If you have set yourself a goal of getting in better shape, you are probably mainly focusing on the lower portion of your body: your abdominal region, hips, buttocks, and thighs. However, you may also want to consider getting the arms in shape as well. Of course, a balanced, low-fat diet and regular exercise should be the bedrock of your regular weight loss routine, along with weight training for your arms. But will that be enough to get you the slim, toned arms that you want?

You may have heard about various body lift cosmetic surgical procedures to remove excess loose skin following dramatic weight loss. While this is most common for the abdominal region, it can also be done for the arms. How might an arm lift procedure compare to exercise to get your arms in shape? Which option will give you better results? Dr. Paul Pin has performed a number of arm lift procedures and shares his insights as to whether exercise alone can give you the arms you want, or if an arm lift procedure might be the right choice for you.

Effects of Weight Changes on Your Skin

In order to understand whether exercise or an arm lift is better for toning your arms, you first must understand how weight fluctuations affect your skin, particularly your arms. Your skin consists of a protein called collagen, which helps keep your skin full and firm. Collagen also provides your skin with elasticity, or the ability to conform back to its original shape after being stretched out.

However, if you gain a large amount of weight, the collagen in the skin on your arms, particularly your upper arms, may become stretched to a point at which the collagen fibers break down, and your skin cannot conform back to the more toned shape of your arms once you have lost all that weight. Aging can compound this process even further, as your body will naturally lose collagen as you get older. The end result will be loose, flabby skin hanging down from your upper arms.

Arm Lift Procedure

For this procedure, Dr. Pin will start by making an incision along the arm. This can be done in a variety of ways, depending on the amount of work to be done and which parts of the arms need to be addressed. He will then peel back the skin, tighten it, remove the excess, and then suture the remaining skin back into place. This procedure can be combined with liposuction if you have any excess fat in your arms that has not responded to diet and exercise.

Can Arm Exercises Minimize Flabby Arm Skin?

The truth is that arm exercises cannot reduce loose arm skin. Since the skin has lost its elasticity, it cannot conform to the reduced contours of your arms. However, Dr. Pin highly recommends arm-toning exercises as part of an overall weight loss plan, prior to any body lift procedure. An arm lift procedure is meant to be a final touch to all of your hard work to lose weight and get your arms into shape.