lose unwanted fat in your body with the following foods and beverages - green vegetables, apple cider vinegar, eggs, olive oil and fish.
- Add more protein and fibre into your diet - The hallmarks of eating to lose weight are protein and fibre. Protein is found in meat, fish, and eggs, while fibre is abundant in fruits and vegetables.
- Avoid staying up late - Sleeping less than 7 hours a night stimulates the release of cortisol, a stress hormone that puts your body into conservation mode and causes you to consume fat during the day. Sleep deprivation can also increase cravings because it lowers the feeling of satiety and increases ghrelin, the hunger hormone.
