Why Is My Left Arm Weaker than My Right (And What To Do about It)

Have you ever felt that you can lift more weights in your right hand than in your left hand?

Most people you ask on the street would think that their weaker arm is not as strong as the dominant arm.

However, in most cases, it is simply because people naturally use their right arm more than their left. You can see this in everyday activities.

Why is my left arm weaker than my right? For most people training regularly, the left arm is not weaker than the right.

It can feel like this due to the underutilization of the left arm, making performing activities more uncomfortable.

However, true muscle weakness, which stems from muscle trauma and underutilization, is a reality.

Let’s find out why and what you can do about it!

Objective vs. Subjective Weakness

The first thing we need to look at is the difference between objective and subjective weakness in your arm.

Objective Weakness

Objective weakness is what we will be focusing on the most throughout this article. It refers to some form of weakness that is caused to the muscles.

This can be in the form of muscle trauma. It is often best to have this analyzed and diagnosed by a medical professional to establish the root cause of the issue.

Subjective Weakness

Subjective weakness cannot be measured and this is often a psychological weakness in the body that stems from some form of habit. In some cases, people would automatically turn to the dominant arm, which means the weaker arm does not get the same exercise. This limits the arm from doing the same as the right.

Main Causes for a Weaker Left Arm

If you have been struggling with your left arm, the following could be some of the causes for why my is my left arm weaker than my right!

Injury

One of the main reasons for a weaker left arm could be due to an injury you have sustained.

The injury could be direct to the muscle, or it might be some medical issue you are dealing with.

Injuries to the arms are often due to overuse or direct trauma, which might have occurred when you were younger due to a fall or sports injury.

Underutilization

Let’s imagine you are a construction worker, and you work with a hammer each day.

If you only use the hammer with your right arm, you are bound to see it become stronger. On the other hand, your left arm will stay behind.

Technically, your left arm has not grown weaker, but the muscles have not developed the same as it has in your right arm.

Lack of Confidence/Natural Dominance

Finally, having a lack of confidence could be another reason. As you can see, this is highly subjective and comes from not using the arm.

Much like a soccer player can often kick the ball with both feet, you can do everything with both hands.

Unfortunately, few people are willing to put in the work to make this happen.

How Do I Fix My Left Arm Being Weaker than My Right – 5 Top Tips

If you have identified that one arm is weaker than the other, you should try to correct this issue. Unfortunately, there are no magic pills.

It often requires you to put in some real effort and focus on training the arm to get it balanced. Here are a few things you should consider:

1. Have a Medical Professional Check You Out

Before I reveal some of the best tips, you should have a medical professional check you out.

If there are any symptoms related to pain or nerve damage, the doctor or trainer will pick up on this.

You might be dealing with nerve damage or carpal tunnel syndrome. These medical conditions would require specialized assistance.

2. Weight Training

One of the best ways to balance out your arm would be through weight training.

One thing I often tell people is to choose a weight. You can do 8 reps in your weaker or left arm.

Once you have completed these repetitions, you can do the same for the dominant arm.

If you can comfortably do three sets of8 reps, you can gradually increase the weight.

3. Force Yourself to Perform Daily Tasks with the Weaker Arm

Another way you can improve the balance of power is to overcome psychological barriers.

Most of us have a psychological barrier, which prevents us from believing we can do the same in each arm.

You might need to mentally force yourself to perform some of your daily activities, like carrying your briefcase or cutting your steak with your left hand.

4. Bodyweight Training

Another form of exercise that helps you to balance out the power in your body is training with your body weight.

Exercises like push-ups, pull-ups, and chin-ups, force you to use both arms. By using both arms equally, you will not be emphasizing one over the other.

It will allow you to effectively develop both equally.

5. Isolate the Weak Arm

You might be thinking that a barbell exercise will help you. However, you might be putting more effort in with your stronger arm.

This could make the weaker arm look much stronger than it is. One thing you might want to do is to isolate the left arm.

Now, your left arm is solely responsible for lifting weights.

How Long Does It Take to Make My Weak Arm Stronger?

It is hard to put an estimate on how long it would take. It would come down to your consistency levels and the level of effort you are willing to put in.

If you can focus daily on improving the strength of the weaker arm, it should take you only a few weeks.

Keep in mind that you might need to let your dominant arm rest and allow the weaker one to catch up.

Shoring up any weaknesses will take time and dedication, but eventually, you will establish a solid balance in your body.

Why Should I Improve the Weaker Side of My Body?

The main reason for shoring up any weakness is to reduce the strain on the dominant side.

You could be focusing too much on performing tasks with your dominant side. Unfortunately, this will lead to burnout of the muscles and even stress.

Additionally, your weaker side can serve as a backup plan. This means that you can use the weaker side when you have an injury to the dominant side.

Final Thoughts

If you are dealing with the question of why my left arm is weaker than my right, you should not be too worried about this.

Many people have either a subjective or objective weakness. However, it is often due to natural dominance. By using these tips, you will be shoring up all weaknesses.

You might even become ambidextrous. Let me know in the comment section if you are dealing with such a weakness.