One of the biggest concerns for women is having excess weight on their arms. There is a lot of confusion about how to reduce this, and naturally, a lot of women feel they need to work out to get slim arms.
In this article, we’ll look at how to get rid of arm fat without gaining muscle, showing you what causes this and how to do this properly.
As we’ll explain, the core issue with getting slimmer arms is down to excess body fat levels. To reduce this, you need to make what we call an energy deficit.
You cannot work out to tone the muscle as such. Whilst this feels good, it has no real effect because you cannot spot train body fat.
Here, we’ll cover how to get rid of arm fat without gaining muscle, including what causes slim arms and what steps you need to begin to take.
What Causes Slim Arms
Before we look at what we need to do to get slimmer arms, we first really want to understand what causes this. Understanding how this works can get you a lot better results.
There is really three parts to being toned. They are:
- Your body fat levels
- Your muscle tone
- How firmly your muscles are held
Firstly, is your body fat levels. This is by far the most important part of getting slim arms.
We all have a certain body fat percentage, which for most women, at your ideal weight will typically be between 19 – 24%.
Above this, what happens is, your body begins to store excess weight throughout. Naturally, this will go to our stomach and legs, but it will also store on other areas, including on our face and in this case, yes, specifically on our arms.
The is the core issue for most women and what you need to focus on. To the question of why won’t my arms get thinner, it really is down to your body fat levels not reducing.
Underneath this, you have your actual muscle tone and a little more advanced is how firmly they are held in a relaxed state.
However, these are separate from your body fat levels.
You cannot spot train body fat. What happens is, you can actually build and have great muscle tone, but it ends up underneath, therefore you don’t have visible results.
Not only do we know this is true (for example that you cannot do sit-ups to get a slim stomach), but lots of research has also specifically tested this and found it to be the case (study, study, study).
When it comes to how to get rid of arm fat without gaining muscle, you need to focus on weight loss and getting to your ideal weight.
Your body fat percentage is very closely tied to your weight, so as you lose weight, your arms will start to get slimmer.
Do note, that it’s normal that you may lose from other areas first because we typically do not lose weight evenly, however as you get to your ideal weight, your arms will become slim.
How To Get Slim Arms
To get slim arms, as you can see above, you need to focus on weight loss. As you lose weight, this is where your body will tap into its energy stores and you will begin to get slimmer.
To lose weight, you need to make what we call an energy deficit. This is the source and what causes weight loss (study).
How this works though is not very well understood.
Each day your body burns what’s known as energy, typically known as calories.
When you eat below what your body burns, your body taps into its energy stores and you lose weight.
It actually takes a full 3500 calories to lose one pound.
This means is that by making an energy deficit of 500 each day, that will add up to one pound over the week.
This applied over time is how you get to your ideal weight and get slimmer arms.
This is not something done overnight. It’s not easy and takes a lot of commitment, but is what really causes you to to get the best results.
Do Workouts Reduce Arm Fat?
Not by themselves, no.
Because as covered above, you cannot spot train body fat. What happens is, yes, you may be building muscle tone, but it’s underneath and you’re unable to see it.
In the same way with your legs, stomach, your hips, or even your face, to reduce your arms you need to focus on the energy deficit.
There is indeed something called the recomposition effect. This is where, as you build muscle tone, your body can effectively swap some body fat for this muscle tone.
However, this effect is quite small and unless you’re already close to being toned, is not enough to see real results.
You get a lot better results to focus specifically on weight loss and the energy deficit first.
Do I Need To Workout To Get Slim Arms
Can you lose arm fat without exercise? Yes, you can.
Remember, arm fat cannot be spot trained and is lost through general weight loss.
How you actually lose weight in itself does not matter. Workouts themselves actually contribute far less to weight loss than many realize. Most workouts and cardio sessions do burn energy, but only several hundred per workout, which is not enough on its own to lose weight.
You do not need to workout as such to lose weight, provided you are in an energy deficit.
How To Get Rid Of Arm Fat Without Gaining Muscle
As you can see above, losing arm fat is caused by weight loss and making an energy deficit. This is not a quick fix but is how you get rid of arm fat without gaining muscle.
As you lose weight, this is where your body will tap into its energy stores and your arms will begin to become slimmer.
Workouts themselves are by and large not the cause of reducing arm fat. This is because you cannot spot train body fat. Yes, you may be building tone, but this is underneath, and you won’t have visible results.
As you get to your ideal weight, they will become slim for you.