Thighs getting bigger

ottbbabe2002

I hit the weight my goal weight about 2 months ago, I was happy with my shape and decided to start trying to tone up by doing body weight work outs everyday. But I have noticed my thighs are actually getting bigger. I like the way the rest of my body is changing, but I have always carried extra weight in my legs and I am not exactly thrilled about adding more bulk there. Any tips on getting slender and toned thighs?

cathipa

Are your pants fitting the same? If you are in a calorie deficit or just maintaining then you shouldn't be gaining size especially in 2 months and doing body weight workouts.

ottbbabe2002

I'm still wearing the same size, just fitting a little tighter. They had been loose around christmas time and no its a little difficult to get them on. And there has been no increase in size anywhere else

motherofdragons84

Thick thighs save lives, IMO.

If you're lifting then you are building muscle. I view that as a good thing.

jemhh

You could be holding more water weight there.

"Slender and toned" = low enough body fat to reveal muscle mass

That means losing fat and having muscle to reveal. Your options are:

1. Eat over maintenance while doing progressive resistance exercise to build muscle. Follow up with a fat loss (calorie cutting) period.
2. Eat at maintenance while doing progressive resistance exercise to build a bit less muscle than #1 but not have to follow up with a calorie cutting period.
3. Eat a bit under maintenance while doing progressive resistance exercise to build a less muscle than #2.

xsmilexforxmex

It might be muscle gain if you're doing a lot of squats/lunges, ect. Could just be eating enough to see a slight muscle gain faster than fat loss in the area, especially if you're losing in other areas.
Since spot reduction isn't a thing, my only tip is learn to love your legs... If it really bothers you, you can stop doing leg work outs - but fit, thick thighs look better than skinny fat legs IMO.

MiloBloom83

Wheelchair can reduce your overall leg size though atrophy. Otherwise, embrace those thick, sexy thighs.

jessef593

Eat less food

jessef593

But honestly, women with thick muscular thighs are very attractive

AJbandit88

I did some research a while back and found mostly that if you want to build muscle and not bulk up you need to stretch the area you worked out. Mainly legs. I started stretching after my runs and legs days and noticed that I'm still losing over all size in my thighs but building more muscle too. I normally sit on the floor with legs out straight and try to touch my toes, then put right leg to the side and touch toe, then do left side also. I stretch for about 10-20 sec and move to the other leg and repeat about 3-4 times. Hope that might help some.

sardelsa

Seriously.. what is your secret?? Second bulk here, my thighs are still pretty tiny.

cityruss

AJbandit88 wrote: »

I did some research a while back and found mostly that if you want to build muscle and not bulk up you need to stretch the area you worked out. Mainly legs. I started stretching after my runs and legs days and noticed that I'm still losing over all size in my thighs but building more muscle too. I normally sit on the floor with legs out straight and try to touch my toes, then put right leg to the side and touch toe, then do left side also. I stretch for about 10-20 sec and move to the other leg and repeat about 3-4 times. Hope that might help some.

Can you share this research?

jessef593

AJbandit88 wrote: »

I did some research a while back and found mostly that if you want to build muscle and not bulk up you need to stretch the area you worked out. Mainly legs. I started stretching after my runs and legs days and noticed that I'm still losing over all size in my thighs but building more muscle too. I normally sit on the floor with legs out straight and try to touch my toes, then put right leg to the side and touch toe, then do left side also. I stretch for about 10-20 sec and move to the other leg and repeat about 3-4 times. Hope that might help some.

Uh what? I stretch my legs everyday when I work them yet they continue to grow, in part due to the STRETCHING

Meganthedogmom

Own those thick thighs!!!

jessef593

jessef593 wrote: »

AJbandit88 wrote: »

I did some research a while back and found mostly that if you want to build muscle and not bulk up you need to stretch the area you worked out. Mainly legs. I started stretching after my runs and legs days and noticed that I'm still losing over all size in my thighs but building more muscle too. I normally sit on the floor with legs out straight and try to touch my toes, then put right leg to the side and touch toe, then do left side also. I stretch for about 10-20 sec and move to the other leg and repeat about 3-4 times. Hope that might help some.

Uh what? I stretch my legs everyday when I work them yet they continue to grow, in part due to the STRETCHING

Addition. How do you add mass and also lose size? Hypertrophy is the damage, repair, and regrow th of muscle cells. I think you're confusing definition from a weight loss with hypertrophy.

VintageFeline

xsmilexforxmex wrote: »

It might be muscle gain if you're doing a lot of squats/lunges, ect. Could just be eating enough to see a slight muscle gain faster than fat loss in the area, especially if you're losing in other areas.
Since spot reduction isn't a thing, my only tip is learn to love your legs... If it really bothers you, you can stop doing leg work outs - but fit, thick thighs look better than skinny fat legs IMO.

Two months of a woman doing bodyweight exercises is not building much of anything, certainly nothing you could see with the naked eye.

Also, I was a gymnast and dancer, I spent most of my childhood and early 20s stretching. I still have thick thighs and calves. Because gymnast. Dancer. Genetics.

AJbandit88

I will have to see if I can find the link. It was a couple years ago but if I can find it I will post it. It seemed to help me but can be different for anyone. I'm sure a lot of it has to do with weight loss also but before I did my stretching routines I would keep increasing the size of my legs while I was losing weight. I'm by no means an expert though, just posting what has worked for me.

trigden1991

You aren't going to be building appreciable muscle with bodyweight exercises (let alone within 2 months). You are either retaining water or have let your diet slip and you're eating in a surplus.

jessef593

AJbandit88 wrote: »

I will have to see if I can find the link. It was a couple years ago but if I can find it I will post it. It seemed to help me but can be different for anyone. I'm sure a lot of it has to do with weight loss also but before I did my stretching routines I would keep increasing the size of my legs while I was losing weight. I'm by no means an expert though, just posting what has worked for me.

Were you measuring your legs regularly? Just what you're describing is muscular hypertrophy while at the same time as inducing atrophy. Though if you were losing weight you were definitely not building any substantial muscle, it was more than likely increased definition leading to the appearance of greater muscle mass.

StealthHealth

trigden1991 wrote: »

You aren't going to be building appreciable muscle with bodyweight exercises (let alone within 2 months). You are either retaining water or have let your diet slip and you're eating in a surplus.

^^THIS.

Or your pants shrunk in the wash.

AJbandit88

[/quote] Though if you were losing weight you were definitely not building any substantial muscle, it was more than likely increased definition leading to the appearance of greater muscle mass.
[/quote]

That could be. I never thought about definition making it look like more muscle but actually just losing weight. Thanks jessef593.

TheCupcakeCounter

Some Pilates leg or barre workouts will give your legs a workout while also giving them a long, lean look

NYCDutchess

motherofdragons84 wrote: »

Thick thighs save lives, IMO.

If you're lifting then you are building muscle. I view that as a good thing.

Also, Muscle burns fat, so give it some time...you may just wind up with well defined legs.

jessef593

TheCupcakeCounter wrote: »

Some Pilates leg or barre workouts will give your legs a workout while also giving them a long, lean look

Not if you're in a surplus. The workouts create a deficit which in turn results in a defined Lean look. I work legs 2x a week in a surplus and they look thick but undefined. I do the exact same thing in a deficit and they look thinner but more defined and muscular

ndj1979

AJbandit88 wrote: »

I did some research a while back and found mostly that if you want to build muscle and not bulk up you need to stretch the area you worked out. Mainly legs. I started stretching after my runs and legs days and noticed that I'm still losing over all size in my thighs but building more muscle too. I normally sit on the floor with legs out straight and try to touch my toes, then put right leg to the side and touch toe, then do left side also. I stretch for about 10-20 sec and move to the other leg and repeat about 3-4 times. Hope that might help some.

what? So if you eat in a surplus, do squats, and stretch you wont add muscle?????????????

ndj1979

trigden1991 wrote: »

You aren't going to be building appreciable muscle with bodyweight exercises (let alone within 2 months). You are either retaining water or have let your diet slip and you're eating in a surplus.

cosign

jemhh

motherofdragons84 wrote: »

Thick thighs save lives, IMO.

What does that mean? Seriously? I've parsed the comment many ways and still cannot figure it out. I mean, I understand that people like curvy legs but other than rhyming, I don't get the comment and yet I see it posted a lot.

natasor1

Have u seen Tracy Anderson workouts for slim legs? She is thin celebrities trainer. I can give u the link to her utube; try those. Still remember, u may do little tricks for slimmer legs (while all internet screamming of "cann't do spot reduction"). I did little reseach in oversease sites and found what europian trainers do to make smaller sexier thighs for bikini models.
If u do a lot of weight training on your upper legs, they will grow in size even with stretching after.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lI6ucRl_BPw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUUXptowWco
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lI19eSELtIE,

Ofcaurce, u have to stay in calory deficit. The problem with some women, even in calories deficit and training your thighs wrong way, u make them grow anyway. What can make your thigh muscles dens not more volumy, u have to do very multiple reps exercises, I'm not talking of 15-20 reps, think of 50-100 reps with no load. U can do squats only body weight for 50-100 reps, watch your techniqe (u must). Next u can do lunges, but lunge has to be precise in techniqe, agein (u must), U stend legs apart, than step rite leg forward allow small width between legs, hold your rite hand for support and start moving your body up/down with rite leg forward, 50-100 reps, pay special attention, how u doing them, most of work has to be done by your left leg, lifting u up, feeling tension in your left glute, not your rite quad. Big sens in the multiple reps comes from exhousting your fast and slow twitch muscles. The blood flow will be enourmouse, that has to burn little fat above muscles which do the work, but muscles will be so exhousted that not able to grow, while u did not put a lot of weight on them they are not going to break which in turn does not allow them to grow in size.
I expect a lot of criticism from main crowd of execisers, but u have to understand that your work out has to be quite opposite from main crowd. The crowd try to put on muscle mass, u go opposite way: put off muscle mass while getting stronger.

AJbandit88

I clearly confused losing weight and seeing more defined muscle for building lean muscle. Just goes to show you not to believe everything you look up on the Internet and you can always learn more. Thanks for the info guys.

jessiferrrb

jemhh wrote: »

motherofdragons84 wrote: »

Thick thighs save lives, IMO.

What does that mean? Seriously? I've parsed the comment many ways and still cannot figure it out. I mean, I understand that people like curvy legs but other than rhyming, I don't get the comment and yet I see it posted a lot.

there was a danish study that suggested that having more muscular thighs could be linked to lower risk for heart disease and diabetes. it also noted that more research was needed. at least that is what i could find on the google machine.

ETA when i say it / see it i always think of it in a self defense kind of way, like choking an attacker out with the strength of my thighs.

ndj1979

natasor1 wrote: »

Have u seen Tracy Anderson workouts for slim legs? She is thin celebrities trainer. I can give u the link to her utube; try those. Still remember, u may do little tricks for slimmer legs (while all internet screamming of "cann't do spot reduction"). I did little reseach in oversease sites and found what europian trainers do to make smaller sexier thighs for bikini models.
If u do a lot of weight training on your upper legs, they will grow in size even with stretching after.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lI6ucRl_BPw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUUXptowWco
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lI19eSELtIE,

Ofcaurce, u have to stay in calory deficit. The problem with some women, even in calories deficit and training your thighs wrong way, u make them grow anyway. What can make your thigh muscles dens not more volumy, u have to do very multiple reps exercises, I'm not talking of 15-20 reps, think of 50-100 reps with no load. U can do squats only body weight for 50-100 reps, watch your techniqe (u must). Next u can do lunges, but lunge has to be precise in techniqe, agein (u must), U stend legs apart, than step rite leg forward allow small width between legs, hold your rite hand for support and start moving your body up/down with rite leg forward, 50-100 reps, pay special attention, how u doing them, most of work has to be done by your left leg, lifting u up, feeling tension in your left glute, not your rite quad. Big sens in the multiple reps comes from exhousting your fast and slow twitch muscles. The blood flow will be enourmouse, that has to burn little fat above muscles which do the work, but muscles will be so exhousted that not able to grow, while u did not put a lot of weight on them they are not going to break which in turn does not allow them to grow in size.
I expect a lot of criticism from main crowd of execisers, but u have to understand that your work out has to be quite opposite from main crowd. The crowd try to put on muscle mass, u go opposite way: put off muscle mass while getting stronger.

OP please ignore...

if you train your legs in a deficit they will not get bigger...

The only way to add muscle in a deficit is if one is a newbie to lifting or if you use steroids.

how do you "put off muscle mass" while still working out? The whole point of working out in a deficit is to maintain as much mass as possible. They only way to put off muscle is to completely stop using it.