Thinner calves?

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  • tibby531
    tibby531 Posts: 717 Member
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    love yourself for who you naturally are. rock what you got!
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,576 Member
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    I have big calves too. It's genetic. My mom and most of my aunts have them, no matter what their weight.

    Losing the fat over the muscle helps, but proportionately, my calves are always big. It sucks when trying to find boots and makes skinny jeans look weird. But it's not something I can change.
  • hoyalawya2003
    hoyalawya2003 Posts: 631 Member
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    Ditto on the genetics thing. I actually read these threads periodically and have yet to find anyone whose calves are bigger than mine--17". After 60+ lbs, I think I lost a quarter inch. What really sucks is finding riding boots to fit (I usually am able to find fashion boots without too much trouble).
  • terar21
    terar21 Posts: 523 Member
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    glevinso wrote: »
    jacksonpt wrote: »
    glevinso wrote: »
    What the heck is it with women who want to LOSE muscle? This is insane. Utterly insane.

    Everyone wants what they don't have. Muscular people want to be, uh, thinner. Weak people want to be stronger, slow people want to be faster, big people want to be smaller, small people want to be bigger, etc. Ultimately, though... the grass isn't any greener, it's just different grass.

    So fast people want to be slower, and smart people want to be dumber?

    Ignorance is bliss...especially if you're pretty.
  • terar21
    terar21 Posts: 523 Member
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    wizzybeth wrote: »
    carmenrosab wrote: »
    Just buy wide calf boots! Most of the name brands make them and they're the same style as the regular boots. I recently found this out and bought three pairs this winter.

    I have not found them anywhere. :neutral_face:

    Dsw has an endless amount of wide calf boots. It's the thin calves people that dont have "slim" versions...so I've heard.

    But OP - just learn to embrace it. You'd be surprised to know that there are people who probably envy your calf muscles. My boyfriend's slim 14 year old commented on mine the other day. Aren't teenagers the authority on trends? Muscles must be "in" :)
  • NaturallyOlivia
    NaturallyOlivia Posts: 496 Member
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    tibby531 wrote: »
    love yourself for who you naturally are. rock what you got!

    Heyyy I see what you did there :p lol
  • alinadelafuente
    alinadelafuente Posts: 15
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    NaturallyOlivia wrote: »
    I have the thickest, ugliest dancer calves (and I can't even dance! What a raw deal!) and even as I'm losing weight they don't seem to be changing on size. I've always heard it said "you can't spot reduce" so I thought I was doomed to look like a gladiator forever. But I heard something the other day about "bringing out lean muscles" or "leaning out your muscles" and I thought could there be hope for my legs just yet?! So any thoughts or ideas of any kind of weight training or stretches or anything at all that could possibly help my predicament?

    You will be stuck with your calves if they are already pure muscle. My legs are stronger then most football players in my school. The only thing I can do for my legs is to tone them and lose a little thigh. But im basically stuck with them, have been since I was in middle school.
  • wizzybeth
    wizzybeth Posts: 3,573 Member
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    auddii wrote: »
    wizzybeth wrote: »
    carmenrosab wrote: »
    Just buy wide calf boots! Most of the name brands make them and they're the same style as the regular boots. I recently found this out and bought three pairs this winter.

    I have not found them anywhere. :neutral_face:

    http://www.zappos.com/wide-calf-boots

    Never even heard of that store - none around here. I do not order shoes online in general...but thanks for the link!

  • wizzybeth
    wizzybeth Posts: 3,573 Member
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    terar21 wrote: »
    wizzybeth wrote: »
    carmenrosab wrote: »
    Just buy wide calf boots! Most of the name brands make them and they're the same style as the regular boots. I recently found this out and bought three pairs this winter.

    I have not found them anywhere. :neutral_face:

    Dsw has an endless amount of wide calf boots. It's the thin calves people that dont have "slim" versions...so I've heard.

    But OP - just learn to embrace it. You'd be surprised to know that there are people who probably envy your calf muscles. My boyfriend's slim 14 year old commented on mine the other day. Aren't teenagers the authority on trends? Muscles must be "in" :)

    There is a DSW about 50 minutes away - next time I am in that area I will go in there. Thanks

  • NaturallyOlivia
    NaturallyOlivia Posts: 496 Member
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    Payless also offers wide calf boot selections and yes, I was able to find some cute styles but the choices are often limited and even if I do find boots that fit I still feel like I look stocky and bulky. I just always feel uncomfortable when I'm not wearing heels and though I'm actually 5'8 my calves make me feel very squatty and short. I think my problem is just my level of comfort. Everyone wants to feel comfortable in their own body and I feel my calves are making that goal impossible :/
  • parkerpowerlift
    parkerpowerlift Posts: 196 Member
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    JCC1987 wrote: »
    I used to hate my 'tree trunk' legs, and spent the entire of my teens and early-to-mid twenties covering them up. I started seriously working out at the end of last summer, doing some intensive elliptical work, and I've been running regularly since October. As I lost fat, these surprisingly athletic looking calves became uncovered, and after sharing a few pictures on Instagram (which I use as a photo journal of my fitness progress) I realised from the feedback I got how I should be proud of them. I've had a lot of comments from bodybuilders, asking how I trained them etc, and people have been surprised that I don't weight train. I now totally embrace them and feel lucky to have the genetics to give me such shapely calves, and am looking forward to wearing shorts through the summer. Be proud of your strengths... athletic calves look really nice, and are an indicator you are a fit and active person :)

    Please excuse the format/size of the pictures, as they came from my Instagram.

    lua6e73wcrs0.jpg
    amusc33krevm.jpg

    Wow! I wish my calves looked that nice when they were a 17! Haha, seriously, I'd also guess you lifted heavy. You look great! I've been running for 10 months now and I love seeing my calf muscles! I've lost 42 pounds and I've only lost 2 inches off my calves. I think I'm just destined to keep these puppies!
  • KathleenCora
    KathleenCora Posts: 160 Member
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    I've always wanted thinner calves.... it didn't bother me much in high school but I didn't wear skinny jeans, boots, and heels all the time either. I was also close to 30+lbs lighter with an eating disorder. Smh For me it's not all about the calf per say either, I would like a smaller leg in general from knees down to ankles. I would love to wear a strapy heel and it look good and not look like I'm cutting off circulation. I have 16" calves now and I did have 17.5" before I lost 47lbs. Oh well.... at least I'll have strong looking legs!
  • upgradeddiddy
    upgradeddiddy Posts: 281 Member
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    Calves are a tricky beast both ways where both genetics and training both play a key role. Reducing calve size without starving yourself is more ten times harder than gaining mass to them in the first place. You basically have to be patient and allow your body to adapt to a smaller size and due to the lessened stress on the muscle when you are lighter, the muscle will shrink. That's really the best you can do.
  • ncboiler89
    ncboiler89 Posts: 2,408 Member
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    NaturallyOlivia wrote: »
    ... so I thought I was doomed to look like a gladiator forever.

    lol. fwiw guys dig a good set of calves.
  • shelleyrhoads
    shelleyrhoads Posts: 103 Member
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    I love my ex cheerleader legs. the only part of my body i love.

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