Upper Body Feeling Bulky? Advice From Someone With Your Body Type
If you feel like your upper body is getting bulky from weight training — you’re not imagining it. And you’re definitely not alone.
The frustrating part? Everyone around you probably tells you that you look great. That muscle is cool. That you should be proud. And maybe part of you appreciates that, but something just feels off about the direction your body is going.
I’ve been exactly where you are. When I first started weight training, my upper body got so thick I couldn’t zip up a dress. So when I say I understand this experience from the inside out — I mean it.
The truth is, the dominant message in the fitness industry is that women “won’t get bulky from lifting weights.” And for many women, that’s accurate. But it’s not true for everyone. If you’re naturally muscular, you have to be much more strategic about how you train – because the standard advice wasn’t written for your body type.
As a personal trainer and nutrition coach, I’ve spent over a decade helping women build strength without adding size where they don’t want it. In this post, I’m going to walk you through the three biggest weight training mistakes that can bulk up your upper body, and what to do instead.
Why Does Your Upper Body Look Bulky? (Fat vs. Muscle)
Before we get into the mistakes, it helps to understand what is actually making your upper body look bigger because the answer changes the solution.
Your upper body can feel and appear bigger, bulkier or thicker for a few different reasons:
- Muscle hypertrophy – When you lift weights, your muscles grow through a process of micro-tears and repair. For many women, this is moderate. But for naturally muscular body types (often called mesomorphs), muscle can develop quickly and noticeably. If you develop muscle in certain areas, you can feel thicker.
- Body fat distribution – Some women carry fat in their upper body, particularly around the arms, back and chest. This is largely genetic and hormonal. and can make you feel bulkier.
- A combination of both – If you have a tendency to store more body fat in the upper body, and you start training without also taking steps to lower your body fat percentage, you may feel even thicker. In this case, it’s important to address your nutrition as well.
Regardless of why your upper body feels bulky, the way you train can either reinforce that look or help create a more balanced shape — which is why avoiding the following training mistakes is so important. If you want some help with all of this, my online training programs offer a more personalised approach because I tailor the program to your body type and goals. If you work with me long term, we can regularly assess your progress and make any necessary adjustments to make sure you are changing the way you want.
Prefer to watch instead? I cover everything in the video below.
The 3 Weight Training Mistakes Making Your Upper Body Bulky
Mistake #1: Too Much Lat-Focused Training (The “V” Taper Effect)
The first mistake is doing too many lat-focused exercises — specifically wide grip variations. Lat pulldowns and their variations appear in almost every well-designed strength program because traditionally bodybuilders want to develop a “v taper” where they are wide from under the armpits and then taper down to the waist.
For a lot of women, that’s completely fine. But if you are naturally muscular, building your back in this way can add significant width over time.
I learned this the hard way. After a couple of years of training heavy lat work, my lats were so developed they were literally spilling over the sides of my racerback tanks. Some people might call that impressive, but it wasn’t the look I wanted. It didn’t feel feminine to me.
Here’s the thing: it is entirely possible to build a beautiful, strong back without adding width if you’re careful about exercise selection. I’ve seen this with my own clients. One of my favourite client transformations involved a woman who builds muscle very fast. Looking at her before-and-after photos below, you can see she put on a lot of muscle. But because of how we approached her exercise selection, she’s not wider at all.
Client 6 month transformation showing significant muscle development but no added bulk or thickness.
What to do instead: Audit your current program and look at how much lat work you’re doing. Limit lat-dominant exercises that could build that “v taper” (like pull-ups and lat pulldowns) to one per workout, then fill the rest of the back training with exercises that build the mid-back and postural muscles. Over time, this approach can help create a more balanced looking back without adding extra width. It’s how I’ve been able to reduce the appearance of width in my own very muscular back, and how I help clients build strong, beautiful backs without the bulk.
If you want to learn more about training for your body type, you can take my free Body Type Quiz here.
This isn’t one of those quick “you’re a square” responses. After completing it, you’ll receive a comprehensive ebook outlining how each body type responds to training, nutrition and recovery including how to build shape strategically without creating unwanted bulk.
Take The Body Type Quiz & Get Your Personal Guide
Mistake #2: Building Your Workouts Around Heavy Chest Pressing
The second mistake is centring your upper body training around heavy pressing — especially heavy chest pressing.
Many women, myself included, love the big lifts. Chest presses feel powerful and satisfying. But what most women don’t realise is that when you prioritize these movements, they can contribute to added thickness through your entire upper body over time.
When I first started training, my coach had me working on my max bench press every single week. Then one day, I put on a blouse I’d bought a few months earlier and I couldn’t button it up! Around the same time, dresses stopped fitting properly too. My lats were part of the problem, but the constant heavy chest work was adding to the overall upper body thickness as well.
Early in my training — you can see the thickness through my back and arms.
What to do instead: This doesn’t mean eliminating pressing entirely. I still include some presses in my own workouts because they’re enjoyable and great for building strength. But if your goal is a more toned, balanced look rather than added size, your upper body workouts shouldn’t be built around these big compound lifts. Instead, you should be doing more targeted work for areas you want to shape up.
Mistake #3: Choosing the Wrong Arm Exercises
This is the mistake most programs never address and it’s really important if you want toned arms without the bulk.
Here’s the science behind it: different exercises bias different parts of a muscle. For the triceps, overhead movements (like overhead tricep extensions) tend to emphasise the long head, which contributes most to overall arm mass and that heavier look through the back of the arm. For women who build muscle easily, doing a lot of long-head tricep work can create noticeable thickness through the upper arms.
You can’t completely isolate one part of the tricep, and you still need to train the back of the arm to keep it firm and defined. But exercise selection and emphasis do matter. In my programs, I place more focus on movements like pushdowns and kickbacks, which bias the lateral head of the tricep and tend to create a more sculpted look rather than adding thickness.
It may seem like a small detail, but over time it can noticeably influence whether your arms appear leaner or heavier. You can see this in the photo from my early training years in the previous section. Back then, I wasn’t strategic with my tricep training and my arms looked much more “beefy.” These days my arms are still muscular, but my triceps no longer overpower the rest of my arm shape.
How To Avoid Your Upper Body Getting Bulky From Weight Training
Weight training won’t make every woman bulky. However, if you have a naturally muscular body type, you can’t follow a “standard” training program and expect a “slender” result. By shifting your focus away from wide lat pulling movements and heavy chest pressing, and toward strategic isolation of muscles you want to shape, you can build a body that feels strong and feminine.
Getting this right takes time, consistency and honest assessment of how your body is actually responding. I’ve had over a decade to refine this, working with my own body as well as women of all shapes and sizes.
If you’re looking for a program designed specifically for your body type and goals, my online training programs may be a good fit. I take care of everything for you, including exercise selection, volume and technique. If you work with me long term, we can assess and adjust regularly to make sure your body is responding the way you want.
Reach out if you have any questions about getting started — I’m always happy to help!
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