Exercise That Helps Loosing Fat from Thighs

Updated on February 06, 2009
M.B. asks from Austin, TX
18 answers

hello ladies,
I just turned 31 and have started gaining fat specially around my thighs (inner and outer) and butt. I am a petite woman and have always remained underweight(93 lbs.) but in last year and half i have gained 7-8 pounds and now i am not underweight anymore. My eating habits haven't drastically changed in last 5 years or so. But my pants size has increased from size 0 or 2 to size 4 now which is my major concern!my upper legs are not in proportion with my upper body specially my thighs.
While I am very cautiously cutting down on my fat intake, I need suggestions on exercise that worked for you all and can be done at home withought equipments. However,I have 5 lbs. dumbells and jumping ropes which i use to exercise. My concern is to loose fat rather than just toning or muscle firming exercise.
Thank you all in advance,

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P.B.

answers from Houston on

Try the Windsor Pilates thighs exercise dvd - it is great! In addition, you must do cardio, any kind.

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C.G.

answers from Austin on

I know everyone's body is different but what really changed my body was 30 minutes of cardio at least 4-5 times a week and switching my diet to whole grains rather than white bread. After about 2-3 months I came back down to my 95 pounds. ( I am also petite) The only cardio that worked for me in making fast changes was running. A good sweat for 30 min. a day.

Good luck:)

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C.B.

answers from Houston on

M B-
Congratulations on taking charge of your fitness and figure! I'm a personal trainer in the area and a 30-year-old mother of twin girls and a 13-year-old step son. Unfortunately, our bodies handle things differently after we hit 30. Just like you don't get to choose where the fat decides to land, you can't choose where it comes off, so you'll need to make sure your workout is well-rounded. Cardio is the most efficient way to remove fat, although, you'll need to add resistance in there to tone and strengthen--no one wants to be skinny and squishy. :) Also, 70% of your weightloss results will come from your nutrition. Make sure you make a lifestyle switch rather than a diet and temporary hardcore exercise. NEVER eat under 1200 calories unless advised by your doctor.
In summary, you'll need 3 - 5 days of cardio (moderate intensity for at least 30 min) and 2 days of resistance at minimum. We have a 3-D man on our website that you can click on a muscle group and it will tell you about that muscle group and various exercises for it--with videos. Hope this helps. Best of luck!
Stay consistent-
C.
www.uniquephysiqueonline.com

2 moms found this helpful
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A.O.

answers from Sherman on

Walking and running. Also try lunges, squats, step ups, etc... You may also try writing down EVERYTHING that you put in your mouth during the day. You might be surprised how many calories you are consuming. Hope this helps!

1 mom found this helpful
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L.B.

answers from Houston on

I don't know of a way to lose fat from a specific area. I also have out of proportion thighs and butt to the rest of my body and the best I can do is keep my weight under control and exercise to tone those areas. They have always been and will always be larger than the rest of me unless I go for some sort of surgery!

With that being said, I would like to offer a word of caution...you are still VERY tiny, even with the few pounds you've gained in the last few years. I think you need to focus on what you can do to stay healthy and feeling great as opposed to making one area of your body look like your ideal image of it. We are all unique and special, and I know that if your daughter came to you in a few years and said, 'Mom, my thighs are fat, I want to lose weight,' you would do everything in your power to boost her self-confidence and make her see that she is beautiful just the way she is. Please have the consideration to do that for yourself! Best of luck to you!

1 mom found this helpful
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L.O.

answers from Houston on

hello! i'm also a mother to a 3-year old daughter and in my 30's. i also have fat to lose from my butt and thighs - my personal trainer recommends cardio (running, jogging, stair climbing). i gained A LOT of weight during my pregnancy due to over-indulging! my problem area is more my stomach though. i was surfing the net about weight/fat loss and found a cool & informative website.

http://www.flat-stomach-fitness.com/

they had some good info on there about fat loss. it may or may not help you with thigh issues.

here's to our quest to maximum fitness & looking & feeling great! :)

1 mom found this helpful

M.B.

answers from Beaumont on

I do not know about exercise except that some exercise increases the size of your butt and thighs. My daughter had that happen while playing volleyball and doing squats all the time, her butt and thighs got alot bigger.
I can say, that I read the book Eat Right For Your Blood Type and when I started avoiding the foods that were not good for my blood type I dropped 12 pounds. They also have a website.I have always been basically small also, but whenever I put on a few pounds I get back to eating the beneficial foods and avoiding the other stuff and I get back to my size. (and feel better)

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J.G.

answers from Austin on

I know you say that your main "concern is to loose fat rather than just toning or muscle firming" but I'm afraid that's what you're going to have to focus on if you want this to go away. In your 30's women hit another milestone in life. It isn't a great one like crawling and walking when you're an infant. This one is when your metabolism slows down. YEAH! While your eating and life style habits haven't changed your body has. In your case you may have gained some weight but I would look at it as your bodies way of saying I'm done being too thin. Eating healthy is always a good idea but since you are already pushing the underweight button I would be very cautious with removing anything out of your diet. Try eating the same amounts (calorie and nutrition wise) but spreading it out to 5 meals a day. Jump start your metabolism a little.

I also think you need to stop focusing on the diet, which for an already underweight woman, can be dangerous. And don't think that just because you put on a few extra pounds on your legs that your are suddenly out of the "underweight" category. Since this weight isn't distributed around your body in a healthy way most of your body is still underweight. Start looking at the things you can do to accomplish the toning and firming that you are avoiding. That's the only way for you to safely lose the butt and leg flab and you might just gain some healthy muscle weight. I'm not talking looking like a body builder here but isn't a little muscle better than flab? Many of the other women gave you some great ideas to use already so I won't go into that. I'm wanting to discuss what's in your head and not what's on your butt.

That brings me to my last concern for you. You seem to be focusing on the "fat" part. You, my dear, are not fat. I don't even have to look at you to know that. You ask for exercises but then say your more concerned with losing this fat. I understand that you feel out of proportion and that's normal for any woman but so is having a little weight on her rear. You probably have the size 4 body that most women would die for. And I'm wiling to bet your beautiful inside and out. Take time to look in the mirror and love yourself a little. Stop looking at your small, small, small imperfections and look at your triumphs in life. Stay healthy and fit but don't focus so much and hate so much the natural parts of being a woman. You've had a child that changed your body. If your extra curves don't go away like you'd like it to try looking at it like a badge of honor. Our bodies reflect our personal histories and lives and our extra curves show our willingness to sacrifice ourselves to our children and families. Not such a bad thing.

I think this is a good lesson for all of us out there! We all forget about ourselves and put our families first but without a healthy Mama how can you have healthy families? Love yourself more! Everyone needs to look in the mirror once today and tell yourself "I love you". Try it out. It might feel good. Just don't do it in a public bathroom... :-)

Good luck!
Jen
http://www.mommysjoy.com

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J.T.

answers from Victoria on

Walking is best. No matter what our size we all worry about weight I suppose. Also squats work the thighs and butt. Basically squat down like you are going to sit in a chair make sure your knees arent going past your toes....line up. You could injure your knees if you do it incorrectly. 25 of these should help build muscles which help burn fat. Be sure to check out a Body Mass Index chart to see what your weight should be for your height. Best of luck.

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M.D.

answers from Houston on

Lunges are the way to go. Also, Academy and Walmart sell those leg bands that connect your two ankles together. You hold on to the wall and lift your opposite leg out in all directions. They are very small and easy movements until you get to like #8, then the burn starts to set in. They are awesome to tone those areas.

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J.S.

answers from Houston on

Cardio will do it. Walking fast or running...
Sounds like you are watching what you eat so you should be back down to your regular weight in no time.

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A.W.

answers from Austin on

MB, way to go to be healhty & stay fit!! I work out on a daily basis and was a nutrition major in college. The key to losing weight is burning more calories than you intake. Meaning, eat fewer calories while maintaining an active lifestlye. The best thing is cardio & strength training together, however using weights can make your muscles short as opposed to doing pilates, which make the muslces long. For the thigh and butt area, I find for myself that using a large inflatible ball (you can buy them at Target, Wal-Mart, or any gym equipment store like Acadamy) & placing it against the wall then putting the small of your back against the ball. Doing squats w/the ball behind you (allowing the ball to move w/you) and keeping your knees from going over your toes (if your knees are over your toes while going down, you are doing them incorrectly) will have great effects. Walking is another great exercise to do as it's less of an impact on your knees than running. Hang in there! If you google thigh/butt exercises you can find great things to do and try & see what works for you-I've done that for arm exercises. Also, change up your work-outs to different things as your body can become used to certain moves and will take longer to build muscle & lose the fat. Changing your routine will allow you to use different muscles, which will inturn burn more calories & trigger weight loss! Good luck & hang in there!

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D.B.

answers from Houston on

1 word. Pilates

God Bless

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C.L.

answers from Austin on

Hi there. You need fat burning cardiovascular exercise. The jumping rope is great. Also walking (or jogging/running if you like it) will burn fat. When walking or performing your cardiovascular exercise, make sure you are able to talk while doing it, this assures you are in the fat burning "zone." So walk as fast/hard as you can and still be able to talk. I like to combine this with some toning as well while walking with my girls in the stroller. We walk so far, and then do little squats or lunges while pushing the stroller - 2 minutes walking, 1 minute squats and/or lunges,etc. Good luck!

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K.L.

answers from Austin on

Hi there,

I'm an independent personal trainer and one of my specialties is designing a work-out you can do in your own home. I also host a bootcamp mix class every week, which has become quite popular with many of my female clients. As a single mother I understand about keeping things affordable too. Let me know how I can help you and the first session is complimentary. My e-mail is ____@____.com

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J.J.

answers from Austin on

The best way I have found to especially slim down my thighs and hips is through pilates or Yoga. I have always been a pear so I know from whence I speak.

However, though my weight is still the same as it was pre-kids, my body has altered form and my hips are now wider than they were before and I can no longer fit in the same size pants. Some of your body changes are likely due to childbirth/child-bearing (you mentioned the changes over a 5 year peiod and you have a 3 year-old). You'll just have to learn too love who you are for the parts you can't change.

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T.S.

answers from Austin on

The thing to do is cut down on carbs and increase aerobic exercise. Cutting fat intake doesn't help you lose fat -- it's actually sugar that turns into the fat you are seeing on your thighs. Cut out or drastically reduce sugar and anything white (white bread, white rice, potatoes) -- doing that will reduce your intake of simple carbohydrates. To keep from being hungry, add in more protein (lean meats, yogurt, a handful of nuts) and complex carbohydrates (whole grain bread, wheat crackers, brown rice). Then find some kind of exercise that gets your heart rate up for at least 30 minutes at a time, and that you can stick with consistently. If you hate it, don't do it, find something you like. Walking is great exercise and it's cheap -- no classes or equipment required other than a good pair of shoes and maybe some tunes to listen to. Make sure you're walking at a brisk pace -- you should feel like you're about to break into a run -- and do it for at least 30 minutes, 5 days a week. It can be hard to find time, but you can make time for things that are important. Not only will it help you get the body you want, but it will increase your cardiovascular health, reduce your risk of diabetes, prolong your life and give you more energy to keep up with your daughter. Good luck!

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Y.F.

answers from Austin on

But when you build muscle, you burn fat! So a combination of cardio AND weightlifting will really help you. (Toning muscle will even burn fat when you are NOT exercising!) You can use your jump rope to get your cardio or you could start off by walking around your neighborhood. A good, swift walk (no sauntering!) for 30 minutes a day. Take your daughter in a wagon or in a jogging stroller for some extra exertion. I would encourage you to join the YMCA and get a program developed for you for lifting weights. If you can't do that, then buy an exercise video to help you out. (Take a look at this article from the NYTimes...these exercise videos are great! http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/15/fashion/15fitness.html?...

Good Luck!
Y.

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