bulky leg muscles/gigantic thighs

Christine_1027

hi everyone, I am trying to lose weight on my legs, but my legs have way too much bulky muscles which flatten out when I sit down, making my thighs look even bigger (I don't have too much muscle on the rest of my body), and it doesn't look good when I wear shorts or skirts. I want to have slim legs, does anyone know how I can slim down all this excess muscle without slowing down my metabolism? (my calf muscles are quite large too--even though I rarely wear heels)

the fat in my thighs is also super stubborn..
my thighs are the biggest part of me, and even after losing a lot of weight before joining MFP, my thighs have not changed much and I have been told stuff like "your thighs look the same as before" and "your thighs are HUGE!!"

I've also been told that you can't spot reduce, so squats probably wouldn't work..

so..any ideas on what would work? or do I just have to keep losing weight until my legs slim down?

kommodevaran

Lose the people that tell you you have huge thighs. Muscle is sexy

Capt_Apollo

i googled "5' 3" 126 pound women" and 38 minutes later, i'm back.

i doubt your leg muscles are as big as you think. and maybe you are surrounded by people that just do have tiny waify legs. but you have your legs. not much you can go about the genetics of things, so you might just have some more sizeable thighs.

keep eating at a calorie deficit. do some cardio. do some weights. be patient.

Christine_1027

thanks guys... but should I limit protein?

sarahrbraun

No. You should probably seek counseling to find out WHY you feel your legs are so huge. I am 5"2' tall, a size 10/12 and I have 22.5in thighs, and 15in calves. My thighs are on the bigger side, but they are solid muscle! And if anyone dares make fun, I will use my huge thighs to kick some sense into them.

Liftng4Lis

Get new friends, that's ridiculous!

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TimothyFish

If it flattened out, it probably isn't muscle. But aside from reducing weight and strengthening muscle, we can't control what we look like. God made us the way we are for a reason. We may not like the way we look, but that's above our pay grade.

randomtai

Pics of these "bulky" legs?

maxit

Continue to eat healthy. If you want to work on body proportions, add exercises that will work your upper body, including push-ups. At age 18 everyone in your peer group is self conscious - us older folks would probably add "excessively" but that's only because we are in a different place. Those strong legs are moving you down the road. Don't hate them

bunbunzee44

nothing wrong with muscular thighs!

lifeskittles

Um...I have huge thighs..like seriously...But I make them that way on purpose. Because muscular thighs are AWESOME..And they make me feel powerful, and let me lift heavy things...and intimidate men. Why don't you focus more on increasing the muscle in your upper body for balance? If you want to slim down in that area a little, jumping and explosive movements (like box jumps) will help sort of "bring everything in" in that area. But honestly, you should embrace them. If you're self conscious about them you might be storing your fat in that area too and the muscle might just be emphasizing that. But once you cut off the fat you'll probably LOVE them!

lifeskittles

And like the above poster said, muscle doesn't really "flatten" when you sit down, so you likely have some fat storage going on there too.

lyttlewon

How big is big? My inseam is short for my height, so if I am not careful with skirts sometimes optically my legs look bigger than they are. It's surprising how much your visual appearance is affected by hemlines and where your waistline is drawn by your clothing.

williams969

Liftng4Lis wrote: »

Get new friends, that's ridiculous!

^^This. Those comments are unnecessary and mean. Friends don't talk like that (well NO one should talk like that, really). And, perhaps talking to someone in a supportive setting to understand WHY you think you're "huge" could be so beneficial.

And the thighs looking bigger (spreading) when you sit? Umm, everyone's do that. The chair seat pushes up on your legs, the mass has to go somewhere, and our legs are relaxed (not flexed) when sitting. Please stop thinking that's abnormal.

Kalikel

When we sit down, it isn't generally the muscle that's spreading out. It's the fat.

As you lose weight, you lose some muscle, too. The body naturally picks up muscle when you're gaining weight and naturally gives it up as you lose. Builds what it needs, releases what it doesn't. It just happens.

Loads of people here spend a LOT of time working very hard to keep their muscle. They know if they don't work to keep it, it will go away. So will yours.

So, if your goal is to have less muscle, just keep losing fat. Some muscle will go with it.

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Serah87

MrM27 wrote: »

Kalikel wrote: »

When we sit down, it isn't generally the muscle that's spreading out. It's the fat.

As you lose weight, you lose some muscle, too. The body naturally picks up muscle when you're gaining weight and naturally gives it up as you lose. Builds what it needs, releases what it doesn't. It just happens.

Loads of people here spend a LOT of time working very hard to keep their muscle. They know if they don't work to keep it, it will go away. So will yours.

So, if your goal is to have less muscle, just keep losing fat. Some muscle will go with it.

Just terrible advice.

Agree!!!

Aviva92

sarahrbraun wrote: »

No. You should probably seek counseling to find out WHY you feel your legs are so huge. I am 5"2' tall, a size 10/12 and I have 22.5in thighs, and 15in calves. My thighs are on the bigger side, but they are solid muscle! And if anyone dares make fun, I will use my huge thighs to kick some sense into them.

counseling? you haven't even seen pictures of her. maybe her thighs really are too big compared to the rest of her body. I'm guessing it's more fat for her than muscle though that she's unhappy about. Muscle is hot. Fat isn't though.

I'm 5'4" and have ranged from 101-140 pounds. My thighs have always been on the big side in comparison to the rest of me, especially at the higher end. I can relate to her issue.

emdeesea

Do you do regular weight lifting or other strength training? If not, I doubt that your legs are as big as you think they are. And seeing as you're in a normal BMI and weight range, you might WANT to add some strength training to your routine. Because even though you might add muscle weight, it tends to be smaller overall and makes you appear slimmer as compared to someone who is skinny with no muscle and lots of body fat.

Aviva92

emdeesea wrote: »

Do you do regular weight lifting or other strength training? If not, I doubt that your legs are as big as you think they are. And seeing as you're in a normal BMI and weight range, you might WANT to add some strength training to your routine. Because even though you might add muscle weight, it tends to be smaller overall and makes you appear slimmer as compared to someone who is skinny with no muscle and lots of body fat.

why would you not naturally have fat legs if you don't lift? the rest of your post contradicts itself.

rainbowbow

I want to have slim legs, does anyone know how I can slim down all this excess muscle without slowing down my metabolism?

I think you know the answer here. More muscle you have= higher metabolism. Fat doesn't burn calories just sitting there. Muscle does.

I just have to keep losing weight until my legs slim down?

Pretty much. And I can almost guarantee that once you hit >20% body fat regardless of how "bulky" you think they are your legs won't look large.

Best of luck op!

emdeesea

Aviva92 wrote: »

why would you not naturally have fat legs if you don't lift? the rest of your post contradicts itself.

Lol okay

lisalsd1

What size pants do you wear? B/c I'm 5'3 and 126lbs...and I wear a size 4. Sometimes a 2 (if I can squeeze my thighs into them...not making fun of you. That is a true fact). I do a lot of squats. So yeah, I doubt your thighs are actually huge. Maybe the rest of you is just really small.

Christine_1027

lisalsd1 wrote: »

What size pants do you wear? B/c I'm 5'3 and 126lbs...and I wear a size 4. Sometimes a 2 (if I can squeeze my thighs into them...not making fun of you. That is a true fact). I do a lot of squats. So yeah, I doubt your thighs are actually huge. Maybe the rest of you is just really small.

hi, I wear size 8 pants... I wish I was a size 4

Aviva92

lisalsd1 wrote: »

What size pants do you wear? B/c I'm 5'3 and 126lbs...and I wear a size 4. Sometimes a 2 (if I can squeeze my thighs into them...not making fun of you. That is a true fact). I do a lot of squats. So yeah, I doubt your thighs are actually huge. Maybe the rest of you is just really small.

what does your size have to do with the op's size?

Christine_1027

my hips are not small, my pants are size 8, and I've noticed that big thighs run in my genes

AmandaHugginkiss

Strength train. Keep eating in a deficit. Your thighs aren't going to grow in size in a deficit, but you'll get rid of the fat, and you'll shrink in size.

Serah87

I liked to see photos of these so called "gigantic" thighs, OP.

callmejessica

i would kill to have some bulkier legs! count your blessings and embrace what you have! i'm sure you look fantastic!

Mediocrates55

I'm 5'4, 140. When I started this last round of cut, I was only up 6 pounds from here but my thighs were 24.5 inches. Heavy squats 3x week for the past three weeks and they're down to 23.5 as of tonight. You can't spot reduce, true, but squats will damn sure make everything tight and sleek.