thunder thighs

i need some serious help with problem thighs!

I eat really well, no junk and no fizzy drinks, tons of fruit and veg and only lean meat, but i work from home so i dont have the regular daily exercise other people have.

I try and go to the gym min 3 times a week, 4 times if im good, i do i hour on the cross trainer and 20 mins on the bike, is this right to achieve smaller legs?? im seeing no difference and simply cant have another summer where im scared to leave the house.

Can someone give me some advice please on how to get these thighs half the size!!!
 
are your thighs fatty or muscular?? i have naturally muscular thighs and they are a bit bigger than i'd like, so that's why i'm asking. if you've got extra fat on 'em, check out the stickies about fat loss. they're very informative and helpful. or maybe seek out a personal trainer at your gym?? just ask a couple questions and see if they help you out without making you pay ha. if they're muscular, maybe try yoga. or do some good, long stretching before/after your workouts. you can hopefully "elongate" your muscles. i haven't quite tried this out yet for my legs so i don't know if it actually makes a difference.
 
are your thighs fatty or muscular?? i have naturally muscular thighs and they are a bit bigger than i'd like, so that's why i'm asking. if you've got extra fat on 'em, check out the stickies about fat loss. they're very informative and helpful. or maybe seek out a personal trainer at your gym?? just ask a couple questions and see if they help you out without making you pay ha. if they're muscular, maybe try yoga. or do some good, long stretching before/after your workouts. you can hopefully "elongate" your muscles. i haven't quite tried this out yet for my legs so i don't know if it actually makes a difference.

I don't believe stretching them would make a difference. Sure, you can elongate muscles, but it has no visual effect.

Other than that, I agree. There's nothing wrong with muscular thighs, though. In fact, I think they look better.
 
bit of both really, i would say more fat then muscle, i was just worried doing that long on the cross trainer would make them bigger, i just want them slimmer, dont want to ask the trainers as i'll never get rid of them hahha. i'll check out those things, cheers guys
 
If you workout at home, consider a program that integrates more than just cardio. Do a search for BeachBody - they sell in-home exercise programs that are excellent. Try a Les Mills Pump class at the gym (there is also a home version now). Cardio alone isn't going to help you lose the weight around your tighs. You cannot 'spot train' muscles and expect that area to change. Your body burns fat from the extremedities to the core. So, the farther you are to the center of gravity you are (women typically the butt area, men typically the abdominal area), the sooner the fat loss will apprear. That's why so many people have the same 'problem areas'. It takes the longest to get fat loss in those areas.

As far as exercise. I'm a big believer in long term, slow weight loss. The best way to get rid of that unslightly fat is to cross train - lift light weights with high repetitions and do cardio. Workout 6 days per week - 3 days of cardio, 3 days of lifting...every other day switch it. So day 1 - cardio, day 2 - lift, day 3 - cardio, etc. Change your exercises every 30 days (that way your muscles are confused and continue to change). If you can do this for 30 days...that's a total of 26 workouts (4 weeks, 6 days per week). You will see DRAMATIC changes in your body. But you also have to eat right. The saying "abs are made in the kitchen" is true.

Good luck!
 
In order to lose fat from anywhere in your body you need to be burning more calories than you are consuming. You said you eat well, but even if you are eating healthy food, if you are eating too much of it then you still won't lose fat. A lot of Dieticians and Bodybuilders would say that fat loss is approx. 80% food and 20% exercise. You need to create approximately a 500 calorie deficit from your maintenance calorie level each day in order to lose around 1kg of fat per week. It may seem tedious to work all this out, but if you don't do it properly guessing will only leave you frustrated. Use an online calculator to work out your BMR and then use something like Calorieking.com to work out roughly how many calories you are eating on a regular day. You may be eating too much or too little. Eating too little is also bad as this makes your metabolism more efficient, meaning your body will store fat more easily.
Once you know your weight loss calorie level you can work out a basic diet plan that works with your schedule and the foods you like to eat. You can even Google "1500 calorie (replace with your calorie level) diet plan sample" and you are guaranteed to find 101 different examples you could build on.
The key is to eat little and often, DO NOT skip meals, learn about pre and post workout nutrition, eat food as close to their natural state as possible (not processed or junk), limit sodium, fat, sugar and alcohol and drink heaps of water.
As some of the other members mentioned, it would be a good idea to add some circuit training into your exercise routine. Light to medium weights will not build bulky muscle and they will actually help to increase your metabolism so that your body will burn fat more efficiently.
The best cardio exercise for fat loss is HIIT training, Google it to get the exact definition. This type of training is highly efficient as you can do short, intense sessions that burn mad calories during the workout - but better still, increase your metabolism for hours after the workout. Long, slow, low impact cardio sessions are really not that beneficial at all - they are a big waste of time in my opinion. If you get a heart rate monitor with a calorie counter you will see how many more calories you will burn if you work at a high intensity level.
I know this is a lot of info in one go, but if you apply yourself and follow the advice you will get results. You've got to decide that you are actually going to commit to getting that fat off once and for all. If your mind set isn't right you won't succeed.
If you want to take all the guess work out of it then you could try one of the complete in-home weight loss systems that are available out there. There are heaps of awesome ones with DVDs and diet guides. The one I am currently doing is The Firm Express get thin in 30. It is quite advanced, so if you aren't used to choreography you might get a bit lost with it, but the menu guide is awesome. Really delicious meals that are easy to prepare no matter how busy you are.
The other great ones, as another member has mentioned, are some of the BeachBody ones - Charlene Johnson has a few - Charlene Extreme, Turbo Jam and Turbo Fire. If you like kickboxing the Billy Blanks has one out at the moment too called Tae Bo PT 24/7.
 
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