I don't want to lose any more in my upper body.

kwardklinck

How can I lose weight just in my belly and legs? I can see every bone in my chest so I really don't want to lose any more up top. However, I'm just not happy with my thighs or my belly. What can I do? Should I try to lose more weight or should I just go on maintenance and try to firm up the lower area?

littlelisa24

Hey, You should do maintance and tone. You can't gear weight loss to a certain area. It takes from every where.

BamaRose0107

Hey, You should do maintance and tone. You can't gear weight loss to a certain area. It takes from every where.

Unfortunately this is true. We can't really pick and choose where we want the weight to come of from. Walking is really good to slim down the lower body. I also like pilates to tone the core muscles. I agree that toning would be a good idea.

MacMadame

I was in the same position 9 months ago. You could see my spine and ribs but I had belly and thigh fat. I was worried, but I kept on losing and the rest came off my belly and thighs. Then, when I got to my goal weight, the fat started redistributing. So now you can't see my spine or ribs any more. I'm still a bit scrawny across the chest but strength training is helping with that.

BrendaLee

I was in the same position 9 months ago. You could see my spine and ribs but I had belly and thigh fat. I was worried, but I kept on losing and the rest came off my belly and thighs. Then, when I got to my goal weight, the fat started redistributing. So now you can't see my spine or ribs any more. I'm still a bit scrawny across the chest but strength training is helping with that.

That's actually really interesing.

kwardklinck

Thank you. I never thought about weight redistributing but it does. I lost a lot of weight rather quickly so it probably just took from the easiest places. I have started strength training for my arms and chest, I started running this week, and I think I'm going to try Pilates a couple of times a week. I only have about 4 pounds to go so I'll just try eating more and really work on toning those areas. Hopefully in a month or two I'll be happy with my whole body.

stroutman81

What is the definition of "toning" as used in the recommendations in this thread?

kwardklinck

Building muscle without getting bulky.

stroutman81

Women don't get bulky. They're not hormonally dispositioned to get bulky.

A muscle either grows or it doesn't. There's no magic way to create long lean muscles. How a muscle looks after it grows or doesn't is based solely on it's origin and insertion attachments which is unalterable and dictated by genetics.

TheMaidOfAstolat

Women don't get bulky. They're not hormonally dispositioned to get bulky.

A muscle either grows or it doesn't. There's no magic way to create long lean muscles. How a muscle looks after it grows or doesn't is based solely on it's origin and insertion attachments which is unalterable and dictated by genetics.

Agree. Would anyone on here say that Jillian Michaels is bulky? Nah, she's not and look at how much she works out and lifts...women just can't get bulky without help from hormones or steroids.

stroutman81

Right.

Unfortunately, many people, especially women, avoid the very things they need to be doing if they're going to achieve their goal look. They avoid these things because of an irrational fear.

freedMan

Stroutman is very correct in this thread. Women can lift weights and not gain a huge amount of muscle mass. They lack the testosterone levels to do so, plus while on a calorie deficit. It is impossible to get bulky from muscle because on a calorie deficit, your body is losing weight because of fat/muscle loss. When you "bulk" up, you would need to eat more than your daily maintenance and excercise calories. If you eat the right kind of calories and lift heavy, the extra calories will turn into muscle. It is impossible to "bulk up" without gaining some fat, so usually, after bulking up, a person would go into a calorie deficit again to try to lose the bit of fat they've gained.

It will be impossible for you to bulk up, lift some weights and you'll make excellent progress

Okiericanmom

I'm no expert, but I think you should go for maintaining where you are and toning the parts that you want to trim up. You could do a light weight routine and lose inches in those areas and not weight. I have a great routine I can show you, if you want.

Talk to you soon!

MacMadame

Here's a good article on the subject:

http://exercise.about.com/cs/weightloss/a/toning.htm

and another:

http://randomfit.blogspot.com/2007/06/bulking-vs-toning.html

stroutman81

I'm no expert, but I think you should go for maintaining where you are and toning the parts that you want to trim up. You could do a light weight routine and lose inches in those areas and not weight. I have a great routine I can show you, if you want.

Talk to you soon!

That's essentially saying you can "spot reduce." Which you can't. Unless I'm mistaken what you're saying and if so, my apologies.

We have control of fat and muscle mass. We can either grow or shrink these factors.

That's it.

In my world, trimming up means making smaller and leaner. These things require losing fat to expose any muscle that's under it. And losing fat only happens in a genetically predetermined pattern, meaning you're not going to be able to target specific areas with specific exercises.

Sure, you can train specific areas with resistance training... but that's involving the muscle tissue. And muscle either grows or it doesn't.

Zara11

Right.

Unfortunately, many people, especially women, avoid the very things they need to be doing if they're going to achieve their goal look. They avoid these things because of an irrational fear.

A trainer at the gym was telling me how this fear drove him up a wall. Said it took weeks to convince women that using heavier weights wouldn't make them look like a man on steroids.

stroutman81

A trainer at the gym was telling me how this fear drove him up a wall. Said it took weeks to convince women that using heavier weights wouldn't make them look like a man on steroids.

What drives me crazy isn't the women who hold this belief. Rather, it's the industry that espouses and perpetuates it.

I train many women who come to me with these misconceptions and I actually enjoy it - it's a challenge and extremely rewarding once they "see the light."

questionablemethods

A trainer at the gym was telling me how this fear drove him up a wall. Said it took weeks to convince women that using heavier weights wouldn't make them look like a man on steroids.

What drives me crazy isn't the women who hold this belief. Rather, it's the industry that espouses and perpetuates it.

I train many women who come to me with these misconceptions and I actually enjoy it - it's a challenge and extremely rewarding once they "see the light."

Yup. The pink dumbbell myth. I can't STAND it.

TheMaidOfAstolat

A trainer at the gym was telling me how this fear drove him up a wall. Said it took weeks to convince women that using heavier weights wouldn't make them look like a man on steroids.

What drives me crazy isn't the women who hold this belief. Rather, it's the industry that espouses and perpetuates it.

I train many women who come to me with these misconceptions and I actually enjoy it - it's a challenge and extremely rewarding once they "see the light."

Yup. The pink dumbbell myth. I can't STAND it.

Haha...that's funny.
I was at the gym on Friday (my co-worker and I just joined one near our office so we could work out together)...and the guys in there all did double takes when I started walking to the weight machines. It was like they had never seen a girl doing lat pulls or chest press machines...ever, it was so funny.