The Leg Thread - Toning, Firming and Questions

[darkintragedy]

You are in the same boat as everyone else in the fat thigh category now. Fat technically is easier to lose than muscle but it depends upon where you naturally store fat. As you are male it is probably going to be easier than for us gals. I have never got into pilates because you always need a teacher and a class so you don't hurt yourself blah blah blah. I prefer yoga because you can do it at home. Therefore I would concentrate on running for fat loss and toning and yoga to keep things slender. I think stretching is one thing that hasn't been emphasised in this thread. How many yogis do you know who are bulky? Probably not that many. So stretch, stretch, stretch

Fabulous. Thanks

 

[Tushka_BeLLa]

no matter what excersises you do, and what you consume, you will not be able to lose weight/inches in one targeted area.

eat a lot of peanut butter sandwhiches, stop having sex, and run as much as you can.
you will enjoy the outcome

Stop having sex???

I am trying to get my thighs leaner and have been doing the Pilates dvds everyday but the muscles in my legs are really tight and I am not flexible enough to get my legs straight up in the air and when I try to extend my legs they shake uncontrollably! I also get bad pain and tight feelings in my hamstrings the next day. How can I alleviate this problem???

 

[StellaMare]

Would cardio work well if I want to have legs that are shaped sort of like Ashley Olsen's?

pictures are from paparazzi world.
http://[URL=http://img146.imageshac...s/img146/7074/olsen36by2mo.th.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

 

[rainglow]

Stop having sex???

I am trying to get my thighs leaner and have been doing the Pilates dvds everyday but the muscles in my legs are really tight and I am not flexible enough to get my legs straight up in the air and when I try to extend my legs they shake uncontrollably! I also get bad pain and tight feelings in my hamstrings the next day. How can I alleviate this problem???

The only way to get your legs straight up in the air and alleviate tightness following exercise is stretching - stretch stretch stretch!!!

Stretching is the most beneficial after exercising when the muscles are warmed up, and will help get the lactic acid out of them. My legs get really stiff too, but if I stretch for 10 mins after exercising I'm totally fine the next day.

You should hold each stretch for about 30 seconds, but they shouldn't be painful. For your hamstrings, make like you're going to touch your toes but just let yourself hang. You can also sit on the ground with legs together and try to touch your toes, legs open and touch opposite hand to foot - just do whatever feels good

I do a lot of pilates and getting your legs straight is a combination of strength and flexibility - you'll get there with practise. By the way, you should be feeling the stress/ shaking in your core when you're doing pilates more so that your other body parts - you should try to redirect all the stress to your abs and make them do the work. Make sure you're well warmed up before trying anything challenging too, I find that those dvds have insufficient warm up portions

The more you stretch the longer and leaner your muscles will be too

 

[oona]

Does anyone know how bad it is on your legs if you sit on a chair with your feet on the chair too? Sometimes I sit on a chair with at least one leg under my bum while on the computer. At at the comfort of my home i also often sit w/ 1 leg bent in front of me on the chair & the other leg in a half indian-style position.

Sort of like this:

Actually, i have noticed a few spider veins at my upper calves, but who can say for sure that it's due this this right? or not. This position is very very comfortable for me on most any chair, but i wouldn't want to do anything harmful to my legs.

 

[LoveMyBoots]

It seems like I have the same problem as you oona...
I also have noticed these purple veins on my claves that my friend calls stretch marks. She says its when you're fat turns to muscle... I'm really ignorant about this subject, so is she right? Could this be because of all the running I have been doing?

Thanks rainglow for the info.

 

[fleur137]

It seems like I have the same problem as you oona...
I also have noticed these purple veins on my claves that my friend calls stretch marks. She says its when you're fat turns to muscle... I'm really ignorant about this subject, so is she right? Could this be because of all the running I have been doing?

Thanks rainglow for the info.

how does fat turn into muscle?

 

[LoveMyBoots]

how does fat turn into muscle?

exactly???

 

[prplprncs]

I don't think the fat actually turns to muscle... I think you just lose the fat, and then build up the muscle pretty simultaniously. Dunno, maybe your right, I actually havent experienced that myself, though I'd love to

 

[Bonchic]

this is what I've learned.... Fat doesn't turn into muscle but it's used as a like fuel for your muscle. If that makes sense.

 

[fleur137]

this is what I've learned.... Fat doesn't turn into muscle but it's used as a like fuel for your muscle. If that makes sense.

so if it is used as fuel, does that mean that your muscles will get bigger? stupid question i know but it's really hot now where i live and i can't think

 

[Bonchic]

^ You know I'm not sure that's just what my uncle told me who was in the marines (desert storms) and learned all that stuff I'll ask him

 

[rainglow]

Fat can't turn into muscle - they're completely different tissues. It's not like water turning into ice!

Fat tissue and muscle tissue are fundamentally different. However, the more common expression of this myth "muscle will turn to fat" has a grain of truth. Although a muscle cell will not become a fat cell, the material that makes up muscle can in fact turn to fat. The catabolism of muscle fibers releases protein, which can turn to glucose that can be burned as fuel, and excesses of which can be stored as fat. Moreover, the composition of a body part can change toward less muscle and more fat, so that a cross-section of the upper-arm for example, will have a greater area corresponding to fat and a smaller area corresponding to muscle.

(wikipedia.org)

 

[Bonchic]

^^aha thanks

 

[fleur137]

thanks rainglow but how does one catabolise muscle fibers?

 

[ilovegemma]

Calves

does anyone here know how to slim down calves??? i have really muscular calves for some reason (i played soccer for a few years and now im doing pilates and some kickboxing...) and i cant get rid of the bulkiness. will pilates help if i keep doing it, because i notice a bit of a difference, but it could just be that im eating better? or a combination of pilates and diet? any other suggestions????

and thank you everyone for giving advice! im going to try skipping tomorrow.

 

[ilovegemma]

Heather Marks

these are legs i would kill for. (style.com and caroline trentini thead)

 

[Sweets]

i think shapely calves are lovely

 

[baglover529]

does anyone here know how to slim down calves??? i have really muscular calves for some reason (i played soccer for a few years and now im doing pilates and some kickboxing...) and i cant get rid of the bulkiness. will pilates help if i keep doing it, because i notice a bit of a difference, but it could just be that im eating better? or a combination of pilates and diet? any other suggestions????

and thank you everyone for giving advice! im going to try skipping tomorrow.

i do pilates three times a week and it really makes your body leaner. if you have bulky areas they will definitely become more toned, just stick to your regimen. it's better if you're doing pilates with the machines and not the videos at home because you'll be able to do the exercises/positions better and properly with an instructor. plus with the machines there's more tension, you're working with your own body weight too and it becomes a real workout! by the way, the pilates i do is the ron fletcher kind - for strength. there's a different kind that's softer. if you're doing the latter you may want to reconsider switching. i actually see the difference in the way my clothes fit and my posture. hope this helps!

 

[ilovegemma]

^^ thank you baglover!!! youve inspired me to stick with pilates...no matter how much it burns at first. can i find the machines at a regular gym or do i have to go somewhere special???