Squats and Big Booties
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I have measurements very similar to your low weight measurements. I focus on lower body exercise because that's where I have body fat, and I'd like to keep things there looking firm, not saggy.0
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I realize that I am a pear and I am cool with that. I love having a big butt and thick thighs, just not a butt and thighs as big as they are currently. I will always have a big butt and thick thighs, so I'm not trying to create something that is not possible. I am actually trying to get down to where I was a couple of years ago.I appreciate all the replies, but I think there is a lot of confusion on the my body part got bigger discussion. A body part could get smaller in inches, but bigger in appearance which may not be what someone's goal is. In my case, at my former size there was a 12 inch difference between my waist and hips. At my biggest there was a 16 inch difference. So obviously my thighs were bigger. Now if in my fitness journey I drop an inch in my hips and say 3 inches in my waist, then my thighs would be smaller in inches, but in relation to the rest of my body it would be bigger. That is the concern that I have and I think others as well. Also, while I do appreciate the replies and the comments about calorie deficits. I established early on in this post that I have been eating at a calorie deficit. I posted to ask about exercise tips for a specific body type, since there are so many options when it comes to squats. I asked about reps, frequency, pace, weight. I asked about a specific body type, since there have been countless topics devoted to getting a bigger booty through squats, so what should the frequency, rep, pace etc be for someone who doesn't want a bigger booty. Again, the bigger booty that many say they are getting from squats is in relation to their body, not necessarily bigger in inches. Again, I appreciate the replies and I know everyone here is trying to help, but I am really looking for exercise advice. We all have different goals, so while some may be happy or satisfied with one thing, others may not, so I don't need convincing that I should be happy with my thick thighs and big butt. I do embrace my curves, but I believe I look better when I am more in proportion, so that is what I am pushing for.
So what you do NOT want is to increase the difference between your hips and waist?
To me this is an odd goal. Why focus on how big your hips/butt are? Focus on how tiny your waist is. I have a 12" difference between waist and hips, and 24" thighs. Yeah, finding pants can be hard but it's hard for a LOT of women due to varying issues. Lifting weights has made little difference in my ratios. My waist stays the same and my hips and thighs barely change. They are now big and muscular with a little bit of fat instead of just big and fat. I'll always have fat on my thighs unless I get to a pretty low body fat percentage. They look better and feel better. I can see muscles when I walk. I'm not afraid to wear short shorts. When I sit down in shorts they don't just bloob out, they old their shape. My butt has gone from big and wide to big, round, and high. So yeah, my shape is still basically the same but I'm healthier, stronger, more confident and a little sexier I'd think.
I think we are answering your question. Lift heavy. I'd suggest New Rules of Weight Lifting for Women, Starting Strength or Strong Lifts 5x5.
I am not disagreeing with lifting heavy. I will do some more research to narrow down a program. Several have been suggested already. There were a few who posted early on who suggested high rep/bodyweight squats. Maybe a combination of both is fine. Still not sure. I do know that I have been on this journey for more than two years and I have tried a lot of things and even while at a calorie deficit, I have not had positive results. Some have suggested that I increased my calorie deficit through running, which is why I am seeing a difference now, but that is not true. I exercise less now, down to 3 days a week from 6 with no strength training. I just think the body is way more complicated than calories in vs calories out. So many factors go into why we lose, when we lose and how much we lose.0 -
As long as you eat a deficit, you should lose & it should be all over if you do it long enough. Losing weight is 80% diet, 20% exercise. You're not going to gain muscle (except maybe newbie gains, not sure how long those last) unless you're eating a surplus.0
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I have measurements very similar to your low weight measurements. I focus on lower body exercise because that's where I have body fat, and I'd like to keep things there looking firm, not saggy.
What is your routine?0 -
Yes, but there are exercises that will make your LEGS appear longer because you're legs are shaped, thinner and toned. One of the routines that can do that is barre workouts.Ummm..... there are no exercises that are going to make your muscles longer. Or leaner. Just sayin
In...
...for the magical muscle-lengthening powers of the Fluidity Bar.0 -
I have read many success stories of women who have improved their derriere with squats. Now I have been blessed in that department with thick thighs to go with it. I don't want my butt or thighs to get bigger. At my best, my measurements were 33/25/37 and my heaviest, 36/30/46. I gain very little on the top, while most of my weight goes to my hips and that weight has been very difficult to lose. For years I have done squats, lunges even deadlifts and I have been frustrated with the lack of inches lost as a result of my hardwork. BTW I don't have cottage cheese thighs, they are very firm, difficult to pinch. I have well developed quads and hams, I just don't want them to get bigger. I have done almost no strength training in the last three months, just running. I completed C25K and I am now doing Five to 10k. I am finally losing inches in my thighs and weight overall. Now I want to start a strength training program again, but I don't want to be counterproductive. At what rep/weight/frequency does squats/lunges/deadlifts start to become a problem for a woman with my body type? Any and all suggestions are welcome.
I recommend a program called Visual Impact for Women. It's an e-book that I bought a couple of years ago. (I have no connection to the author.) If you Google it, you'll get a sense of the approach from the introduction.
In a nutshell:
Low reps, high sets for the upper body.
No resistance on the lower body except for places where you need it.
Combination of interval training and steady state cardio.
Diet that encourages fat loss.0 -
FFS. I'm going to try to say this clearly so that all can understand.
There are NO special exercises to create particular looks
There are NO special routines for particular looks.
There are NO special routines or exercise for particular body types.
When a muscle contracts, it contracts fully. Doesn't matter if a you're doing barbell squats or bodyweight squats or whatever the heck it is they do in barre or pilates classes. A muscle is trained or it is untrained.
With regards to the OP's pear shape or whatever. Deal with it. The fat comes off in the way that the fat comes off. You can't choose the order. The order may be different for other people with other supposed 'body types' but they can't choose the order either.
****So the only thing for you to do is continue with your calorie deficit along with a strength training program. The deficit will decrease the fat. The strength training will ensure that most of what you lose in fat instead of muscle. You will NOT be getting bigger. You will NOT be getting bulkier. Yes, because of your genetics, you might lose in the waist before your thighs. DEAL WITH IT because there's nothing you can do about it. But as long as you continue to your goal of 145 or whatever, eventually your thighs will start to reduce in size as well.
It works. For everyone. Of every body type.
I'm out.
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I have measurements very similar to your low weight measurements. I focus on lower body exercise because that's where I have body fat, and I'd like to keep things there looking firm, not saggy.
What is your routine?
Barbell glute bridges, glute thrusts, quadruped hip extension, clam shells, side leg lifts, a variety of lunges and squats. The only upper body exercises I do are pull-ups, push-ups, military press, and rows. I count on yoga to hit my core, especially the planks.0 -
Yes, but there are exercises that will make your LEGS appear longer because you're legs are shaped, thinner and toned. One of the routines that can do that is barre workouts.Ummm..... there are no exercises that are going to make your muscles longer. Or leaner. Just sayin
In...
...for the magical muscle-lengthening powers of the Fluidity Bar.
There are some exercise programs that can increase the appearance of leanness. I did a couple of sessions on a Pilates Cadillac machine after which I did feel taller. I suspect the exercises decompressed my spine and I literally was incrementally taller. I also felt good. A sustained regime of that kind coupled with good posture and keeping one's body fat low would probably contribute to a leaner appearance, although of course you can't expect miracles. If you're a squat homunculus you can't expect to look like someone who could be cast as Odette/Odille.0 -
Yes, but there are exercises that will make your LEGS appear longer because you're legs are shaped, thinner and toned. One of the routines that can do that is barre workouts.Ummm..... there are no exercises that are going to make your muscles longer. Or leaner. Just sayin
In...
...for the magical muscle-lengthening powers of the Fluidity Bar.
There are some exercise programs that can increase the appearance of leanness. I did a couple of sessions on a Pilates Cadillac machine after which I did feel taller. I suspect the exercises decompressed my spine and I literally was incrementally taller. I also felt good. A sustained regime of that kind coupled with good posture and keeping one's body fat low would probably contribute to a leaner appearance, although of course you can't expect miracles. If you're a squat homunculus you can't expect to look like someone who could be cast as Odette/Odille.
You know what actually increases the appearance of leanness? Getting more lean. That is, losing body fat while maintaining muscle.0 -
Strength training will not make u bigger, it will make u leaner, end of story.
No, it will make some people bigger. I've lived, written, and edited the story and seen others as characters.0 -
Yes, but there are exercises that will make your LEGS appear longer because you're legs are shaped, thinner and toned. One of the routines that can do that is barre workouts.Ummm..... there are no exercises that are going to make your muscles longer. Or leaner. Just sayin
In...
...for the magical muscle-lengthening powers of the Fluidity Bar.
There are some exercise programs that can increase the appearance of leanness. I did a couple of sessions on a Pilates Cadillac machine after which I did feel taller. I suspect the exercises decompressed my spine and I literally was incrementally taller. I also felt good. A sustained regime of that kind coupled with good posture and keeping one's body fat low would probably contribute to a leaner appearance, although of course you can't expect miracles. If you're a squat homunculus you can't expect to look like someone who could be cast as Odette/Odille.
You know what actually increases the appearance of leanness? Getting more lean. That is, losing body fat while maintaining muscle.
I said that. Postural changes make a difference as well.0 -
Sad story. It seems to be fairly common. The media has us brain washed and many have no idea how their body works...so when they start paying attention to it, they have mini strokes every time things don't immediately go their way lol and conclude sitting in a chair while eating like a bird well help them the most. Boy am I glad I know I can lift, get strong, and eat cheese cake. My poor gigantic thighs:
^This. I can understand where peoples thought process come from when they think otherwise. But it's simply not true. And for those of you who think but MINE got bigger...then you haven't been observing your body very long. And that statement is ignoring normal healthy temporary body weight fluctuations due to changes in water weight from exercise etc, which dissappears within a few days. The general oberservation will be that things shrink. You're not going to be gaining muscle, or fat. To produce that kind of mass you need the energy and extra fuel supplies to do so. You can not continiously create large amount of denser mass on a deficit. It doesn't make sense. Some things will stay a similar size (I lost most of my weight from my stomach, my *kitten* stayed about the same for example).You're still asking the same question as if the answer will change. You want an effective leg exercise? That means squats. And heavy squats. Bodyweight squats are a waste of time and needlessly hard on your knees. If you're in a calorie deficit you're not going to gain muscle mass and if you're not on a hypertrophy program it's really not a concern anyway. Plus it's not like women easily put on tons of muscle.
If you continue to lose weight (read: calorie deficit) I promise you that your thighs will get smaller. There's plenty of fat to lose in those areas without worrying about how much muscle you're going to build
If you take anything away from this thread, OP, take the bolded. This is all the information you need to make informed body shaping/sculpting/shrinking decisions.
If you are eating at a calorie deficit, there is NO WAY any part of your body is going to get bigger, be it hips, thighs or anything else.
A friend of mine did this, got on the scale after a week of lifting and freaked because she gained weight. I was trying to tell her to relax, but she decided to stop lifting because it was making her bigger. LOL.
I don't know what your starting point was, you look great. But you are not bottom heavy. No matter how much I lose I wouldn't be as small as you on the bottom. I get that you are being sarcastic when you make the comment "gigantic thighs" but for there are women who really do have gigantic thighs in relation to their body and perhaps they want to tame the beast. So how about support those who have different body types and maybe even different goals and also like to eat cheese and occasionally cake.
OP: I understand. The above is the typical response to a query like yours. Someone with a very different body type lectures you on how her regime will yield the same results for you. Or people try to tell you that your goals for how you'd like to look are wrong because they're not their goals and they're riding on the current trend themselves.
Although you are limited by your genes, certain kinds of training will exacerbate the issues you're concerned about. I suggest you look at the program I mentioned earlier.
Good luck.0 -
Yes, but there are exercises that will make your LEGS appear longer because you're legs are shaped, thinner and toned. One of the routines that can do that is barre workouts.Ummm..... there are no exercises that are going to make your muscles longer. Or leaner. Just sayin
In...
...for the magical muscle-lengthening powers of the Fluidity Bar.
There are some exercise programs that can increase the appearance of leanness. I did a couple of sessions on a Pilates Cadillac machine after which I did feel taller. I suspect the exercises decompressed my spine and I literally was incrementally taller. I also felt good. A sustained regime of that kind coupled with good posture and keeping one's body fat low would probably contribute to a leaner appearance, although of course you can't expect miracles. If you're a squat homunculus you can't expect to look like someone who could be cast as Odette/Odille.
There is a Pilates machine at my gym and no one ever uses it. I used to have the Supreme Pilates machine at home, the one they sold on TV. I used it years ago and it was fantastic. I never quite felt the same intensity with the mat pilates classes. I think I need to check some videos to figure out a routine for the Pilates machine at my gym. Thanks.0 -
Sad story. It seems to be fairly common. The media has us brain washed and many have no idea how their body works...so when they start paying attention to it, they have mini strokes every time things don't immediately go their way lol and conclude sitting in a chair while eating like a bird well help them the most. Boy am I glad I know I can lift, get strong, and eat cheese cake. My poor gigantic thighs:
^This. I can understand where peoples thought process come from when they think otherwise. But it's simply not true. And for those of you who think but MINE got bigger...then you haven't been observing your body very long. And that statement is ignoring normal healthy temporary body weight fluctuations due to changes in water weight from exercise etc, which dissappears within a few days. The general oberservation will be that things shrink. You're not going to be gaining muscle, or fat. To produce that kind of mass you need the energy and extra fuel supplies to do so. You can not continiously create large amount of denser mass on a deficit. It doesn't make sense. Some things will stay a similar size (I lost most of my weight from my stomach, my *kitten* stayed about the same for example).You're still asking the same question as if the answer will change. You want an effective leg exercise? That means squats. And heavy squats. Bodyweight squats are a waste of time and needlessly hard on your knees. If you're in a calorie deficit you're not going to gain muscle mass and if you're not on a hypertrophy program it's really not a concern anyway. Plus it's not like women easily put on tons of muscle.
If you continue to lose weight (read: calorie deficit) I promise you that your thighs will get smaller. There's plenty of fat to lose in those areas without worrying about how much muscle you're going to build
If you take anything away from this thread, OP, take the bolded. This is all the information you need to make informed body shaping/sculpting/shrinking decisions.
If you are eating at a calorie deficit, there is NO WAY any part of your body is going to get bigger, be it hips, thighs or anything else.
A friend of mine did this, got on the scale after a week of lifting and freaked because she gained weight. I was trying to tell her to relax, but she decided to stop lifting because it was making her bigger. LOL.
I don't know what your starting point was, you look great. But you are not bottom heavy. No matter how much I lose I wouldn't be as small as you on the bottom. I get that you are being sarcastic when you make the comment "gigantic thighs" but for there are women who really do have gigantic thighs in relation to their body and perhaps they want to tame the beast. So how about support those who have different body types and maybe even different goals and also like to eat cheese and occasionally cake.
OP: I understand. The above is the typical response to a query like yours. Someone with a very different body type lectures you on how her regime will yield the same results for you. Or people try to tell you that your goals for how you'd like to look are wrong because they're not their goals and they're riding on the current trend themselves.
Although you are limited by your genes, certain kinds of training will exacerbate the issues you're concerned about. I suggest you look at the program I mentioned earlier.
Good luck.
Exactly0 -
FFS. I'm going to try to say this clearly so that all can understand.
There are NO special exercises to create particular looks
There are NO special routines for particular looks.
There are NO special routines or exercise for particular body types.
When a muscle contracts, it contracts fully. Doesn't matter if a you're doing barbell squats or bodyweight squats or whatever the heck it is they do in barre or pilates classes. A muscle is trained or it is untrained.
With regards to the OP's pear shape or whatever. Deal with it. The fat comes off in the way that the fat comes off. You can't choose the order. The order may be different for other people with other supposed 'body types' but they can't choose the order either.
****So the only thing for you to do is continue with your calorie deficit along with a strength training program. The deficit will decrease the fat. The strength training will ensure that most of what you lose in fat instead of muscle. You will NOT be getting bigger. You will NOT be getting bulkier. Yes, because of your genetics, you might lose in the waist before your thighs. DEAL WITH IT because there's nothing you can do about it. But as long as you continue to your goal of 145 or whatever, eventually your thighs will start to reduce in size as well.
It works. For everyone. Of every body type.
I'm out.
I know it felt good to get that off your chest, but it makes no sense. We all might as well pick three exercises and do them all exactly the same, for the exact same reps and the exact same weight regardless of our body type, body fat, weight, height or gender. There is no reason for an individualized program, because every exercise has the same effect on everyone. We all get the same results doing the same things. We know that is not true. Not only are we all different body wise, but we all have different goals. Why is that hard to accept. And if there was one magic answer for us all, then we would all do the same exact routine, because it works for everyone right. If there was no special routine for a specific look then men shooting for big arms and a developed chest would never do push ups, because that doesn't help, bicep curls, who needs those. Chest presses, it doesn't matter one way or the other. Seriously. this was a question about one exercise in a fitness routine and which version, frequency, rep, pace , weight of the exercise would be most beneficial to my goals. You are the same person that said bodyweight squats are a waste of time. I'm sure there are people who would very much disagree with you. We don't all have to do the same things or want to the same things, but can we be respectful of that fact.0 -
Sad story. It seems to be fairly common. The media has us brain washed and many have no idea how their body works...so when they start paying attention to it, they have mini strokes every time things don't immediately go their way lol and conclude sitting in a chair while eating like a bird well help them the most. Boy am I glad I know I can lift, get strong, and eat cheese cake. My poor gigantic thighs:
^This. I can understand where peoples thought process come from when they think otherwise. But it's simply not true. And for those of you who think but MINE got bigger...then you haven't been observing your body very long. And that statement is ignoring normal healthy temporary body weight fluctuations due to changes in water weight from exercise etc, which dissappears within a few days. The general oberservation will be that things shrink. You're not going to be gaining muscle, or fat. To produce that kind of mass you need the energy and extra fuel supplies to do so. You can not continiously create large amount of denser mass on a deficit. It doesn't make sense. Some things will stay a similar size (I lost most of my weight from my stomach, my *kitten* stayed about the same for example).You're still asking the same question as if the answer will change. You want an effective leg exercise? That means squats. And heavy squats. Bodyweight squats are a waste of time and needlessly hard on your knees. If you're in a calorie deficit you're not going to gain muscle mass and if you're not on a hypertrophy program it's really not a concern anyway. Plus it's not like women easily put on tons of muscle.
If you continue to lose weight (read: calorie deficit) I promise you that your thighs will get smaller. There's plenty of fat to lose in those areas without worrying about how much muscle you're going to build
If you take anything away from this thread, OP, take the bolded. This is all the information you need to make informed body shaping/sculpting/shrinking decisions.
If you are eating at a calorie deficit, there is NO WAY any part of your body is going to get bigger, be it hips, thighs or anything else.
A friend of mine did this, got on the scale after a week of lifting and freaked because she gained weight. I was trying to tell her to relax, but she decided to stop lifting because it was making her bigger. LOL.
I don't know what your starting point was, you look great. But you are not bottom heavy. No matter how much I lose I wouldn't be as small as you on the bottom. I get that you are being sarcastic when you make the comment "gigantic thighs" but for there are women who really do have gigantic thighs in relation to their body and perhaps they want to tame the beast. So how about support those who have different body types and maybe even different goals and also like to eat cheese and occasionally cake.
OP: I understand. The above is the typical response to a query like yours. Someone with a very different body type lectures you on how her regime will yield the same results for you. Or people try to tell you that your goals for how you'd like to look are wrong because they're not their goals and they're riding on the current trend themselves.
Although you are limited by your genes, certain kinds of training will exacerbate the issues you're concerned about. I suggest you look at the program I mentioned earlier.
Good luck.
Exactly
I am shaped the same as you, heavier on the bottom. I agree with everything Codergal and DavPul have said. I have had great results with doing what they had suggested (there are before and afters in my photos).
Does that count?0 -
OP: I understand. The above is the typical response to a query like yours. Someone with a very different body type lectures you on how her regime will yield the same results for you.
Yeah, it's far better give advice, but never show any photos or any kind of tangible proof that you know what you're talking about.0 -
FFS. I'm going to try to say this clearly so that all can understand.
There are NO special exercises to create particular looks
There are NO special routines for particular looks.
There are NO special routines or exercise for particular body types.
When a muscle contracts, it contracts fully. Doesn't matter if a you're doing barbell squats or bodyweight squats or whatever the heck it is they do in barre or pilates classes. A muscle is trained or it is untrained.
With regards to the OP's pear shape or whatever. Deal with it. The fat comes off in the way that the fat comes off. You can't choose the order. The order may be different for other people with other supposed 'body types' but they can't choose the order either.
****So the only thing for you to do is continue with your calorie deficit along with a strength training program. The deficit will decrease the fat. The strength training will ensure that most of what you lose in fat instead of muscle. You will NOT be getting bigger. You will NOT be getting bulkier. Yes, because of your genetics, you might lose in the waist before your thighs. DEAL WITH IT because there's nothing you can do about it. But as long as you continue to your goal of 145 or whatever, eventually your thighs will start to reduce in size as well.
It works. For everyone. Of every body type.
I'm out.
QFT, very informative.
I am one of those ones.....34 up top, 28-29 inch waist and hips at their biggest was 46" across. I'm also in my late 40's and dealing with those change o' life issues which is supposed to be slowing me down. :noway:
I run 3x a week. Squats. Deads. Bench. Row. Heavy. Consistent. Reasonable calorie deficit. Went from size 16 pant in January. Right now some size 10's are loose on me.
I'm no special snowflake. The basics really do work.0 -
Squats are not the only good glute exercise, or even an exercise that everyone should do. You won't start by lifting heavy. You never have to lift heavy. You could stick with the conventional strength training advice to use a weight that allows you to perform 8-12 reps. Or you could do a body weight program. Most women will not gain bulk easily at all, and if you did, you can get rid of it by not eating enough for a few weeks.
Alternatively, if you just want to lose inches, studies indicate that cardio is better for fat loss. Strength training helps you maintain your muscle mass, however, which helps you keep fat off in the long run.
I think you have lovely, classically feminine proportions.0
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