Best Exercise For Banishing Those Batwings!

Copyright (c) 2009 Caroline Radway

Batwings, or bingo wings if you are in the UK, are one of the main problem areas for most women, especially as we get older. The term 'bingo wing' refers to the fact that you typically see them when a woman waves - as she does if she's just won a prize at bingo! But they will unattractively jiggle at any waving opportunity, and as first impressions count, you really want to make sure you can wave to greet people from afar without your jiggling arms catching all the attention, don't you?

So, what can you do to get rid of this affliction?

Well, firstly, I must point out that there is no such thing as 'spot reduction'. Sorry to have to tell you this, but you cannot lose the fat on the arms by doing arm exercises alone. If this is your one area that you want to shape up, you still cannot expect to just do arm exercises to get results.

Bingo or bat wings are excess fat, and to burn fat you need to make sure you are doing intense resistance and interval training about 3 times per week, using as many muscles in the body as possible.

That is why this exercise is so effective, however. You are hitting the triceps muscle, that is the muscle in the back of your arm, where the batwings reside, so that you will ensure the muscle is strong and toned, so when you have burned the surrounding fat, your arms will look fantastic.

But, the added benefit is that this exercise counts as an almost full body exercise, as you are working your arms, shoulders, back and your entire core to do this correctly. If you pair this up with a lower body exercise, such as a squat, as well as a pulling exercise, such as a row, you have a full body fat blasting workout. This will mean you lose the unwanted bodyfat, and can show off your lovely arms in skimpy tops once more.

So, what is this exercise, I hear you cry...

It's the triceps, or close-grip, press up.

Now most people find these a lot harder than a regular press up, and you have to really engage your core strongly throughout. The simple steps are as follows:

1. Place your hands directly underneath your shoulders, in a plank position (to start with you will want to be on your knees not your toes to make this easier - just make sure your knees, hips and shoulders form a straight line: don't let your butt stick up!)

2. Slowly lower your chest between your hands, keeping the elbows tucked tight into the sides of the body, elbows pointing back as you come down, until your chest is hovering just off the floor.

3. Press back up to the start position. That is one rep.

I actually get all my yoga students to practice this regularly - as chaturanga or the low push up position is part of the ashtanga and dynamic yoga sun salutation sequence, but many people really struggle with it. A few weeks of practicing triceps push ups usually does the trick and students can really start to enjoy the fluidity of the sun salutation sequence.

So, no equipment needed, and it hits more than just your batwings! Give it a go...