5 Minute Trouble Zone Workout: Bat Wings (Underarm Fat – Sag)

Okay folks, nobody wants to be the victim of the dreaded underarm flab. I’m talking about the area right beneath your underarms. Go ahead…reach around and give yourself a hug. There it is!

This area is called the axilla or more specifically for our focus here the posterior axillary fold. It is home to sweat glands, lymph nodes, muscle, nerves and fat tissue. With weight gain it can appear bulgy and with weight loss it can get flabby. Sure you can try to hide it, but wouldn’t you rather lose that underarm jiggle?

I’ve always felt that this is one of the most difficult areas of the body to train so I’ve made it my mission to develop a routine that will bring your sexy back. And let’s be honest …who doesn’t want a sexy back? 

Goodbye Flab, Hello Fab

Now we need to turn our attention away from the mirror and to our back side. We’re used to working what we see, but today we’re gonna start sculpting our backs with a low weight/high rep workout coupled with some fat-burning cardio. Time to get moving.

If you’re not a water baby there are some other cardio workouts that are great for toning back muscles and burning fat. Check local gyms in your area and pop into a boxing, cardio kickboxing or rowing class.

And if you haven’t tried the new Total Gym Row Trainer, get on it. It’s amazing. Stay consistent and you should begin seeing some great results over the next few weeks.

As always, form is key to getting the most out of your workouts and avoiding injury. Here are some guidelines and safety tips to help you along the way.

Pull ups are one of the most challenging exercises to do and if not done properly they can be harmful. But don’t be discouraged. Take this challenge, you CAN do it. Start with a static hang, time it. Work your way up to a 30 second hold. This may take a week or two to accomplish, but don’t give up. Next, grab a step stool and do a cheater pull up. Take your feet off of the stool and lower yourself down as slowly as you can. In a couple more weeks you should be able to do an unassisted pull-up. While you’re working hard to accomplish one of the hardest exercises your back flab is going bye-bye.

When working in the water the resistance is fifteen times greater than on land. Use caution if you have shoulder injuries and avoid any additional resistance such as aquatic fitness gloves or aqua buoys.