💪 How to Tone Your Arms - The Truth About Bingo Wings & Getting Stronger

Frank Sinclair
Nov 11
3 min read

Ever wondered how to actually tone your arms and get rid of those so called “bingo wings”? This week on the blog (and podcast!), I’m breaking down the truth about how your body really changes shape - no magic moves, no crash diets, just simple, realistic steps that actually work. You’ll even find a free arm workout video to try at home.

🧠 First up, what does “toned” actually mean?

Clients use the word tone all the time, and although it usually looks slightly different for each of you, I think when most people say “I want to tone my arms,” you are generally aiming to achieve 2 things:

Reduce body fat around the arm
Build a bit of muscle underneath to give the arm some shape and strength

Simple, right?

Well, in principle yes, but unfortunately there is no 'quick fix' that'll solve this immediately and actually achieving your goal requires some physical effort (sorry!) and plenty of patience too (double-sorry!)

🚫 The Myth of Spot Reduction

Here’s the bit no one wants to hear: You can’t choose where your body loses fat, meaning you doing hundreds of tricep dips won’t magically burn the fat off your arms, just like doing crunches won’t give you instant abs.

Fat loss happens across the whole body, it’s driven by your nutrition, lifestyle, and patience (lots of it).

But here’s the good news: as your overall body fat drops, and you strengthen the muscles underneath, that “toned” look you’re after starts to appear. 🎉

💤 The “Boring Stuff” That Actually Works

I wish I could give you one magic exercise to fix it all, but the truth is, toning your arms is about doing the basics consistently, for long periods of time (I know, sorry!) and here are the four things I tell every client who wants stronger, leaner arms to focus on first:

1. Strength train 2–3 times a week

Do exercises that challenge your arms, push-ups, tricep dips, skull crushers, curls, presses, but also train your full body. Building overall strength helps everything tighten up, and encourages fat loss too so win-win.

2. Eat in a slight calorie deficit

Easier said than done I know, but if you want to lose body fat, you're gonna have to figure out a way to eat a little less than your body burns each day. It’s not about starving yourself, it’s about balance. A small deficit over time helps reduce body fat everywhere, including your arms.

3. Eat more protein

Protein helps you recover, keeps you full, and supports muscle growth.If you’re strength training and upping your protein, you’ll start to see those muscles you’re building.

4. Get your sleep

Seriously. Recovery is where the magic happens. Your body repairs, rebuilds, and gets stronger while you rest. No sleep = no progress, and way more grumpy mornings.

📏 Track Your Progress

One of the best ways to stay motivated is to actually see how far you’ve come. Here are a few ways you can track progress without getting obsessed with the scales:

Take photos every 4–6 weeks
Measure your arm girth using a soft tape measure.
Track how much weight you can lift or how many reps you can do
Celebrate small wins — like doing your first full push up!

And please… don’t compare your arms to someone else’s. Everyone’s built differently, and your chapter one will look different to someone else’s chapter twenty. Focus on building your best arms, not someone else’s.