Sagging, excess back and underarm fat is not just unsightly, it's unhealthy too. In order to shave fat away from your back and underarm area, you need to have a multi-pronged fitness approach that combines regular cardiovascular activity to burn calories, with strength training exercises that specifically target and tone the muscle once you shave the fat away. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommend at least 150 minutes of cardio exercise per week, combined with two days of strength conditioning exercises.
Eat a Healthy Diet
Regularly eating a healthy diet can help you to lose weight throughout your entire body. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention a healthy, balanced diet emphasizes fresh fruit and vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy, lean meats, beans, eggs, nuts and is low in saturated fats, trans fats, sodium and sugar. Not going over your daily calorie needs will reduce your risk of weight gain, but if you're looking to lose belly fat, you'll need to reduce your daily calorie intake. Since 3,500 calories is equal to 1 pound of fat, cutting out 500 calories per day can help you shave fat from your underarms and back at a loss of 1 pound per week.
Break a Sweat
One of the best ways to lose weight in your underarm and back area is by engaging in regular cardio exercise. The key here is to get your heart pumping and break a sweat so you can burn more calories during a shorter period of time. To tone the underarms and back at the same time, incorporate cardio exercises that require you to use the upper body, such as swimming, basketball, the elliptical, kickboxing and dancing. Combine cardio exercises with two to three days of strength training exercises that target the underarms and back, such as flying supermans, Upward-facing Dog and inchworms.
Strengthen Your Underarms
The American Council on Exercise recommends the inchworm exercise for targeting your back and underarm area. To perform this exercise, make sure you have enough space around you to move freely. Stand up tall and engage your abdominal muscles. Bend forward at the waist and touch your palms to the floor. Walk your hands forward, allowing your heels to come off the floor. Transition into a high pushup position and perform one full pushup. Walk or hop your feet forward to your hands and repeat the entire sequence, walking forward into a pushup position.
Workout Your Underarms and Back
Upward-facing dog targets the entire back and the underarm muscles. To perform, lie on the front of your body. Press the tops of your feet into the floor and place your palms on either side of your chest. Roll your shoulders back and away from your ears and press your pubic bone into the floor to protect your lower back. Straighten your arms, lifting your head, shoulders, chest and upper abdomen off the floor. Hold this position for up to one minute, or until your arms fatigue. To come out of the pose, bend your elbows by your sides and lower your upper body gently to the floor.
Target Your Back
You can pretend that you're Superman flying through the sky with this ACE-recommended back exercise. To perform, lie face-down on the floor. Straighten your legs and press the tops of your feet into the floor. Extend your arms away from your body, pressing your inner arms close to your ears. Press your pubic bone into the floor to stabilize and protect your lower back. Simultaneously lift your arms, shoulders, upper chest and legs off the floor, balancing on your lower abdomen and pelvis. Hold this position for as long as you can -- up to one minute -- and gently release your body back to the floor.
