Unwanted muscle!!

kscheuer1

I need help! I started going to the gym a little over 3 months ago, I usually do 30-45 minutes on the elipitical, another 20 minutes on the treadmill and I walk alot since I live in NYC, I also do about 30 minutes of weights and stretching. I feel like I have seen some results but I went shopping this weekend and everything was either too tight around my butt and thighs or in some cases it wouldn't even get on pass my lower thighs. Let me tell ya, I have never had this problem ever! I have always had skinny, toned legs and barely any butt. If anything I would always have to get these area's altered to fit me! Now all of a sudden I feel like I've got a Kim Kardashian! I hate it! Everything was fitting in the waist and below my thighs but too tight in the thigh/butt area. I'm thinking I've gained a lot of muscle in these area's and that's why things are not fitting there. But I don't want to gain muscle, I want to be lean and toned. My sister had this problem a couple years ago as well. She was going to the gym and working out alot and she built a lot of muscle in her thighs and butt, but has recently stopped going to the gym and has taken dance up and she has become very lean. Does anyone have any recommendations for this issue???

Also...I have to utilize the gym because I'm paying a bundle and I'm locked into it for a year. They do have some yoga and pilates classes, I was thinking that might work. What is your opinion?

Kminor67

Yoga and pilates can create long, lean muscles, and this may be an option for you. I want to ask... are you still shopping in the junior's section? If you go into the misses' section of the department stores, you'll probably be happier with the fit of your clothes.

FrenchMob

To gain that kind of muscle in those specific areas in that amount of time is nearly impossible for a man, nevermind a woman, especially if you're on a calorie reduced diet.

I suspect there's something else at play here, but it certainly isn't 100% muscle gain, if any at all.

redon

Try to go to swim, if they have one; you'll burn lots of calories and muscles will grow very slow.
Shorten your gym session and go for yoga/pilates instead, you'll strengh your core muscle while stretching.

rose1617

My suggestion would be to keep at everything you're doing. Your body's gaining muscle, that's awesome. You could try yoga or pilates, but you should keep in mind that your body may not accommodate what you want.
Our bodies are very much genetically-oriented. I want a 6-pack one day, but my genetics won't allow that. I have very lean long muscles in my abs and have never, not even at my fittest 110 lbs., competitively playing sports and working out for hours a day, 9% body fat, on a very clean diet had any sort of "pack". A friend of mine wants that quad muscle to stick out on her legs, but it's not in her genetics, not even at 12% body fat. Keep that in mind and celebrate your healthy, happy body the way it is.
That would be my best suggestion.
Good luck!

KimSchnizleinWECHANGED

You're problem is obviously some extra muscle gain. Men and women can easily gain muscle based on the strength training and/or weight training that they're using. Men and women differ in one specific way, and that is based on the amount of weight or type of bands that are being used. Men can usually lift more, and therefore, will need to lift more and add more reps and sets to gain muscle .... If that's their goal. Make sure you are aware of how much weight you are utilizing during your training ... Higher weight, more reps and more sets will tend to increase muscle gain. If you're primarily interested in losing weight then you want to use less weight, keep your sets (to start anyway) to about 2 of 10-15 reps, and the amount of weight would be dependent on your body structure, ability, and what you hope to accomplish. You also shouldn't do weight or strength training more than 3 days a week, and you should do it in an every-other-day format .... In other words, not 3 days back-to-back. Talk to a trainer at your gym, and the yoga and pilates recommendations might be the way to go. Good luck! With a little adjustment, and asking the right questions to the right people ... You'll eventually get where you want to be sooner than you think.

Azdak

I need help! I started going to the gym a little over 3 months ago, I usually do 30-45 minutes on the elipitical, another 20 minutes on the treadmill and I walk alot since I live in NYC, I also do about 30 minutes of weights and stretching. I feel like I have seen some results but I went shopping this weekend and everything was either too tight around my butt and thighs or in some cases it wouldn't even get on pass my lower thighs. Let me tell ya, I have never had this problem ever! I have always had skinny, toned legs and barely any butt. If anything I would always have to get these area's altered to fit me! Now all of a sudden I feel like I've got a Kim Kardashian! I hate it! Everything was fitting in the waist and below my thighs but too tight in the thigh/butt area. I'm thinking I've gained a lot of muscle in these area's and that's why things are not fitting there. But I don't want to gain muscle, I want to be lean and toned. My sister had this problem a couple years ago as well. She was going to the gym and working out alot and she built a lot of muscle in her thighs and butt, but has recently stopped going to the gym and has taken dance up and she has become very lean. Does anyone have any recommendations for this issue???

Also...I have to utilize the gym because I'm paying a bundle and I'm locked into it for a year. They do have some yoga and pilates classes, I was thinking that might work. What is your opinion?

Unfortunately, you are kind of floundering and trying to "guess" without a good set of data. Since it doesn't sound like you took any baseline measurements before starting your program, it's hard to tell what is happening. You also don't mention how long you have been on this program or what kinds of strength exercises you are doing.

On paper, the volume of exercise you are describing (esp the 30 min strength sessions) does not seem to be enough to be the primary cause of the changes you are reporting, unless you are spending a lot of time on things like glute machines and hip adductor/abductor machines.

The other obvious thing to look at is your parents. You might have an inherited body type that is changing the way it is programmed to change. My wife has seen some changes in her shape during the past 10 years that she is not entirely happy with and keeps questioning what is happening. I haven't had the guts to point out that she looks basically like her parents and every other adult in her family. But because she did some modeling when she was 20-21 years old, that is still the "body image" she keeps in her mind.

I'm not saying any of these things are the cause, just throwing out some possibilities. But one of the first things that one needs to do in situations like this is to make sure your expectations are realistic.

If you are doing thigh machines, I would stop. You can work your legs with exercises like step-ups, lunges, and squats. If your club offers something like TRX suspension training, that would be an excellent choice as well. You can also try yoga and pilates--they are different kinds of training but the types of strength they develop might fit your needs.

LuckyLeprechaun

muscle burns calories, even when you're sitting still- muscle is your friend! Celebrate and love your new muscle and your healthy body!!!

kscheuer1

Thanks everyone for your feedback! I first started to do a lot of walking and biking last summer and then joined the gym at the end of May. I do alot of strength training on my lower half like the hip abductor and when I do the elipitical I have it set to 9 so its a lot of resistance on my legs. Don't get me wrong I'm glad I have muscle and not fat! Myegs and butt are very toned which is what I want, but they are just bigger than what I think they should be, especially for someone of my height. I'm 5 feet tall.

Also, I am new to the gym workout, I was never a runner, soccer player or anything like that. I've danced from age 2 until age 20, and then started to get more into pilates after I stopped dancing. But I haven't done pilates in over a year. Someone mentioned yesterday that maybe my body isn't used to doing what I do at the gym because I was a trained dancer, not a runner! Two totally different forms of exercise.

hill242

This is just my opinion: I'd rather have ill-fitting clothes and a strong body than perfectly fitting clothes and a weak body.

Azdak

Thanks everyone for your feedback! I first started to do a lot of walking and biking last summer and then joined the gym at the end of May. I do alot of strength training on my lower half like the hip abductor and when I do the elipitical I have it set to 9 so its a lot of resistance on my legs. Don't get me wrong I'm glad I have muscle and not fat! Myegs and butt are very toned which is what I want, but they are just bigger than what I think they should be, especially for someone of my height. I'm 5 feet tall.

Also, I am new to the gym workout, I was never a runner, soccer player or anything like that. I've danced from age 2 until age 20, and then started to get more into pilates after I stopped dancing. But I haven't done pilates in over a year. Someone mentioned yesterday that maybe my body isn't used to doing what I do at the gym because I was a trained dancer, not a runner! Two totally different forms of exercise.

Stay off the hip machines and try some lunges instead. Or, if you are already doing lunges, still stay off the hip machines.

stringcheeze

This is just my opinion: I'd rather have ill-fitting clothes and a strong body than perfectly fitting clothes and a weak body.

Amen to that!