Whether it’s your first time starting to exercise or you work out regularly, losing stubborn arm fat can be challenging. However, combining certain diet tips with regular exercise and strength training can help you achieve toned arms, according to fitness trainer and influencer Gina Amin. Also read | Want a flat tummy? Fitness trainer shares 5 tips to help lose belly fat
In her Instagram post titled ‘How I lost arm fat’, Gina shared pictures of herself, her diet and lifestyle, writing:
1. I cut out crap but didn’t starve
She wrote, “I am not about extreme dieting. I just made smarter choices with my food. I focused on lean proteins (chicken, fish, beef), whole grains and healthy fats. It was about eating to fuel my workouts and support fat loss – not starving myself. I learned to eat less of foods that did not serve my goals.”
2. Realising I can’t spot reduce
Gina added, “For a long time, I thought I could ‘target’ my arms and lose fat, specifically there, by doing endless arm exercises. But the truth? Spot reduction is a myth. The arms, like any other area, shrink only when your overall body fat percentage decreases. That means doing your cardio, strength training and having a cleaner diet. Once I accepted that I could not just ‘target’ my arms and instead focused on overall fat loss, the progress came faster.”
3. Tracking progress without obsessing over the scale
Gina also said, “I learned not to get caught up in the number on the scale. Sure, weight loss can be a good indicator, but it does not reflect how your body is changing. I took progress photos, measured my arms and other key areas, and paid attention to how my clothes were fitting. This gave me a clearer picture of my transformation and kept me motivated when the scale did not move as quickly as I wanted.”
4. Strength training was non-negotiable
She added, “I made sure strength training was part of my routine. Focused weight training exercises like push-ups and overhead presses helped build muscle definition in my arms. I did not just focus on cardio. Building muscle not only helped me look leaner but also helped boost my metabolism and kept my body burning fat while resting. It is about strength training and fat loss.”
5. Patience: the real MVP (most valuable player)
Gina further wrote, “This process took time. I am not going to lie – it was not instant results and I had to remind myself of that daily. Some weeks felt like I wasn’t making progress at all. But that’s when I released that slow, steady changes were the real key. The patience to keep going, even when results were not visible right away, paid off. So much of it is mental – trusting that all the work will eventually show up if you stick with it.”
Gina wrote in her caption, “Forever reminding you that you can’t target an area or spot reduce. You have to focus on losing fat in your overall body to see the changes in your arms. That goes for your stomach, your legs, your back, anywhere. Fat is fat and it’s about decreasing your body fat percentage overall…”
Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.
