Question:
Can anyone recommend good exercises to help work the upper arms?

I am having a problem with the "flying squirrel arms". Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!    — Cathy L. (posted on February 28, 2003)

February 28, 2003
I sure don't know the answer to this but I really need to know regular weight's don't seem to work ~ 7 months out , lost 230#'s went from 561 to 335 , lasst time i checked down 96 inches ... but my arms are awful!!! they are very scary to look at they just hang , I dont remember them doing that at over 500#'s why now?? good luck !!
   — CATHY T.

February 28, 2003
I hear that the arms are the last place to go, and I can attest to that! I have been actively working them with weights for about 3 months now, to a negligible improvement, but I'm keeping at it. One thing I did learn from a strength trainer is that you should NOT do arm weights every day. You need to give your muscles 48 hours recovery time between sessions, it's actually the recovery process that helps the muscles. The previous poster had some great exersizes, just don't overdo it. Renee D
   — Renee D.

February 28, 2003
Another exercise I do with a 5 pound weight is to hold the weight with both hands and raise your arms straight up in the air-stiff arms-then lower the weight behind your head, down your back as far as you can go, then straight up again, then repeat as many times as you can. I tell ya, it gets your arms hurting right where you want the improvement to show!
   — Cindy R.

February 28, 2003
I'd like to add another exercise to those already offered. To firm the triceps (backs of your arms), you can hold one weight with both hands (like a golf club), bring it over your head, so wieght and hands are behind head with elbows toward ceiling, bring hands from base of neck to above head without letting your elbows down. Another way to do this if the first is difficult is to place weight in one hand and use opposite hand to support elbow up to ceiling, then lift weight up to extend arm and curl down again. To answer previous poster's answer about why their arms didn't hang before....before your skin was full of fat, which filled out your arms, and the skin was the exact size of the fat beneath... now your fat is disappearing, but the skin doesn't have as much elasticity as it once did, and it can't shrink as quickly as the fat does.....we can only firm the muscle beneath the skin, and hope that time will firm up the bagginess... though I hear many people resort to Plastic surgery, because the skin just doesn't shrink enough. Good luck.
   — Kelly B.

March 6, 2003
Ah...the infamous "batwing deformity". Interestingly, I lost 150lbs. and had virtually no problems with excess skin, even my tummy ended up embarrasingly flat. However, my upper arms were..are..terrible and no amount of exersize helped. I saw two reconstructive surgeons who both said that the only way to get rid of excess skin is to surgically remove it. My insurance won't pay and I like to spend my money on trips and clothes (lol); so, I've just accepted the situation and I avoid sleeveless tops.
   — mandy S.