Hey ya'll.
I make it a point to do at least 45 mins of exercise a day... though usually i do about 1 hr and 30 mins
I normally walk 45 mins on the treadmill(3 miles) and then do strength training with weights for another 45- mostly upper body though
My legs dont seem to loose weight ever, In fact they just get bulkier. I have muscular, short/stubby "soccer legs" with a bit too much of fat -esp on the upper thighs and i really need to tone them up, but all my efforts seem to produce is bigger muscles and not smaller legs, any recs??

Hi MariJane!

Me too! But I have found that they seem to be in a shrinking trend. I KNOW they're going to get smaller because my fat is getting looser. I just have to be (relatively) patient.

If you have yo-yo dieted, and your profile says you have, your body is probably very good at saving its precious fat stores. Which means it may take a while, but you will eventually see progress. Besides, you know you're getting healthier by exercising, right?

It may also be partly the way we're built. I have always (except as a rake-thin child) had stocky legs. So they will probably always be a little on the stocky side, no matter how good my level of fitness is.

One caveat, though, looking at your amount of exercise: an hour and a half every day (or even most days) is a lot. Your body will hold onto your fat that much harder if you're overdoing it. That's because it regulates your metabolism to make you more efficient at the exercise, and save whatever calories it can. A little more rest can help this and prevent overtraining syndrome. Also, taking in enough calories will keep it from over-reacting.

I don't know if any of that helps, but I'm very interested to see other responses too. Always looking for the magic pill.

Thanks for the tips, Maybe i will cut down a bit on the walking, its a pain in the butt sometimes when i'm tired and id much rather be vegging out!

Hi MariJane

I am much much bigger than you but I also have big legs. I have been on Atkins for just over a month now and I am just now seeing some results with my legs. They are really toning up and just this week started to shrink (only a bit)

I do cardio 5 days a week. I do 40 minutes on the cross trainer now, which burns about 600 calories. I have given up weights on my legs for the time being as I don't want to bulk. The walking won't bulk you up, keep it up. You could also try different cardio workouts. Stretching is also a huge part of being fit. I was just reminded that during my cool down I need to hold each stretch for a minimum of 30 seconds to 1 minute.

Another thought would be Yoga. From your stats you sounds pretty fit already. Yoga is designed to strengthen and elongate the body. It tones and firms, not bulks. Just a thought

You will get lots of advise here, you have come to the right place. Whatever you decide, have fun doing it.

Good luck!!

Jenny

I have soccer legs too--they're short, powerful and look WAY fatter than they really are, due to the muscle mass I have underneath my fat. They've been looking even bigger lately, because my muscle is developing faster than the fat is coming off. It's a bit disheartening, but I keep reminding myself of two things:

1. I did not get fat in a week, and I'm not going to get it off in a day. I'm already getting it off at least three times faster than I put it on.

2. The fat WILL come off, and when it does, my legs will look smaller. I know that my legs HAVE gotten smaller, because of how my clothes fit. For it to really show and be obvious to others, though...I'm just going to have to wait.

Emily