Chestwork to eliminate bra bulge?

M

*MichiganMom*

Member
Hi Cathe or any of you other fitness experts! :)
I was doing Pure Strength ~ Back,Biceps and Abs yesterday and was quite happy with the condition of my biceps but was horrified by the bulge emerging from under my arm/above my bust.
So my question is, is that a body fat or muscle issue? I've lost 14 pounds this year and have 5 to go before I'm high end high school weight, 10 to be low end, so I know there is extra fat still on me. If it is about muscle, which exercises are best? What muscle do I want to build? Could I add 20-30 push ups everday to the end of my workouts or is that overtraining?
Thanks for any help!

Becky
 
Hi Becky! Congratulations on already accomplishing a large portion of your goal. The answer to your question is both; it is both a fat loss and muscle toning issue. As women age, a popular "soft" area is the back of the upper arm(triceps), the abdomen area, the outer hip area, and the area just above and below the bra strap (around the underarm area). So you are not alone. This area will improve with strengthening the lat area as well as focusing on clean eating.


As for exercises to select, in addition to participating in an overall muscle toning program, some exercises to help tighten the lat area are reverse flys, barbell overhand wide grip rows, underhand grip barbell rows with hands in a natural width grip, one arm dumbell rows, PULL UPS(as opposed to push ups), and if you have access to gym equipment, lat pull downs. Good Luck!
 
Hi Cathe!
Thanks so much for the congratulations! It's been a long road to lose this weight and I definitely credit you and your videos with helping me get there! :) Thank you also for continuing to challenge us by providing new videos to keep us motivated! I can't wait for the new ones to arrive!

Wow! I am so glad you gave me exercise suggestions for working the lats! I was completely confused thinking it was a pectoral issue!
I will get to work focusing on those exercises and losing these last pesky pounds!

Thank you again!
Becky
 
Becky,
One exercise that I've used in the past (and that Cathe is including in her Slow and Heavy series) is the pullover. Depending on how you focus your attention, it works both/either chest and back, and seems especially good for the armpit bulge area (I tell you, when I was doing this exercise regularly, I had really attractive armpits, but that's not usually an area that is on the top 10 of people wanting to improve the look of ;-) )
 
Gee, I hate the "how much weight do you use" question because it's such an individual thing (how much is "light" or "moderate" or "heavy" to each person depends on so many things, including how their muscles and tendons attach to their joints), and I vary depending on how I feel that day, but I'll give you some of my other weight stats so you can see how they relate to each other and figure out what's best for you. I do chest presses with either 20 or 25 pound dumbbells, overhead presses with either 12 or 15# dumbbells, and pullovers with one 20 or 25# dumbbell (usually 25#) Back when I was working out in a weight room, I used 35#.
 
Under bra bulge

By the way, if any of that "bra bulge" is in the back, under the strap, I'd recommend boxing punches to help. I've succeeded in getting rid of almost all the extra "handles" in that area by alternating kickboxing/boxing and weight work.
 
RE: Under bra bulge

Kathryn~
Thank you for all the great tips! A good friend of mine added some pointers about form with one arm lat rows. Wow! What a difference focusing on form makes (duh!) I will definitely add in some pull overs. I'm so happy that there will be some in the new videos.
You are so right about the back. I began Tae Bo about the same time as Cathe and my back has really toned up. Now I just need to eliminate that leftover front bulge!
Thank you again for all the advice! It is greatly appreciated!
:)

Becky
 
RE: Under bra bulge

I was interested in this question - I was trying on bras and finding all the bras would cut into the "fat" just in front of the armpit so first off I have been working harder on chest - pushups and chest flies. (I will also do the lat work too and love the kickbox stuff). But, I also finally ended up at Victoria Secret and found several bras that don't cut into like others did and now I'm living in comfort!

I usually end up in exercise bras after work anyway because of the way they are cut lower.

Good topic!
Cheryl
 
RE: Under bra bulge

I have been doing the arm drills from Cardio Kicks at least once a week to try to help this area also. I am just on my 4th week now. Once a week may not be enough, but I also do 1 UB workout, and 1 circuit a week.
Lori
 
Hi all,

The whole above/below brastrap area is a really big issue for me too! Ever since I entered my late 30s I have noticed a nasty bulge in the exact area that Becky described.

I appreciate the recommendations - I am definitely going to incorporate Cathe's and Kathryn's suggestions into my routine. And *sigh* eating cleaner is absolutely something I need to pay more attention to also!

Thanks!
Joyce
 
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