Exercises to help you tone your arms

“All I wanted was to wear an armless wedding gown. However, I saw this dream slip away because every time I tried on one, my arms looked so flabby,” says Jane Odong. She had struggled with weight gain since giving birth to her first child and no matter what she did, she just could not lose the arm fat.
Arm fat is a common problem among women. In most cases, hands grow bigger compared to the rest of the body, making them seem unproportional to other body parts. Robert Ddamulira, a fitness expert, says although it might seem hard to lose, arm fat will reduce with exercise.

Weight lifting
Ddamulira notes that weight lifting is one of the most effective methods in cutting arm fat. For this kind of exercise, you need weights (not too light and not too heavy). Weights could be metal or anything heavy to create the desired effect. These can be done for 10 to 15 laps twice a day (morning and evening). Odong says she was advised to start taking walks in the morning and evening while carrying the baby. She adds that within six months of doing this, the arm fat started reducing, leaving an effect of more toned arms.

Triceps dips
Ddamulira adds that triceps dips involve one sitting on a chair while holding the edge of your seat with your hands and stretching your legs to the front.
After, move your body forward so that your feet are flat. This will leave your arms bent behind and you holding yourself up. At this point, your body is extended above the ground. In a slow motion, raise and lower your body using triceps.
He recommends doing 10 to 15 laps in the morning and evening.
Biceps curl
Dumbbells can be used to carry out this exercise. Just like weights, carry dumbbells in both hands and keep extending your hands to the shoulders in repeated motion.

Stretches
Stretches are a must before engaging in any exercise. They prepare the body for action thus reducing chances of injury during exercise. Kelvin Onekalit, a gym instructor at Mawanda road, notes that arm fat stretches include static stretching, which involves the stretching of body parts one at a time without making any movement for 10 to 30 seconds.
According to Onekalit, this type of stretching improves the body’s general flexibly and sufficiently straightens the muscles. Other types include dynamic stretching, passing stretching, proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation, active isolated stretching and ballistic stretching, among others. These give you a general body action without being limited to one part.

Push-ups
Push-ups could be a bit hard for beginners but very effective. Ddamulira notes that these involve lying down on your belly with all body parts straight on the ground, while using your hands to do repeated push ups and on the ground. Meanwhile the legs should be kept firm on the ground.
Alternatively, you can seat beneath a chair or any fairly raised place. Place your hands on the chair and make repeated movements up and down for 10 to 15 laps. This is as effective as push-ups.

Planks
Ivan Kiwanuka, an instructor, notes that planks are also good for reducing arm fat. This is done by lying on the ground, with body facing on the ground and using your triceps to make repeated movement off and on the ground. You can take it as far as 15 to 10 laps. These will strengthen your hands hence eliminating the fat.

Boxing
With boxing, you will need materials such as gloves for protecting your hands from injury and a punching bag where the body rests in action. Boxing triggers the body muscles making them firm. It also heats up the body making one sweat hence burning the fat in the hands and other body parts.
“Avoid using hard punching bags because these could cause pain or injuries to your hands,” Kiwanuka warns.

Healthy diet
First thing that has to be changed in order to lose weight are eating habits. In most cases they are enough to get rid of arm fat in other cases they are not and we will explain you why. Certain people have a body structure that makes it really hard to lose weight from the arms, even if they lose it from the other areas. It is essential to start eating healthy, that is the first step to making any change.

Give up on sugar, white bread, fast food, alcohol, and soft drinks. Eat more lean proteins for example fish, chicken, turkey, egg whites and cottage cheese, slow-burning carbohydrates such as black beans, lentils and healthy fats such as olive oil, avocado, coconut.
Drink lots of water, between two to three litres a day and have smaller meals, but more often instead of big heavy meals one or two times a day. This will help you keep your blood sugar at a low level.

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