Cardio vs. other

okremix

Ok...I have a big lower half so what is the most effective excersise to slim down that area. I do not want to bulk up by pushing weights or anything. All it has done in the past is make my legs bigger. Should I run or how effective is a stationary bike? Any ideas? The weight in this area is really stubbon for me and it is usually the last to go but I'm starting to look funny in small shirts and size 16 bottoms...lol.

aippolito1

I'd like to know too! My thighs are sooo hard to get rid of. I've toned my rear but my thighs just won't budge. My personal trainer told me to do all the leg machines to sculpt "long lean muscles" but the fat on my thighs isn't going anywhere. I've noticed a SLIGHT change but ultimately when I feel my legs, it feels like all muscle and I DON'T want big legs!!

lilchino4af

I use the Jillian Michael's DVDs (30 Day Shred, No More Trouble Zones, Banish Fat/Boost Metabolism, Yoga Meltdown); she uses your own body weight or 3 lbs weights to help tone muscles and burn fat. I love the workouts and you definitely don't have to worry about bulking up. Give them a try; they're only $9 at walmart. I've lost at least 3 inches on my waist and thighs with these - they're definitely worth every penny!

EDIT: Jillian even made a comment in her No More Trouble Zones about not using the leg machines at a gym because they bulk you up. Her workouts definitely don't do that because, as I already said, she uses our own body weight to tone muscle and lose fat faster.

stylistchik

as a female, you can gain muscle, but it is impossible for you to 'bulk up' unless you are taking supplements for that. exercising will slim you down, but you will only end at your natural body shape. You may not end up looking like a rail. Love it. There are skinny girls who envy curves like yours! cardio will be your friend, but your body should be your friend as well.

DogsRule666

Females never have to worry about Bulking Up. We just can't to it, naturally.
I recommend doing both, as their are many health benefits to cardio and strength training.

aippolito1

Females never have to worry about Bulking Up. We just can't to it, naturally.
I recommend doing both, as their are many health benefits to cardio and strength training.

I don't believe it. I have large thighs to begin with and the last couple months that I've been using the machines on my legs (and when I did over the summer - for three straight months, with a good diet AND doing a ton of cardio everyday, as I'm doing now), and my legs have gotten no smaller. I'll know for sure this week when I have my 2nd assessment after a month of being on my trainer's "program"... I honestly don't see a difference though. My pants fit about the same in the thighs... TIGHT. I swear to you the muscle has grown UNDER the fat and I don't want that.

lotusfromthemud

Get thee to a spin class!

Seriously, when I spin more, my legs look better. Also, be sure you're incorporating some sort of flexibility training. My leg muscles actually look bigger/bunchier when they're tight.:flowerforyou:

SHBoss1673

ok, so it's mostly true, "bulking up" requires testosterone, women generally just don't have the "ingredients" to bulk up. Can it be artificially increased with drugs and/or suppliments? Yes, but for most women (who don't have hormone imbalances) the concept of "bulking up" would require hours a day and a super super strict diet, and even then you're talking about small gains compared to men.

Now, that being said, you don't change your body shape in "months", or at least not in 2 or 3 months. Yes it's true, in rare cases women (and men) can lose large amounts of weight quickly, but usually that's the result of them being morbidly obese in the first place. Having a "larger lower half" doesn't go away after a few months, it takes many months (say closer to 12 than 2) and sometimes years to fix.

There are exercises (stretching) you can do to lengthen muscles (to a degree) but in the end, you need to reduce fat, and that means a healthy diet that is at a caloric deficit. And of course plenty of exercise because, not only does this burn more calories, but it also keeps the muscles you have that are just hiding under the fat nice and firm so that when that fat melts off, you will be looking trim and sexy! That's how you do it, there's no short cut, and there doesn't need to be because this works! Is it difficult? Sure it is, but nothing worth doing is easy, and you will be a stronger person for having gone through it and come out on the other side!

questionablemethods

ok, so it's mostly true, "bulking up" requires testosterone, women generally just don't have the "ingredients" to bulk up. Can it be artificially increased with drugs and/or suppliments? Yes, but for most women (who don't have hormone imbalances) the concept of "bulking up" would require hours a day and a super super strict diet, and even then you're talking about small gains compared to men.

Just to add to this (correct me if I'm wrong here).

Most women who are afraid to "bulk up" also forget that actually adding significant amounts of muscle requires a calorie SURPLUS. Most everyone on this site (at least those interested in losing weight) are operating at a caloric DEFICIT. Yes, you can gain some muscle while losing fat, but it isn't going to be large amounts and it will probably be coming in terms of melting/shrinking the intramuscular fat (think the "marbling" in steaks) and replacing that with muscle tissue. So yes, the muscles will get more dense and firm and "toned" (though I dislike that word and its connotations with women and weight lifting) but we're just not talking about actual pounds and pounds of muscle that can be added by women -- or even men, for that matter, who are at a calorie deficit.

This is at least how I understand it.

mariena

I agree with this. I do a lot of weight lifting. I am very petite at 5'0" and 100lbs. I lift daily and I lift heavy weights doing a burn out of each muscle group per day. I am strong and lean, not bulky. So although I am short and God gave me short legs with larger thighs, using weights has done nothing but tone my legs. Plus, even if you do have a slight gain in inches in that area, it is muscle and probably vastly improves the shape and appearance of your legs. I'd rather have larger muscular legs than medium sized flabby ones

okremix

I simply meant that I do not want to make them larger before the fat comes off first and I don't mean man bulky but yes girls with very muscular legs have to make the effort to focus on lean muscle...I know I used to do it in high school when I was very competative in sports and in the army before I had a baby. My leg muscles were huge...lol. But working out that intensely is hard on my body to so I prefer to do cardio. I just wanted suggestions to heat up that area a little more to target the fat in that area which I firmly believe in as a health professional because those muscle in burn use the energy closest to them first.

Thanks guys for the suggestions...I think I'll try spinning and the yoga. I'm still a little to big to start running again anyway. I don't want to hurt myself.

questionablemethods

I totally understand. I have naturally large leg muscles myself. There doesn't seem to be a way to make them smaller (or longer/leaner, whathaveyou). Following the knee surgery on my left knee, I wasn't able to put any weight on my left leg for a couple of weeks. During that time, the muscles in my left leg atrophied so much that that leg was at least two inches smaller in diameter than the healthy right one. Over my several months of rehab, I didn't do any heavy weight training with my legs. I did squats and lunges and plyometric exercises for rehabbing that leg, but I didn't "hit the weights" by any means. Sure enough, my leg got right back up to its original size. So, that pretty much tells me that I'm not going to be able to drastically change the size/shape of my leg muscles. All we can hope to do is reduce body fat.

I really love both spinning and yoga and I've done a bit of running (nothing more than 15-20 miles/week, though). Can't say I've ever seen much change in my legs, but I still keep hoping!

SHBoss1673

I totally understand. I have naturally large leg muscles myself. There doesn't seem to be a way to make them smaller (or longer/leaner, whathaveyou). Following the knee surgery on my left knee, I wasn't able to put any weight on my left leg for a couple of weeks. During that time, the muscles in my left leg atrophied so much that that leg was at least two inches smaller in diameter than the healthy right one. Over my several months of rehab, I didn't do any heavy weight training with my legs. I did squats and lunges and plyometric exercises for rehabbing that leg, but I didn't "hit the weights" by any means. Sure enough, my leg got right back up to its original size. So, that pretty much tells me that I'm not going to be able to drastically change the size/shape of my leg muscles. All we can hope to do is reduce body fat.

I really love both spinning and yoga and I've done a bit of running (nothing more than 15-20 miles/week, though). Can't say I've ever seen much change in my legs, but I still keep hoping!

drastically, no probably not, but stretching and ballistic routines could lengthen the muscles, which can, while not actually reducing the muscle size, make them look a little leaner. Course you have to keep at it to make the changes stick.