Since the blog I posted about inner/outer thigh workouts has had almost 500 hits, I thought maybe this is a topic people have an interest in. Granted, most people ended up at my post by typing things like “spread legs”…but nonetheless, I’ll give the people what they want. Er, ok, not exactly. You people are sick, who knows what kind of messed up stuff you want 
Shapely Legs
What does “shapely” even mean? For women, what I’m guessing most want is to have at least a subtle muscle tone, and very little fat covering it up. No one likes cellulite dimples. Although FYI ladies…even the supermodels have it. Yes, they airbrush this as a general rule. I always feel a silent victory when I catch a glimpse of thigh dimples on a celebrity in a movie. Sad, I know. But hey, I’m human.
So, obtaining shapely legs. You may have guessed, but despite our resistance to this, it’s the basics that come into play. The ones we generally don’t want to hear about: diet, cardiovascular exercise, and resistance exercise. It takes a combination of the three for most women to achieve legs they feel stoked about showing off in a flirty skirt.
The Breakdown
Diet: Diet can be complicated, as it’s incredibly individualized, but there are a few standards that apply across the board.
- Eating small meals/snacks every 3-4 hours. This will help your body expect food regularly (if you make it a habit), thus giving your metabolism a boost. Eating smaller portions helps your body make use of all the vitamins and nutrients you eat instead of being forced to store them as fat. The body can only breakdown and use food at a gradual rate, so if you’re overeating each meal, you’re forcing fat storage.
- Drink plenty of water. This has endless benefits, a couple of the main ones being keeping metabolism going and flushing the system of toxins.
- Calorie Intake. Weight maintenance, gain, or loss is a numbers game. If you’re consuming more calories than you burn in a day on a regular basis, you’re going to gain weight. You can alter the outcome by increasing the number of calories you burn, lowering your caloric intake, or a combination of both (usually optimal).
Adjusting your diet will help trim the fat from your entire body, including the legs. It is, however, genetic as to where the weight will come off first…and last. If you tend to gain weight in the hips first, that is likely the last place the weight will come off. It’s a fact of life – accept it.
Cardiovascular Exercise
There are a number of ways to get cardiovascular exercise – running, walking, jogging, swimming, stationary trainers (tread mill, elliptical, stair climbers, stationary bicycles, etc.), dancing, tennis, basketball, soccer…you get the idea.
The main thing is that you get your heart rate up and keep it elevated for at least 30 minutes, 3-5 times a week. You can break it up and do 2 sets of 15 minute activities a day if necessary. Just get moving.
Again, endless benefits. Cardio burns fat, improves circulation, decreases the risk of heart disease – and it makes you feel better (once you’re done at least – ha). Cardiovascular exercise is key in reducing fat on the body, legs and all.
Resistance Exercise
Resistance exercises use weights, or simply your own body weight. For legs, these are things like squats, lunges, leg lifts, calf raises, or stair climbing. Resistance exercises help build muscle. The more muscle you have, the more calories you burn throughout the day.
If you’re looking to make your legs smaller – you do not want to be using heavy weight. Stick to light weight (body weight may be plenty) and high repetitions.
Heavier weights are for building the muscles up. Be careful with this, as if you’re building muscle and not losing fat…as your legs will get bigger, but may not appear more toned.
Key Exercises:
- Squats: Wide leg, feet shoulder width apart, one legged squats, plie’ squats (wide leg on tip toes)…
- Lunges: Standing lunge, walking lunge, step-ups, side lunge, rear lunge, lunge with a twist…
- Leg Raises: Lying leg raise (top & bottom leg – bottom hits inner thigh, while top leg hits outer thigh), standing leg raise (outer, inner, front, & back), leg raise using resistance bands, ankle weights or cables, inner/outer thigh weight machines…
You can expect the size of your legs and buns to change if you’re consistent with resistance exercise. If you’re balanced in your approach by tackling diet and cardio as well, you should be excited with these results!
Hot, sexy, mini-skirt & heels legs are totally possible, but as with most things, you have to be willing to work for it (if you’re among the 98% of us who don’t come by these naturally). I have to do it too, you may even see me lunging through Hugh McRae park in Wilmington, it’s become a weekly event 
Rock on!
Quinn Rowland, Warrior
I am a warrior. I am human. Flawed, excited, triumphant. I vow to take life on, to be honest in who I am and to fight for what I hold dear. To live with courage to be exactly as I am, and willingness to become something greater. My life is about the message, the impact I can have on those around me, over coming desires of ego. My intention is to have the hand of as many as possible in this journey of living with love, honesty, and courage. That is all I know.
