Excess fat around your underarms causes unsightly bulges that can make you feel uncomfortable as well as self-conscious. Because these "bat wings" can be tough to tame, a good many people turn to surgery to trim them away. The top natural ways to rid yourself of dreaded armpit fat involve everything from adopting a balanced diet to performing regular aerobic exercise and strength training to keep your upper body toned and flab-free. Cardiovascular Exercise It is impossible to spot reduce fat, so focus on decreasing total body fat in order to trim your armpits. Cardiovascular or aerobic exercise plays an important role in burning calories and shedding body fat. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends five hours of moderate intensity aerobic exercise or two and a half hours of vigorous intensity exercise each week to achieve health benefits. Balanced Diet Developing muscle and decreasing body fat requires a balanced diet of carbohydrates, fats and proteins. The Academy for Nutrition and Dietetics recommends that you consume 55 to 60 percent of your calories from carbohydrates, 25 to 30 percent of your calories from protein and between 15 and 20 percent of your calories from fat. In order to shed fat and create an overall lean appearance, your food choices in each of the categories are also important. Select fruits, vegetables, lean meats and whole grains while eliminating as many processed foods as possible. Pushups Pushups strengthen your chest, shoulders and arms, creating muscle tone around the armpit area. Begin in a plank position with your arms extended and your wrists placed underneath your shoulders. Keep your legs extended if you would like a more advanced option or lower your knees to the floor for less intensity. Bend your elbows and lower your body until your chest is 3 to 4 inches off of the floor. Straighten your arms and return to your starting position. Perform pushups three days per week. Begin with two sets of 10 repetitions and progress to three sets of 15 to 20 repetitions as you become stronger. Dumbbell Presses Dumbbell presses work your chest and build muscle around the underarm area. Begin by lying on a weight bench with dumbbells in each hand. Depending on your experience with weight training, select medium weight dumbbells which create a challenge but allow you to perform the exercise correctly. Bend your elbows so that they just dip below the bench. Straighten your arms towards the ceiling with your palms facing away from you. Bend your elbows and return to your starting position. Complete one to two sets of 10 repetitions and work up to three sets of 15. Incline Dumbbell Flyes Dumbbell flyes sculpt your upper body and are even more challenging when performed on an incline. Lie on an incline bench holding dumbbells in each hand. Reach both arms out to the sides with a slight bend in your elbows. Maintain the same angle with your elbows and lift your arms to bring the weights towards each other as if you were hugging a giant beach ball. Reach your arms out and lower back to your starting position. Complete two sets of eight repetitions and work up to three sets of 12 reps. Source
