Hourglassed shaped women report!

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  • UsedToBeHusky
    UsedToBeHusky Posts: 15,229 Member
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    "What do you guys do"

    we get fat on the gut and handles and the rest of the body stays fat free so i dont think we ll be much help !!!

    Not sure how many " hour glass" glass ladies will turn up on a diet forum !!!

    <<<< Um.... hourglass! :tongue:
  • Tiffany62590
    Tiffany62590 Posts: 2 Member
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    I have an hour-glass figure as well, though I gain weight pretty much evenly all over. My suggestions are:

    1. Just keep trying to lose weight! Like the other replier stated, getting your body fat down WILL eventually take the fat off your trouble zones. So keep at it :)

    2. Walking/Jogging/Running. People say walking is the perfect exercise and I've lost a ton of weight walking while dieting. Now I've taken up running and my thighs are noticeably thinner though I've upped my calories. Start with some walking and work your way up :)
  • missshyeviolett
    missshyeviolett Posts: 310 Member
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    I'm definitely an hourglass and I've got the same problem with my hips/thighs/*kitten*. I'm SHOCKED how much the bar method has already changed those areas- ESPECIALLY my thighs! They make DVDs too ;)
  • agdyl
    agdyl Posts: 246 Member
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    I'm the same way - when I lose weight it all comes off my middle - which is good health-wise, right? So we're lucky with that, but yeah, trying to get weight off my thighs and butt is tough because it's the last thing that changes. Which is frustrating when I'm perfectly happy with my waistline but it keeps getting smaller before anything else will budge. There's really nothing you're going to do exercise-wise to fight genetics and make your body lose weight in a certain area. If it was the reverse and we had skinny butts you could lift heavier and build up the muscle, and building muscle will make you look better overall, but that by itself won't make you lose the fat your body stores there. You can lose weight overall and eventually it does change in the stubborn places too, but you can't spot-reduce.

    Lunges and squats are good for the knees if you're doing them with good alignment. I have bad knees as well (5 surgeries from sports injuries), and I find that yoga helps my knees more than anything. And that keeps me feeling good so I can do other exercise - I mostly road and mountain bike for cardio.
  • Cait_Sidhe
    Cait_Sidhe Posts: 3,150 Member
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    Unfortunately there is no way to spot reduce. There is no exercise or food in the world that will allow you to choose where the fat comes off from. It'll eventually come off with a calorie deficit and patience. Strength training will help.
  • banana_milk
    banana_milk Posts: 40
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    You can't spot reduce fat.
  • mccbabe1
    mccbabe1 Posts: 737 Member
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    HI! hourlgass here! i too am heavier in thighs legs... but i lift WEIGHS which lets you loose inches... that helsp me in my legs/butt are and all around.. NOT just cardio.. big big diff in inches.. ( i do gym classes like body pump and boot camp)
  • MariettaDelene
    MariettaDelene Posts: 82 Member
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    I have no suggestions - just wanted to post as an hourglass who completely understands your situation. When I first started gaining weight, I had to go up pant sizes just to get them over my thighs, and then they'd be crazy loose at my stomach. You know how they say the first place you gain is the last place you lose? That's been pretty much my experience in a nutshell.
  • jenilla1
    jenilla1 Posts: 11,118 Member
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    According to the Internet, my measurements make me an hourglass. I gain weight equally all over my body and it seems to come off equally as well. I just swell and shrink, rather than packing fat in one section.

    I both lift heavy and run cross-country long-distance to stay in shape. The lifting keeps me strong, makes me resistant to injury and preserves my lean mass. The running is my heavenly stress relief and cardiovascular conditioning. Both have helped me develop nice muscle contours in all the right places. (I had lovely abs and legs even before I started lifting. The look of my shoulders, back, and arms have especially benefitted from lifting.)

    For me, exercise is not for weight loss. It's for fun, health and fitness. My eating habits and calorie tracking is what I use to maintain my goal weight and to make sure I get all my protein, veg and fiber in.
  • sewingdiscontent
    sewingdiscontent Posts: 112
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    I agree. There is not a way to spot reduce, and the first-on, last-ff rule means you'll lose weight in your thighs last of all. I am 5'8.5" and about 140, large frame. I am hourglass, I have those v lines on my abdomen and no boobs left to speak of...but my thighs and *kitten* STILL have excess fat on them. My plan is to just keep losing.
    And to lift.
  • fShaw86
    fShaw86 Posts: 878 Member
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    ha I'm in the same boat. Everyone only notices my face, which loses or puts on weight first. When I mention its all stuck around my butt and thighs, no one believes me. Good thing anyway.
  • mazdauk
    mazdauk Posts: 1,380 Member
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    Also hour-glass - when I put it on it goes all over (I still have a waist and stay in proportion, but have to keep upping the dress sizes :ohwell: ).

    I also have problem knees - they crackle like breakfast cereal when I do any knee movements - and when I started I found walking was the best. I still can't run (not just knee problems) but the pain has eased as I've lost weight. The absolute BEST thing however has been zumba - not only is it a great cardio workout but it really builds leg muscles though all the different movements. I do a class once a week and Wii Zumba 2 in between.

    I have also had great benefit from Rosemary Conley exercise DVDs - she does a number of floor exercises which target thighs (lie on your suide with the lower leg bent and raise your top leg for outer thigh, swap and raise lower leg for inner thigh), or try standing raising your leg sideways to work the outer thigh, or bring your leg across diagonally (leading from the ankle) for the lower leg - hold onto a chair or pole for support.

    ETA No, you can't spot-reduce, but working problem areas in conjunction with losing weight WILL improve things.
  • MarianneC93
    MarianneC93 Posts: 60 Member
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    Hey! I can't do running because of my tendonitis and my knees - and this really annoys me because I grew to love running before all of these annoying injuries - which might not be injuries but permenant obstacles to me running.
    BUT! GOOD NEWS - There is LOTS you can do for your thighs and hips which do not include running.
    -cycling
    -walking
    -cross-trainer/elliptical

    I recommend getting yourself down to some aerobics classes, circuits (amazing!), zumba if that's your thing....anything which is cardio work but also strengthing. Legs/Bums/Tums are the best (which I call circuits) as they include squats, push ups, mountain climbers, bench triceps, etc. AMAZING! :)

    Well done for not giving up despite the pain in the knees! :)
  • louisegibbs85
    louisegibbs85 Posts: 304 Member
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    I have the exact same problem, I'm all bum and thighs, weight just falls off my stomach and waist which I think makes my hips look even wider lol. Would love to be able to wear a nice paid of leggings or skinny jeans, but not at the moment!! Haha
  • mazdauk
    mazdauk Posts: 1,380 Member
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    I don't think they make skinny jeans wide enough for my fat legs - even the thinner version! I had to buy wide-leg riding boots even when I was a UK 10-12 :sad:
  • dstevens19
    dstevens19 Posts: 233 Member
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    Have you tried strength training lower body?

    No, I haven't. Is this where I would squat with weights? Or use the machines at the gym? I don't strength train other than using hand weights.

    Can you or someone else point me in the direction of what strength training exercises I can do?

    Thanks!

    I'm in the same boat. I used to say I have an hourglass figure with too much sand in both ends! I'm 5'8" and started at 188; now I'm 167 and in much better shape due to a mix of cardio (spinning, power walking) and weightlifting (machine and free weights).

    With bad knees, I can't run or do squats/lunges. I wrote a blog about my trainers' alternative lower body workouts. You need to add some weigh training to really impact your body shape. Hope this helps. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/dstevens19
  • Wrightn221
    Wrightn221 Posts: 5
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    Have the same problem and I'm 47!!! I gain in my hips, butt, thighs but have lost a lot in my mid section but my hips/thighs/butt seem to be stubborn. I signed up with a "free personal trainer" at Planet Fitness and the plan she put me on, has been helping a great deal. I eat low carb, alternate weight training on different days, interval training (running/jogging) on treadmill and walk during lunch which is helping to bring my bottom area down. Hips, butt and thighs are decreasing slowing but surely.
  • jlock2003
    jlock2003 Posts: 13
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    I have an hour glass shape and same as you thighs and butt girl! The best advice I can give is strength and cardio train. To get proper form, go see a trainer for a session or two. Then just keep doing it. I definitely notice a difference when I slack on the squats and lunges.
  • Wrightn221
    Wrightn221 Posts: 5
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    You're right! The fat leaves where it chooses to leave and I'm happy that it chosed to leave my middle section for now! LOL
  • MissTattoo
    MissTattoo Posts: 1,203 Member
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    You can't spot reduce.

    5'11 hourglass

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