How do I make my thighs smaller if theres too much musclew?

EatWholeFoods
EatWholeFoods Posts: 174 Member
edited December 20 in Fitness and Exercise
I do elliptical for 70-90 min. 3-5 days a week. I am 5'1" and 121 lbs. I still want to lose more weight, but I want to target my thighs and waist. What are the best exercises I can do for that? It seems like I have a lot of muscle in my thighs and I don't want to lose definition, but I do not want them bulking up. How do I shrink my thighs without losing muscle? Is the ellipticap bad? I do it on incline with resistance or else I cannot get my heart rate up.

Replies

  • HeidiMightyRawr
    HeidiMightyRawr Posts: 3,343 Member
    You wouldn't have bulked up from the elliptical, it's very hard for a woman to bulk up and requires excess calories along with heavy lifting. If you already have quite a bit of muscle I understand, but you can't really target fat loss (which is what you need to get them smaller), it comes off where it comes off (genetics) Keep on with a calorie deficit though and the fat will come off the thighs in time, whether it's the last place to lose or the first :smile:
  • Zero2hero2013
    Zero2hero2013 Posts: 458
    ^^^^ agree, continue and they will define and become smaller, but they may look bigger as the defintion comes through. jest keep going :-), take measurements just to keep you mentally sane :-)
  • BerryH
    BerryH Posts: 4,698 Member
    What Heidi says! This lady knows what she's talking about :smile:

    It might sound contra-intuitive, but add heavy weight training to your routine. It will give you sleek leg and ab muscles and help shed any last bits of fat covering them (though you can't have much!).
  • EatWholeFoods
    EatWholeFoods Posts: 174 Member
    thanks everyone! I am worried to do weights on my legs again. When I did before 30-40 lbs, it seemed like they bulked up, but also seems like muscles get puffy after working out for a day or two before they go back down...its like it swells as it builds muscle?

    I will try to lose more weight and fat. I have been eating 1200 calories, but if I exercise, I eat 1700 calories if I burn 500 etc. Should I stop eating more calories if I burn 500-700 calories?
  • Jkmumma
    Jkmumma Posts: 254
    Girls don't produce the hormones necessary to bulk up in the same fashion that men do. You might see more muscle mass, but you won't have the crazy muscle development that a guy can manage.
  • coco1119
    coco1119 Posts: 18
    I have the same problem. I am 5'1 and 119# my thighs have always looked big and muscular. I am a runner too so I dunno if that helps or makes them bigger. Pretty much I just live with it because when I weigh more my thighs seem big and when I weigh less they do too. It is just me. Hope it helps to know you are not alone :)
  • EatWholeFoods
    EatWholeFoods Posts: 174 Member
    thank you =)
  • BerryH
    BerryH Posts: 4,698 Member
    thanks everyone! I am worried to do weights on my legs again. When I did before 30-40 lbs, it seemed like they bulked up, but also seems like muscles get puffy after working out for a day or two before they go back down...its like it swells as it builds muscle?

    I will try to lose more weight and fat. I have been eating 1200 calories, but if I exercise, I eat 1700 calories if I burn 500 etc. Should I stop eating more calories if I burn 500-700 calories?
    Yes, immediately after a workout fluid rushes to your muscles to repair damage and carry away waste products. It's just water weight and goes in a day or two.

    Carry on eating your exercise calories! MFP is designed so you'll remain at a calorific deficit while not feel hungry, and feeding your muscles the energy they need to repair and fuel your next workout.
  • sunglasses_and_ocean_waves
    sunglasses_and_ocean_waves Posts: 2,757 Member
    I'm tired of people saying girls don't bulk. Some of us do, especially in the thighs. I had to stop all wieghted squats and anything like that. I found plyometrics to be a better fit for my body type. I'm using and working the thighs, but not building them up. Much, much better results.
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
    I'm tired of people saying girls don't bulk. Some of us do, especially in the thighs. I had to stop all wieghted squats and anything like that. I found plyometrics to be a better fit for my body type. I'm using and working the thighs, but not building them up. Much, much better results.

    If you are eating in a deficit then you are not building them up... You may see newbie gains, but thats about it. Any "bulk" that you see is either swelling after working them or fat still left on there.

    To OP:
    You got some fantastic advice already.

    Do some squats/lunges and you'll see results.
  • doubglass
    doubglass Posts: 314 Member
    Not much you can do that is good for you. You are trying to beat genetics. If you have fat on your thighs you can lose it with cardio and reducing calories. But if it is muscle not much you can do, short of starving yourself so you lose muscle. The good news is guys don't go around thinking -- her thighs have too much muscle--it isn't something they notice.
  • Zero2hero2013
    Zero2hero2013 Posts: 458
    what i dont understand is though this gal looks amazing!

    hot_girl_squat.jpg
    hehe i think she looks amazing

    if you wanted to look like this you would have to work for along time and hard at it, i find it hilarious when someone says they are fed up with people saying girls cant get bulky lol. it is impossible for a girl to get bulky as you say without planning on doing it. the plyo workout simply recruits more slow twitch fibres. so techncially you will probably just be making more muscle so when you do anything else the fast twitch might make little gains quickly at first but unlikely that you would even be able to notice them. also muscle looks great and femine when you dont tense it. want femine legs dont tense them lol.
  • EatWholeFoods
    EatWholeFoods Posts: 174 Member
    Thanks for all of the advice....I have thighs that look like a gymnast...I used to run track in high school and sprint. I don't want thighs like that. I will look up about the pylometrics. I eat a diet of 20% protein..is that enough % difference than the normal suggested (15%) to cause me to bulk up? I do not like the picture of the squat girl haha I like her torso up, but thighs freak me out.
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
    Thanks for all of the advice....I have thighs that look like a gymnast...I used to run track in high school and sprint. I don't want thighs like that. I will look up about the pylometrics. I eat a diet of 20% protein..is that enough % difference than the normal suggested (15%) to cause me to bulk up? I do not like the picture of the squat girl haha I like her torso up, but thighs freak me out.

    Darling, 15% protein is not going to cause you to bulk up.. and even 20% is not enough. The macro intake a lot of people suggest, is 40,30,30. 40% carbs, 30% protein, 30% fat.

    If you are eating in a deficit, then you won't bulk up. The "bulk" you are seeing is fat.. lose the fat, and you lose the bulk. Simple as that.
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