CYCLING & chunky legs..

lozzieemayjenkins
lozzieemayjenkins Posts: 71 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I've always had quite big legs for my height & size.. whether I'm heavy or light my legs are fairly chunky & I've always had trouble slimming them down.

I'm currently 56lbs overweight, but slowly losing pounds & inches with a calorie controlled diet and occasional exercise.

I'd like to take up cycling, a few of my friends go & have asked me to join so I'm contemplating buying a mountain bike and heading out with them!

The only thing that worries me, is does cycling bulk up the legs?

I'm aware that you cannot spot reduce fat, and that it will come off where it wants too and there's no specific exercise that will target the legs and slim them down (although a lot of people say running will help)..

Due to bad joints in my knees I am unable to take up running as it really inflames & injures my knees, and I cannot swim either. I do attend the gym occasionally and do weight training such as squats, lunges etc and cardio afterwards - cross trainer mainly.

I'm just curious if I start cycling will it help me to lose fat all over & eventually slim down my legs? Or will it do the opposite and bulk up my thighs and calves? The last thing I need is bulk in those areas!

Thanks.
«1

Replies

  • sprintto50
    sprintto50 Posts: 410 Member
    Everyone is different in how their body will react. I also have "chunky" legs. They do bulk up in the summer when I cycle a lot, as does my butt. I would rather be in good shape with strong, muscular legs that are a bit bigger than out of shape and soft legs that are a bit smaller.
  • ohrandi
    ohrandi Posts: 28 Member
    Bump! I have the same issue. I swear my legs are more than half of my body weight, they build muscle like crazy. I have man calves and can't wear 90% of knee-high boots :(
  • drosen32
    drosen32 Posts: 23 Member
    I've ridden a bike for over 20 years, doing both short and extremely high mileage rides. My legs are in good shape, but I wouldn't come close to saying they're "bulky". If you're concerned about that, start with leisurely rides and see how it works for you. Cycling is my main source of exercise and it's helped me lose about 20 pounds so far. Good luck!
  • christabel6
    christabel6 Posts: 173 Member
    Comparing legs with a friend who runs we concluded that the shape of your legs and muscle build is probably genetic - she runs and cycles pretty seriously and looks like she has no muscle at all despite being incredibly fit (unless she flexes), while I'm overweight and not fit and still have slim legs that look muscly because that's my body shape. It depends what your expectations are.

    I have cycled for a long time just to commute to work (15 mins each way so nothing too hardcore). Even when slim and much fitter it didn't make my legs muscly and huge. Unless you deliberately flex, nobody can see your muscles. You'd need to do serious weightlifting to build up enough muscle mass for people to notice. CV will help you lose weight all over so if you have extra fat on your legs it will go from there too. Meantime you'll get the toning which will make you look leaner.

    It's all good ;-) Good luck.
  • jiggy_gibby
    jiggy_gibby Posts: 197
    Yeah, my least favorite comment : "I've never seen calves that big on a woman". urrgh......
  • LoraF83
    LoraF83 Posts: 15,694 Member
    Cycling is great exercise. And I seriously doubt you'll get bigger legs from it. Do Lance Armstrong's legs look big to you?? I don't think so.......and he even took steroids.

    I spin at least once a week, and have been for the past year, and I've lost quite a few inches off my legs. I think your concerns are unwarranted.
  • susanp57
    susanp57 Posts: 409 Member
    it has never bulked up my legs despite doing 100 mile rides which included substantial hills. I'm trying to build back up to that right now.
  • LadyZephyr
    LadyZephyr Posts: 286 Member
    I have chunky legs too, and have a problem finding boots that zip up over my calves. It's just my body, though, I've always had very strong legs and rather than think of how 'chunky' they are I just think how I can break a guys nose with a kick and cycle for miles at a fast pace without getting tired. You have strong legs. Embrace them!
    Everyone has a different body shape. I've seen many people carrying a lot of extra weight around their middle who have the slimmest, toned legs ever, and plenty of people with curvy thighs and legs with tiny waists and flat stomachs. Everyone carries their weight differently and has a different distribution of muscle through their body.
    Cycling is my primary exercise too, and I haven't bulked up from it, I've slimmed my thighs down, in fact, but I have thick calves and likely always will. I don't stress about it, neither should you (:
  • acogg
    acogg Posts: 1,870 Member
    Never in my life have I seen a fit bicyclist with bulky legs. They are lean with loads of leg definition.
  • tigerblue
    tigerblue Posts: 1,526 Member
    Our bodies are so funny! I would love to have this problem. I can't put weight or bulk ( muscle ) on my legs. My calves are soooo skinny, even though when I flex I have great muscle! My thighs stay the same no matte dhow much I gain or lose! When I'm slim, like now, this is an asset, but when I get heavy it's not pretty (think of a tomato on stilts!).

    Let's celebrate all shapes and just work to get fit and healthy!

    All the best to you.
  • acogg
    acogg Posts: 1,870 Member
    Our bodies are so funny! I would love to have this problem. I can't put weight or bulk ( muscle ) on my legs. My calves are soooo skinny, even though when I flex I have great muscle! My thighs stay the same no matte dhow much I gain or lose! When I'm slim, like now, this is an asset, but when I get heavy it's not pretty (think of a tomato on stilts!).

    Let's celebrate all shapes and just work to get fit and healthy!

    All the best to you.

    I am built exactly the same way. We are called apple shaped, but I am more of a barrel on sticks. lol! I am trying to build up my legs, they are pathetic!
  • Mokey41
    Mokey41 Posts: 5,769 Member
    I run and cycle and my legs are pathetically skinny unless I flex. At 55 I have the thigh gap all the teens seem to want!
  • wellbert
    wellbert Posts: 3,924 Member
    No.
  • dondimitri
    dondimitri Posts: 245 Member
    The majority of women don't "bulk up"in the same sense as is possible with men. They don't have the testosterone. Do changes in their bodies take place when they workout? Yes, but bulking up is not one of them. Google is your friend.
  • MacDHH
    MacDHH Posts: 34 Member
    Cycling is great exercise! If it is any comfort, my husband's legs have bulked up with it (he's pretty slim to begin with), but mine have not (though I do need to lose weight).

    I mostly wanted to comment on your knee/joint issues. My knees started hurting after I started biking because I was barely changing gears. It's important to change to a lower gear when stopping (just like you car, I suppose), because otherwise you might end up using your knees too much to get the bike going.
  • mmddwechanged
    mmddwechanged Posts: 1,687 Member
    Look at pictures of women cyclists. They have beautiful bodies, especially legs. My girlfriend mountain bikes competitively. She looks amazing and puts in a tremendous about of time biking.
  • jenj1313
    jenj1313 Posts: 898 Member
    Everyone is different in how their body will react. I also have "chunky" legs. They do bulk up in the summer when I cycle a lot, as does my butt. I would rather be in good shape with strong, muscular legs that are a bit bigger than out of shape and soft legs that are a bit smaller.

    This. If you are riding a lot and start to have friends that are into it too, chances are they will all envy your "big" legs.
    I played soccer in High School and had really cut quads. I hated them because they looked so "square" and non-girly if I wore a mini-skirt. Today, I'd LOVE to have that issue!
    Do what's healthy and if it gives you big, powerful legs, then just go with it. All of that muscle will burn more fat!!
  • Lugemachine
    Lugemachine Posts: 21
    I am experienced at both being a male human being and as an athlete and gym enthusiast.

    I have never... and I mean NEVER seen a woman who was not blown up on steroids with lean legs that were "too muscular" or "too bulky". I've known world-class athletes, including a woman who threw the discus in the Olympics.. yet none of them had "bulky" legs.

    So the woman with "too muscular" legs continues to be, to me, as real as bigfoot.

    Muscular legs on women is SO hot.. and it looks SO good in jeans or in a short skirt or form-fitting dress. Looks so much better than fat and so much better than skinnyfat. Muscle is also very metabolically active, so if you build leg muscles, they turn into calorie-burning factories.
  • dondimitri
    dondimitri Posts: 245 Member
    I am experienced at both being a male human being and as an athlete and gym enthusiast.

    I have never... and I mean NEVER seen a woman who was not blown up on steroids with lean legs that were "too muscular" or "too bulky". I've known world-class athletes, including a woman who threw the discus in the Olympics.. yet none of them had "bulky" legs.

    So the woman with "too muscular" legs continues to be, to me, as real as bigfoot.

    Muscular legs on women is SO hot.. and it looks SO good in jeans or in a short skirt or form-fitting dress. Looks so much better than fat and so much better than skinnyfat. Muscle is also very metabolically active, so if you build leg muscles, they turn into calorie-burning factories.

    I agree. I would add that I've certainly seen women with bulky legs that were otherwise HWP. However those legs were almost certainly a function of their genetics; the chances that they resulted from cycling, or weightlifting or any other athletic/fitness type activity is very, very small.
  • redraidergirl2009
    redraidergirl2009 Posts: 2,560 Member
    I have the same issue. Doing old fashion lunges and squats once a week helped lean them out.
  • tigerblue
    tigerblue Posts: 1,526 Member
    Our bodies are so funny! I would love to have this problem. I can't put weight or bulk ( muscle ) on my legs. My calves are soooo skinny, even though when I flex I have great muscle! My thighs stay the same no matte dhow much I gain or lose! When I'm slim, like now, this is an asset, but when I get heavy it's not pretty (think of a tomato on stilts!).

    Let's celebrate all shapes and just work to get fit and healthy!

    All the best to you.

    I am built exactly the same way. We are called apple shaped, but I am more of a barrel on sticks. lol! I am trying to build up my legs, they are pathetic!

    I read somewhere that when we are slim our body shape is called a lollipop. And that it is a very desirable shape!?! The article I read called it "sex on a stick"! Ha,really!?! When I'm feeling discouraged I think of that!!!

    Anyway, I say once again, there is beauty in every shape when it is well maintained, strong and healthy.

    Once, when sitting around with a group of women (all middle aged) who were bemoaning the fact that we no longer looked like the teenage lifeguards at the pool where we were congregating (with our kids), one wise woman spoke up and said, "I'm thankful for my strong, healthy legs. They allow me to do all the things I want, and my husband likes them just fine. Perhaps that's what we all should be thinking of." I remember that every time I start obsessing over small flaws in my body. Instead I think, "I'm healthy and strong and working to get healthier and stronger."

    I'm not saying that I never fall into the vanity trap (right now I'm trying to lose 5 or 6 vanity pounds,). I just want to encourage us all to put it in perspective.
  • __RANDY__
    __RANDY__ Posts: 1,036 Member
    you don't have muscular legs, you need to lose all the bulky fat on your calves. Fat makes you look bulky not muscle, your legs are fat.
  • KatrinaWilke
    KatrinaWilke Posts: 372 Member
    I don't think cycling will be the reason your legs look "chunky". You will look "chunky" doing any muscle building exercise if your genetic predisposition is to look "chunky". Take a look at my profile pic to see one example of mountain bike legs. All cyclist come in different shapes and sizes.
  • KatrinaWilke
    KatrinaWilke Posts: 372 Member
    I am experienced at both being a male human being and as an athlete and gym enthusiast.

    I have never... and I mean NEVER seen a woman who was not blown up on steroids with lean legs that were "too muscular" or "too bulky". I've known world-class athletes, including a woman who threw the discus in the Olympics.. yet none of them had "bulky" legs.

    So the woman with "too muscular" legs continues to be, to me, as real as bigfoot.

    Muscular legs on women is SO hot.. and it looks SO good in jeans or in a short skirt or form-fitting dress. Looks so much better than fat and so much better than skinnyfat. Muscle is also very metabolically active, so if you build leg muscles, they turn into calorie-burning factories.

    I agree. I would add that I've certainly seen women with bulky legs that were otherwise HWP. However those legs were almost certainly a function of their genetics; the chances that they resulted from cycling, or weightlifting or any other athletic/fitness type activity is very, very small.

    ^^This!! I read this after posting my response!
  • thecakelocker
    thecakelocker Posts: 407 Member
    At 274 pounds I could see defined muscles in my calves when I flexed them even though they were covered in fat. As I have lost weight they have slimmed down because they were covered in fat. The bulk on your calves is fat on top of muscle. Fat. Happily for you, what muscle you do have is probably helping add shape to your legs, but they are "bulky" because they are fat.
  • jehavin
    jehavin Posts: 316 Member
    I can tell you that cycling is the ONLY exercise that helped me to lean out and LOVE my chunky legs. Before that, at the age of 27, I had NEVER seen my ligaments/tendons around my knees but after taking up biking, my muscles became sleeker, my calves are fierce, my butt looks great (if I do say so myself,) and I can finally wear shorts, (part the way my legs have changed and part the boost in confidence,). I'm not going to lie and say that it made me have a "thigh gap" or that the cellulite vanished, but it really helped my muscles to "pop" versus the way that they always looked like stuffed sausages, (even when I was 125lbs in high school,)

    Plus, it's just so dang fun to bike. Don't let old myths scare you away from it!
  • mazmataz
    mazmataz Posts: 331 Member
    Bump! I have the same issue. I swear my legs are more than half of my body weight, they build muscle like crazy. I have man calves and can't wear 90% of knee-high boots :(

    Me too! I weigh 194lbs, I'm 5'7" and I have a 32" waist! I look at other people who weigh the same as me and they usually have quite a few extra inches on their waist and I'm like 'why do I weigh so friggin much??' until I look down lol. And then when I work out they get firmer and more toned - but not smaller!

    And yeah knee high boots...I look for that little elastic strip that some of them have , if they don't have it there's pretty much no point in trying them on!
  • jehavin
    jehavin Posts: 316 Member
    Bump! I have the same issue. I swear my legs are more than half of my body weight, they build muscle like crazy. I have man calves and can't wear 90% of knee-high boots :(

    Me too! I weigh 194lbs, I'm 5'7" and I have a 32" waist! I look at other people who weigh the same as me and they usually have quite a few extra inches on their waist and I'm like 'why do I weigh so friggin much??' until I look down lol. And then when I work out they get firmer and more toned - but not smaller!

    And yeah knee high boots...I look for that little elastic strip that some of them have , if they don't have it there's pretty much no point in trying them on!

    Me, too. I actually was able to fit into my first pair of knee high boots this summer and posted on fb that I was so surprised/excited that I felt I should buy my spin instructor dinner to celebrate and thank him!
  • sportyredhead01
    sportyredhead01 Posts: 482 Member
    I've always had large legs (mostly big quads) but I have noticed my legs have gotten much more shapely and defined thanks to Spinning for almost a year now. Even with lifting a little, there's no bulking going on.

    I don't know if anyone has suggested it yet but if you're planning on being in the seat for a while invest in some GOOD padded bike shorts/capris/pants whatever until your bajingo gets used to it. Also the make sure your bike shorts are long enough to protect your inner thighs too.

    Cycling has been really good to me, I hope it's good to you too! :happy:
  • jehavin
    jehavin Posts: 316 Member
    I've always had large legs (mostly big quads) but I have noticed my legs have gotten much more shapely and defined thanks to Spinning for almost a year now. Even with lifting a little, there's no bulking going on.

    I don't know if anyone has suggested it yet but if you're planning on being in the seat for a while invest in some GOOD padded bike shorts/capris/pants whatever until your bajingo gets used to it. Also the make sure your bike shorts are long enough to protect your inner thighs too.

    Cycling has been really good to me, I hope it's good to you too! :happy:


    Yes! ****'s Sporting Goods has a nice Canari liner short that you can put under almost any pant. However, when I use the upright and recumbent stationary bikes at my gym, I don't need the biking shorts. Maybe I'm used to it, though? I *never* got used to a "real" or spin bike's seat, no matter how often I did it!

    P.S. If you are looking to "shape" your legs even more, in addition to weighted squats/leg presses, I do calf raises and leg curls---strong hamstrings and calves (hypertrophied by weight bearing exercises,) will really transform (in a good way) the look of naturally thick legs.

Categories