Accepting a thicker lower body?
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artlover47 wrote: »I do 5 lb hand weight exercises occasionally, and things where I lift my own body weight, but mainly I lift my toddler girls all day! I also push them on hills in a double stroller which works my arms and back as well. I personally don't mind my upper body - it is the other people who are bothered by it. My husband thinks I look fine, and he's the main one I trust to tell me when to stop or what needs improving. I'm pleased with my shape except for the thighs, and I honestly think the extra weight loss will see another inch to inch and a half come off my legs which may be all I need to feel OK with them. I'm mainly interested in the weight training for the health benefits of more muscle, not so much the look. I don't aspire to look super muscular. I may wait to start the weights because I'd liketo figure out my "normal" maintenance calories as a baseline before I start adding calories for lifting. I am also not going to switch to a high protein diet. I actually do organic farming, so I eat tons of fruit and veggies that I grow. I am not changing that. I'm happy with my macros and they work for me. As far as losing muscle mass, I could've stood to lose some - I am smaller now and don't need as much muscle to move my body as I used to! Sorry - I don't buy into the idea that lifting is the only way to be fit. Thanks for all the input, though.
As far as the frame measurements, just google it and find some online calculators. I tried several different ones, as some ask for more detailed measurements than others. The ones that only ask for height, weight, wrist or elbow measurements and sometimes waist always put me at small frame because they are only factoring my smaller upper body. The ones that look at more body parts are more accurate for me. Same on body fat calculators.
I don't think the bolded is what people are saying, though. I think they are saying they had a similar problem to you and found lifting helped them re-shape their bodies. @ILiftHeavyAcrylics did a blog post where she described essentially your same issue - her top was getting too thin, but wasn't happy with her bottom half. I'd encourage you to check it out.
If you are sure that you don't want to change anything that you are doing, then it sounds like practicing some self-love/embracing your bottom half will be what you need.0 -
I'm on the border of an overweight BMI and people are already started to feign shock that I have more to lose. People tend to get crazy and say we are thinner than we are. I think they think it's some kind of compliment.
If you're not sure whether or not you should keep losing, ask the doctor. They'll always tell you how low is too low.
My hips and thighs seem to lose slower than the rest of me. If it turns out that I must accept additional weight there, then I guess I'll have to...but is don't want to! I didn't come this fat to be chunky! I want thin. What I get may not be what I want, though.
Do your best and then suck it up and deal. That's kind of my motto.
Can't do better than your best!
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I'm a pear - if all you do is lose more weight - enough to drop an inch from your thighs - your upper half will be super scrawny, and you'll still probably have fat on your legs. That was my experience when I was at a BMI of 19 (and didn't do much resistance training).
No one's saying you need to look like a pro bodybuilder, if you don't want to. You can be selective about how much you work on your muscles. You can just build up enough to give your legs shape, and stop when you're happy with the result. It's going to look like what you might call "toned", that's all. (This is a good resource if that's your aim.) Bonus is, your bones will thank you.
I think the time to accept your shape is now, though. Because even if you do what's recommended in the post I linked to, you're still going to be a pear, just a "toned" one.0 -
In my opinion the pear shape is most flattering. I wish you'd love it more on yourself. My waist is 28.5" and my hips are 42" and I honestly love it because it makes me feel feminine. If only I could lose the 14" arms and a little more on my waist I'd be happy. You have come such an amazingly long way and should see how awesome you are! I'd kill for your problems lol but to each their own. I wouldn't try to lose any more weight if I were you and just go to maintaining your cw while doing heavy lifting in the gym to try to tighten up your legs if they really bother you.0
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artlover47 wrote: »Luckily, I look fairly hourglass shape except for the thighs. My hips slimmed down well. I am going to go ahead and try losing down to 115 and see what it looks like... I agree that gaining a bit back would be easy! LOL. As far as lifting, I talked to a trainer at my local gym and she advised me to wait until I get to my maintainence weight before I start lifting or using weight machines so that I won't be discouraged with a stall or a gain. She told me to give it a month, and call her on August 15 to see where I am. I do plan to try lifting, though, I have been reading up on it some. Thanks, all - we'll see how 115 looks.
Waiting to hit maintenance before starting to lift is rather bizarre advice. I'd use another trainer.
Congrats at being 5 # away from goal!
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You can just build up enough to give your legs shape, and stop when you're happy with the result. It's going to look like what you might call "toned", that's all. (This is a good resource if that's your aim.) Bonus is, your bones will thank you.
That link was pure gold! Thank you so much!!! (and thanks for the 2 hour tangent I found myself in and worth not cleaning the house =P )
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I have thicker legs, always have. You know what else I have, strong legs. I will admit I sometimes look at some other women wearing their cute little sundresses with their cute little legs and have a little pity party, but it's fleeting. My legs get me where I need to go. I also know that since I am sitting pretty at my goal weight....it's not fat (at least not much), it's the way my legs are shaped. I have strong, thick thighs. I have big, strong ankles.
However, I am also continuing to work on my legs. I have noticed a change in the last few months as I have lost weight. I've also noticed a change because I am running 20+ miles a week. My legs are showing the work I am making them do. I don't think I'll ever have those legs of those girls in the pretty sundresses, but I can have the best legs that my mama gave me.
this is true for me also. sometimes i get down on my shape and was known as the "girl with big legs" in school but i rarely get sprained ankles, can backpack with the best of them, and am pretty tough. Would i love to have a smaller bottom half? sometimes. I try to focus on making sure my legs are strong and not just big and this definitely helps me be at peace with my legs.0 -
I am a 5'7.5" pencil/pear with with tiny wrists, ankles, and calves and am pretty small everywhere else EXCEPT my butt and thighs. I've managed to book jobs as a runway model for the last 4 years despite having major booty and thighs in comparison to the vast majority of girls in this industry. It doesn't matter how thin I get, my hips are always around 38-37" instead of the industry standard of 35", and I have come to accept that. I have found that strength training defs tones and tightens, but 25 normal squats a day, on top of whatever else you do, is kind of an easy, simple, and fast way to incorporate butt and thigh maintenance in a crazy busy life and can be done at home (even right before you get in the shower). I'm a cardio fanatic and will jazzercise the house down over strength training any day. Short story long, work to tone, but don't fight your nature. It's a battle you cannot win and will only destroy yourself in futile struggle if you keep losing weight just to shrink your thighs.0
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adriaticsea wrote: »berriboobear wrote: »I have thicker legs, always have. You know what else I have, strong legs. I will admit I sometimes look at some other women wearing their cute little sundresses with their cute little legs and have a little pity party, but it's fleeting. My legs get me where I need to go. I also know that since I am sitting pretty at my goal weight....it's not fat (at least not much), it's the way my legs are shaped. I have strong, thick thighs. I have big, strong ankles.
However, I am also continuing to work on my legs. I have noticed a change in the last few months as I have lost weight. I've also noticed a change because I am running 20+ miles a week. My legs are showing the work I am making them do. I don't think I'll ever have those legs of those girls in the pretty sundresses, but I can have the best legs that my mama gave me.
This. It's so easy to compare myself to others, and I do it more often than I realize. While I'm still learning to accept myself (we all have those down moments), I have also come to terms that my natural shape is more thick on the bottom. I still have fat to lose, so I'm working on that... but jeans have always been a headache. Those waist and thigh measurements just don't work for me, haha!
Self-love. Embracing and working it to the best you can
Oh I can definitely relate in re to the jeans issue! Self-love all the way!
+1
I've always had a smaller waist and wider hips/thicker thighs. Jeans have always been a problem. Either too big in the waist or too small in the legs. Since I've started weight training I've actually been trying to grow my booty and the legs grow right along with it. I'll probably never be able to find jeans that fit now lol. Working on growing my shoulders helps even out my proportions though and I'm loving how my body is looking these days! Just embrace your curves!0 -
Liftng4Lis wrote: »Do you even lift? Thought of a body recomp?
FIFY
^^^thats what you need to do ....compound progressive lifting IMO0 -
kshama2001 wrote: »artlover47 wrote: »Luckily, I look fairly hourglass shape except for the thighs. My hips slimmed down well. I am going to go ahead and try losing down to 115 and see what it looks like... I agree that gaining a bit back would be easy! LOL. As far as lifting, I talked to a trainer at my local gym and she advised me to wait until I get to my maintainence weight before I start lifting or using weight machines so that I won't be discouraged with a stall or a gain. She told me to give it a month, and call her on August 15 to see where I am. I do plan to try lifting, though, I have been reading up on it some. Thanks, all - we'll see how 115 looks.
Waiting to hit maintenance before starting to lift is rather bizarre advice. I'd use another trainer.
Congrats at being 5 # away from goal!
Bizarre = wrong
Agree0 -
Thanks for all the input. I had not checked this discussion for several months, but thought I should give my results. As an update, I went down to 113, and my legs did eventually thin out...I actually had a thigh gap for the first time ever when I got below 115. Overall, it was too small for my taste, so I went back up some to see where I felt happy with my look. I've decided that 116-119 is the range where I feel and look (according to my husband!) my best, and it is a size 2 in most clothing brands as I had predicted. At this weight I have a little more fat in my face and arms, and I personally like this weight better on me. I did lose weight in my thighs and calves last. My hips slimmed down first to 35", then my legs followed. I am providing this info for anyone else with a similar body type with a similar height. I decided not to start lifting, it just does not fit into my lifestyle as a stay at home mom, plus I am happy with my current fitness level. I can do all the activities I had set as fitness goals without adding weight training at a gym. Bottom line is - anyone can get thin if they eat at deficit long enough, even we pear shaped ladies can eventually get small. Deciding where to stop and maintain is personal preference. I found the zone where I am happy, and I wish everyone else luck finding and maintaining their own ideal body!0
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My starting measurements were 34, 29, 44...so yeah, pear shaped. My thighs were 26 inches and calves were 16.5 I'm 5'4" and weighed 163 then.
Now I'm just under 130 and measure 32, 26.5, 37. Thighs are down to 23 or slightly under, and calves are just under 15 inches.
I'm bony and tiny up top too. This is as far as I can take it. Yes, my legs are still a bit large. I planned on a recomp but didn't have the patience. I'm bulking and embracing them. Hopefully after a bulk and cut cycle they'll look big and sexy rather than just big.
And OP, you look great. I wouldn't worry too much about dropped more to even out. If anything, lift in maintenance. Try a recomp.0 -
Liftng4Lis wrote: »Do you even lift? Thought of a body recomp?
FIFY
^^^thats what you need to do ....compound progressive lifting IMO
Agreed.0
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