{"id":7267,"date":"2017-04-26T04:26:42","date_gmt":"2017-04-26T00:26:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rachaelattard.com\/?p=7267"},"modified":"2025-11-06T15:35:18","modified_gmt":"2025-11-06T05:35:18","slug":"how-to-slim-down-a-muscular-upper-body","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rachaelattard.com\/how-to-slim-down-a-muscular-upper-body\/","title":{"rendered":"How To Slim Down A Muscular Upper Body"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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I have spoken a lot about how to slim down muscular thighs<\/a> and bulky calves<\/a>, but I haven\u2019t talked too much about how to get a smaller upper body.<\/p>\n\n

In this blog post, I\u2019ll first explain why some women (myself included) feel like their arms can get too muscly and shoulders too broad. I\u2019ll also share how to slim down a muscular upper body, which exercises to do to tone up without getting bulky, and which to avoid.<\/p>\n\n

WHY ARE MY ARMS SO BULKY? WHY DO I HAVE BROAD SHOULDERS? HERE\u2019S HOW TO SLIM DOWN A MUSCULAR UPPER BODY<\/h2>\n\n

Most complaints I hear as a personal trainer are about muscular legs. Most women don\u2019t seem to bulk up in their upper body as easily as in their lower body. For example, this study indicates that men have more muscle than women<\/a> and that these gender differences are greater in the upper body.<\/p>\n\n

When I lifted heavy, my legs bulked up first, but my trainer insisted I was imagining it, so I kept going.<\/p>\n\n

I even added CrossFit<\/a> to my routine.<\/p>\n\n

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Left – me lifting heavy weights; Middle – me lifting heavy weights and doing CrossFit; Right – me doing only bodyweight workouts and low-intensity cardio<\/em><\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n

After a few months of lifting and doing CrossFit, my arms and back started getting bigger. My tops felt tight even though I hadn\u2019t gained weight, and I began feeling self-conscious about my body, too bulky for my liking.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll be honest: I train to feel good and<\/em> to look good. But when I lifted heavy, I didn\u2019t like how I looked. And while many trainers won\u2019t admit it, I don\u2019t train just for strength.<\/p>\n\n

I also know that a lot of women feel pressured to lift heavy and train solely to get stronger. It was the same for me. And this pressure and feeling like no one understands my fitness goals is exactly why I decided to take matters into my own hands and become a PT. I studied at the Australian Institute of Fitness<\/a> and got Certificate III and IV. One of the decisions I ever made! ;)\u00a0<\/p>\n\n

“BULKY” IS SUBJECTIVE<\/h3>\n\n

Since I became a PT, I have tried all kinds of different workouts and training styles. After a lot of testing on myself and learning a lot about fitness through formal education, I found what works best for women who are looking to get lean and slim down without bulking up<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n

To be clear, I\u2019m not talking about bulking up like a bodybuilder \u2014 that\u2019s hard to do. I mean gaining more muscle in the arms, back, shoulders, or legs than feels comfortable. \u201cBulky\u201d is subjective \u2014 what\u2019s bulky for me might not be for you.<\/p>\n

And if you love having big muscles, that\u2019s awesome! I\u2019m not here to define your goals, if heavy lifting makes you happy, go for it!<\/p>\n\n

And if you are someone like me who prefers a more slimmed and toned look, welcome to the Femme Nativa family<\/a>. This is a community of women who train to both feel good on the inside and look good on the outside. And we promise you too can slim down a muscular upper body.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n

You just need to follow a proper workout and diet regime for this specific goal. And I\u2019m going to tell you exactly what you need to do. :)<\/p>\n\n

HOW CAN I SLIM MY MUSCULAR UPPER BODY?<\/h2>\n\n

In order to slim down your upper body (arms and upper back), we first need to determine whether you should lose excess body fat, bulky muscle mass or both.<\/p>\n\n

If you feel like your upper body is bigger than you\u2019d like because you\u2019ve gained weight (fat) AND muscle mass, keep on reading. If however, you know your arms and back haven\u2019t gotten bigger due to training and gaining muscle, I recommend reading my blog on how to lose arm fat<\/a> and get toned arms (without bulking up in the process).<\/p>\n\n

OK so, what exactly should you do to slim down your muscular upper body? Below you have the biggest DOs and DON\u2019Ts if you want to slim down muscular arms and a broad back.<\/p>\n\n

1. STOP DOING WORKOUTS THAT MAKE YOU TOO MUSCULAR<\/h3>\n\n

If you take one tip from my guide on how to slim down a muscular upper body<\/strong>, let it be this one.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been there, told by trainers to \u201ckeep lifting heavier, your muscles will get smaller later.\u201d Spoiler: they didn\u2019t. The more I lifted, the bigger I got. And though I enjoyed it at first, I eventually realized it wasn\u2019t the look I wanted.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re not happy with how much muscle you\u2019ve built, it\u2019s okay to change your approach. Shift toward workouts that build endurance and lean strength, like power walking, bodyweight moves, and light weights (5\u201310 kg). You\u2019ll feel and look more balanced.<\/p>\n

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EXERCISES TO AVOID IF YOU WANT TO REDUCE MUSCLE MASS FROM YOUR UPPER BODY<\/h4>\n\n

As mentioned above, if you want to slim down a muscular upper body, you need to stop doing the exercise\/s that have contributed to bulkiness. That is the number one priority.<\/p>\n\n

Here are the workouts I\u2019d recommend skipping for a while if you want to slim down your upper body, specifically to lose arm muscle as well as to slim your shoulders and back.<\/p>\n\n

1. NO ISOLATION WORKOUTS FOR YOUR UPPER BODY<\/h5>\n\n

Stop doing isolation exercises that target your upper body, like bicep curls, shoulder presses, lat pulldowns, and tricep kickbacks. These moves build size in specific muscles such as your biceps, triceps, shoulders, and lats.<\/p>\n

If your arms have bulked up from these workouts, take a break from them until your muscles slim down to a level you\u2019re happy with. Then, reintroduce them occasionally using lighter weights and higher reps.<\/p>\n\n

2. NO OVERHEAD PUSHING\/PULLING WORKOUTS<\/h5>\n\n

Overhead pushing and pulling exercises can make your shoulders and back broader \u2014 something many women, myself included, want to avoid. These movements, like shoulder presses, chin-ups, and lat pulldowns, tend to add upper-body bulk.<\/p>\n

If they\u2019re causing you to build more muscle than you\u2019d like, take a break from them to let your shoulders and back slim down. Since these moves are common in CrossFit, consider pausing that style of training if it\u2019s making you too muscular for your preference.<\/p>\n\n

3. AVOID LIFTING HEAVY WEIGHTS<\/h5>\n\n

I would also avoid all heavy lifting and workouts focusing on low reps, heavy weights.<\/p>\n\n

By this, I mean lifting anywhere in the 3-8 rep range.<\/p>\n\n

There is a way to lift weights without getting bulky<\/a>. But to really slim down your upper body, you\u2019ll need to avoid lifting super heavy weights.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n

DO I REALLY NEED TO STOP LIFTING WEIGHTS IF I WANT TO SLIM DOWN A MUSCULAR UPPER BODY?<\/h4>\n\n

I\u2019m not saying you should remove resistance training completely from your routine. Every good workout routine should include resistance\/strength training. But there are ways to do resistance training without heavy weights<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n

If you\u2019re not sure what resistance training is, I\u2019ll explain below.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n

Resistance training, or strength training, uses weights, bands, machines, or even bodyweight to build and strengthen muscles.<\/p>\n

While stopping resistance training altogether can reduce muscle size in your arms, back, and shoulders, I don\u2019t recommend it. You can get the same results by simply adjusting your workouts to match your body goals.<\/p>\n\n

BONUS TIP \u2013 HOW TO LEARN YOUR BODY TYPE & HOW TO SLIM DOWN A MUSCULAR UPPER BODY SO YOU CAN ADJUST YOUR DIET & WORKOUT<\/h3>\n\n

I would also highly recommend you find out your body type<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n

This is super important since different body types lose weight and build muscle differently and 2 out of 3 body types<\/a> can GAIN muscle very easily.<\/p>\n\n

I\u2019m a Mesomorph body type<\/a> which means I\u2019m quite athletic and I can gain muscle (and fat) pretty easily.<\/p>\n\n

I didn\u2019t know my body type when I started getting into fitness. But if I did, I could\u2019ve saved myself a lot of trouble. It\u2019s important to work out according to your body type to not make the same mistakes I did.<\/p>\n\n

If you are not sure about your body type, you can take my Body Type Quiz<\/a>. It will help you learn your body type in just 2 minutes and it\u2019s completely free. :)<\/p>\n

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WANT TO KNOW YOUR BODY TYPE?<\/h5>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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