New.. pearshaped and need help.

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  • whiplashpcw
    whiplashpcw Posts: 126 Member
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    Hi! :) (your body is so stunning by the way)

    ^^^^ I TOTALLY AGREE!!!!!!!!
  • SergeantSunshine_reused
    SergeantSunshine_reused Posts: 5,382 Member
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    I went from thunder thighs to nice lean legs by lifting heavy (squats deads) and doing no cardio.
  • DixiedoesMFP
    DixiedoesMFP Posts: 935 Member
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    I lift heavy and though my large thighs are still larger than I'd like at this point (only 2.5 months in) they don't jiggle anymore AT ALL and the cellulite is nearly non-existent.
  • ganesha303
    ganesha303 Posts: 257 Member
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    Ladies, keep (or start) lifting heavy. You'll be sexier and stronger.
  • mfpcopine
    mfpcopine Posts: 3,093 Member
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    I don't use "Barbie" weights, and I have a feeling I've been exercising and reading about exercise for far longer than you have. Whether to use heavy weights on your lower half depends on your goals.

    Ok, congratulations for "feeling" that you've outdone me there. I hope if feels good. :) But it certainly means nothing to me. Knowledge acquisition isn't a monopoly held by grandmas.

    Sure, it absolutely does depend on the goal. I was responding to the OP, first of all... not you, about the barbie weights. And I was being tongue-in-cheek about the barbie weights, btw.

    I don't know what your problem is. I have been trying to further the discussion. You seem not to understand that your post was less than clear. Maybe a writing class is in order.

    Don't flatter yourself, responding to ignorant, rude people does nothing for my sense of well-being.

    Your comment also is ageist.
  • inammorata
    inammorata Posts: 80
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    I've found that you have to enjoy the exercises that you are doing. When I first started, I had others telling me how they did it and then trying to counsel me "you should lift weights"...."try running".
    I quickly found that didn't work for me...I was miserable and was less willing to work out.
    When I started finding out what works for *me* and what *I* liked, I noticed the pounds coming off.
  • JennieAL
    JennieAL Posts: 1,726 Member
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    Don't flatter yourself, responding to ignorant, rude people does nothing for my sense of well-being.

    Your comment also is ageist.

    I tend to laugh at myself, more than flatter, really. I crack myself up sometimes.

    Ignorant, we're all ignorant of something. Rude... sometimes. Oh well.

    Feel free to send the PC police my way.
  • Lolli1986
    Lolli1986 Posts: 500 Member
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    ....shenanigans....?!
    I have a feeling I've been exercising and reading about exercise for far longer than you have.

    That is ageist. The comment in response to that was equalist.
  • mfpcopine
    mfpcopine Posts: 3,093 Member
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    ....shenanigans....?!
    I have a feeling I've been exercising and reading about exercise for far longer than you have.

    That is ageist. The comment in response to that was equalist.

    No, because I could be 30 or 40 years old and have studied this topic for 20 years. That would not make me a "grandma."

    The only reason I bother to respond to questions like that of the OP is because I genuinely want to help and I've been reading the same inaccurate, unnuanced information for many, many years.
  • Lolli1986
    Lolli1986 Posts: 500 Member
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    I'm a pear~ Can I just add that, amanda, you are one hawt pear! omgosh....

    Here is how I looked after taking up running, 5K 3 times a week:

    not_skinnyfat.jpg

    Because my legs are massively bulky compared to my top half (i look like two people sewn together, haha), I thought i had to run.

    Suffice to say, I did not end up looking like a marathoner. Instead of getting lean legs like i'd hoped, i got legs built for kicking down buildings. The few heavy-lifting women i have seen around who want to bulk their legs would probably be very pleased to end up with legs like mine.

    Sooo, I don't know... I'm young, right? Nothing bad will happen if i try something new. I am seeing a lot of pear shaped women getting amazing results through heavy lifting, so my personal approach will be to give that a go and see what happens!

    There has always always been concern about what lifting will do to women - that it might make us look masculine. it has only been VERY recent that regular women have even started trying it, and just look through this thread - multiple pears have come forward and said they have been happy with their results.

    I always used to fear lifting for fear of bulking...but for me it is worth a shot.

    The only other option i can think of is walking and dieting the weight off. if the goal is to be thin, that might be worth a try, but if you have fitness goals walking stops having much of a fitness effect fairly quickly.
  • mfpcopine
    mfpcopine Posts: 3,093 Member
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    I always used to fear lifting for fear of bulking...but for me it is worth a shot.


    That's fine. If you get bigger than you'd like (you won't bulk up), you can always do something else, like walking, running, bodyweight exercises. You will not be as strong as if you did weight work, but if you don't have a specific need for that kind of strength you may not care.

    My only point whenever I comment in response to questions like that of the OP is that you may get bigger in a way that you are not comfortable. It is a myth that women never get bigger. If your arms and shoulders get bigger, why wouldn't your butt, hips, and legs?
  • Anthonydaman
    Anthonydaman Posts: 854 Member
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    Welcome Amanda, nothing wrong with a toned pear shape at all
  • chickenmcv
    chickenmcv Posts: 41
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    I don't use "Barbie" weights, and I have a feeling I've been exercising and reading about exercise for far longer than you have. Whether to use heavy weights on your lower half depends on your goals. I said that in the response you quoted. It IS a complex subject and depends on the individual's genetic make up.

    It should say something to you that women athletes and dancers who are concerned about the appearance of their legs do not use heavy weights or are very careful about how they are used. Do you think they are all stupid? They depend on their bodies for their livelihoods. I've also read interviews with trainers for movie stars who've talked about the same concern with their pear-shaped clients. What incentive do they have to make that up?

    The people who advocate weight work for women are often as dogmatic as the people who used to claim that strength training would harm women. It's not a black and white subject and I would have thought that the discussion of weight training for women would be more sophisticated at this point. I was wrong.

    Complete LOL at this post. You can't back up any of this hearsay.

    Ladies, do your squats. Go heavy. You'll be fine.
  • Lolli1986
    Lolli1986 Posts: 500 Member
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    I always used to fear lifting for fear of bulking...but for me it is worth a shot.

    That's fine. If you get bigger than you'd like (you won't bulk up), you can always do something else, like walking, running, bodyweight exercises. You will not be as strong as if you did weight work, but if you don't have a specific need for that kind of strength you may not care.

    My only point whenever I comment in response to questions like that of the OP is that you may get bigger in a way that you are not comfortable. It is a myth that women never get bigger. If your arms and shoulders get bigger, why wouldn't your butt, hips, and legs?

    i guess my point is that, for me at least, running still resulted in massive muscles, so there is no need for me to avoid lifting out of a fear of my muscles getting bigger. :) running and bodyweight exercises both make my muscles bigger, so i might as well lift as well!

    i would argue that most pears are mainly fat-gathering pears, right? we gather fat on the butt, hips, thighs. for most pears, anything that trims that fat down will result in a more balanced shape.

    i'm really, really a pear in terms of both fat-gathering and muscle-distribution. even when i'm 16%bodyfat i am still a major pear. for someone like me, it might make a bit of difference what exercise I do...mayyyybe if i stuck to only yoga, pilates, and walking i could keep my muscle mass super-lean, but what amount of difference are we talking about in terms of 'increased muscle size'? like a centimetre? the regular (non body-building) weight-lifting women around here all have nice lean legs...

    the ones who are specifically trying to bulk their legs are getting bulk, but again, my bulky running legs beat most of them in terms of bulk.

    i really think it's not all as stressful as it has been made out to be over the years. :)

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