Body fat on your back can be a frustrating annoyance for many, challenging the ways in which your clothing, underwear, and bathing suits fit. While back fat is perfectly normal, many people believe they’d be more comfortable and confident without it — and that’s perfectly normal, too.
Thankfully, some methods can help reduce your upper back fat, lower back fat, and other similar issues — namely, changing your diet and your workout routine.
Through a combination of eating properly, doing some useful exercises that target the area, and staying on track with your new, good habits, you too can find a way to look and feel your best.
Here are some of the best tips to get rid of back fat, courtesy of the experts at My Fit Foods.
What Causes Back Fat?
Excess fat can appear anywhere on the back, although it’s most likely to appear around the midsection, the upper back, and in the area where women’s bra straps usually hit.
There are a number of possible causes of this back fat, and understanding where your back fat comes from can help you plan how to healthily begin to get rid of it.
Somatopause
As you age, the amount of growth hormone in your body shrinks. This happens to both men and women, but it’s most obvious in women who are dealing with other hormonal issues simultaneously.
When your growth hormone levels go down, so does your ability to build muscle mass. In addition, the lack of growth hormones can turn your existing muscles into fat. As a result, you end up with back fat, even where you previously had a decent amount of muscle mass.
Lifestyle Choices
Unless you’re already a dedicated gym-goer, then you know what we’re talking about. A lack of exercise combined with a diet full of sugary snacks and treats can form fat throughout the body, including on the back.
If you eat more calories than you manage to burn a day, those excess amounts get turned into fat, which accumulates on the body.
When you combine all of this with a sedentary lifestyle, you’re much more likely to end up with back fat (and other types of weight gain).
Poor Posture
Although bad posture, like slumping your shoulders, can make back fat more obvious, it doesn’t actually cause it.
Still, as you begin your diet and exercise routine, you’ll strengthen your back muscles, making sitting up straight easier. This will make your back fat look less prominent while you’re in the process of getting rid of it.
The Importance of a Healthy Diet and Lifestyle Changes
If you’re ready to watch your back fat shrink, kick things off with a healthy diet. It can be hard to change your habits after a lifetime of being able to eat what you want, but thankfully, once you start and see your progress in action, you’ll probably never backtrack.
With that said, there isn't a magic bullet diet that will automatically help you lose weight. Instead, stick with the following bits of advice:
Drink More Water
Yes, you can still have that morning cup of coffee or tea. After all, you may want some caffeine to help motivate you to wake up in the morning — and drastically cutting back cold turkey can lead to headaches and brain fog. However, instead of drinking those sugary sodas and fruit juices throughout the day, reach for some water instead.
Water doesn’t contain any calories and can help you stay hydrated. Plus, you might be one of those people who believe that they’re hungry when in reality, you’re actually thirsty. Water will take care of that!
Watch Your Sodium Intake
The more sodium-filled foods you eat, the more bloated you’ll feel. This also doesn’t help your back fat, especially the fat around your midsection. Plus, sodium, also known as salt, can help you retain water, leading to additional weight where you want it the least.
Once you cut back on salty foods, your body will stop clinging to the water weight, and you’ll end up clearing it out of your system. (You know how.)
Eat Fewer Calories To Avoid Weight Gain
On an ideal day, you’ll end up eating fewer calories than you burn off. This is what leads to weight loss – that minor calorie deficit. To determine just how much you should be eating each day, take the time to do a few calculations.
First, figure out where your basic metabolism is at. This is the number of calories that you burn each day while being sedentary and just living your life.
Then determine how many you could burn during your daily workouts. This will provide you with a baseline to construct your diet around. Of course, you also need to keep in mind that the average human needs around 2,000 calories each day just to survive.
Focus on Nutrient-Dense Foods
Finally, ensure that the foods you’re eating each day are healthy. Look at the food plate or pyramid, and eat a balanced diet based on the food groups listed. In addition, you can keep an eye on your macros (carbs, fats, and protein) that you eat in a day to keep your diet balanced and lose love handles, belly fat, and beyond.
Eat plenty of fruits, vegetables, and lean protein, in your diet if you’re trying to reduce overall body fat and total body weight. Limiting the number of carbohydrates and starchy foods while incorporating a lot of fiber-filled options produces the best balance and helps you cut back fat fast, as well as fat on your belly, shoulder blades, and other key areas.
Of course, this doesn’t mean you should never indulge. You can still eat the foods you love most — just be sure to add delicious, filling, and nutritious foods to your daily routine. This will make you less hungry for those sugary and salty foods while helping you fuel your body throughout the day.
Strength Training Exercises That Target Back Fat
Unfortunately, you can’t just target your back fat with specific exercises. (Actually, you can’t target fat loss anywhere — that’s a common misconception.)
To lose back fat, you’ll have to lose weight overall, which has the advantage of making your body look and feel better. With that said, there are some back exercises that you can incorporate into your routine, along with plenty of cardio, that can help. You can do these exercises with a certified personal trainer (CPT) or on your own.
The Superman
This exercise is designed to help tone up your lower back. It requires you to lie flat, face down, on an exercise mat with your legs straight and your arms out in front of you.
Simultaneously raise your arms and legs, forming a position that looks a little like Superman flying. Hold the position for up to ten seconds before repeating again as needed.
Resistance Band or Dumbbell Rows
Rowing is one of the best exercises for your upper back. It targets the triceps, biceps, and other muscles in the area, boosting your overall health and wellness in the process. This exercise is done on a rowing machine with resistance bands or dumbbells.
If you’re using a rowing machine, assume the starting position by sitting on the machine with your feet planted firmly on the front of the bench and your back straight. Grasp the handles in both hands, and perform a rowing motion, moving your upper body backward as your arms move as well. You can put the machine on as tough a setting as you’d like, providing you with plenty of resistance.
Kettlebell Swings
This fat loss and resistance training exercise is a bit of fun, but you do need to be careful not to pick a kettlebell that’s too heavy.
Start by standing on a mat with your feet shoulder-width apart in a straight line. Bend your knees slightly. Grasp the kettlebell with both hands, and bend over at the waist, allowing the kettlebell to fall between your legs. Then, straighten your back, bring your arms up, and swing the kettlebell in the air before returning to your original position.
Side Planks
Get into a side plank position, with your body straight, facing the wall. Recline on your elbow, allowing your foot on the same side to hit the mat. Your remaining foot will rest on top of it while your other arm (the upper one) remains loose.
Now, you can do a number of exercises, including dipping down to allow your upper arm to touch the mat, pulling your upper leg up at the knee to exercise your lower back and more.
Begone, Back Fat!
Now that you know just about everything that you need to about back fat, it’s time to start your new diet and exercise regimen. Just remember to eat healthy meals, drink plenty of water, and spend time doing a mix of cardio and weight training every day.
Have questions about how to lose your back fat? We've got you covered.
Sources:
How Can You Get Rid of Back Fat? 11 Tips for the Gym and Your Plate | Greatist