I hate how thick my ass/thighs are despite lots of exercise and eating clean.

[Emptiedout]

I've actually become quite obsessed with how much I hate this part of my body - which is awful.

I'm mid fifties, post meno, and fit. I work out with weights/weights&hit classes at least 3 x a week. I eat really well and whilst I don't count calories, I have a very very low carb diet and have done for years.

But my ass and thighs look THICK. I saw a photo of me yesterday in a weightlifting class and I wanted to cry.

I'm 5ft 2, and about 8.12. Flattish stomach, smallish waist - 29.5/30? - but biggish (but pert) bum and thick thigh.

Is it because I'm not doing enough cardio? I've read so much about post menopausal women and cardio, how doing too much can increase cortisol levels and add to weight gain, I've steered away. I hate running but might start up skipping again.

Any thoughts?

No, it's definitely not muscle bulk in legs. They're just flabbier, I think/thicker

But I have to do weights. Strength work is the key to preventing osteoporosis and I'm close to saying I have osteoporosis, results wise. Pilates etc is great but i need to constantly load the bones if I'm to try and stall/reverse the journey. I've done a lot of research into this.

Actually, strength work should be the focus for all post meno women tbh. It's the only way to keep bones strong - and most of us don't even know if we're ostepenic/have osteoporosis until they have a fracture. But the three most common killers for post meno women is: dementia, heart disease and osteoporosis. So weights it is

Also, I have always had a big bum - but when my metabolism was super fast and I was younger, it shrank for a while.

I never said strength wasn’t good, nor that strength is unfeminine. It is something to be proud of, which is why I am proud of my body.

But we all want to feel comfortable with our bodies and like how we look. I personally don’t like my thighs that much when they get bulkier - it’s no big deal. Other women love that. Again no big deal.

I can still be strong and healthy but avoid certain exercises that, because of my body type, give me a shape I’m not keen on. So can OP. She asked so I answered 🤷‍♀️

I’m the biggest feminist going, but to me this really isn’t a feminist issue unless you make it one.

Oh, I just looked up lipoedema. I'd never heard of it. I'm sorry to the poster who has this - that looks difficult. But i don't believe this is what I have - time will tell - but even early stages don't look familiar

We need to be positive and think how much we'll appreciate our athletic thighs in our 70's.

i agree

I think I need to work on my mind and not my body

Loving the appreciation for strong thighs taking up space, I needed to hear this too. OP, what about a fitness focus that shifts your focus of attention from internal / body shape to achievement / challenge / enjoyment? Be the subject not the object.

I'm Caribbean and we LOVE that shape.

Sounds like your diet and exercise regime is good.

Be kind to yourself. You've just given me inspiration to up the ante.

You sound great. Honestly. Workout clothes don't do anyone any favours. All the models you see in Lycra are photoshopped. Look at yourself through your husband's eyes.

You're absolutely right about strength work but please please read Stacy sims book as she is an absolute expert in menopause and activity.

Be proud to have a body that works. That’s all you need it to do.

OP, you sound fantastic. Everything I came on here to say (like, that body shape is genetic) has already been said, but I do admire your positive attitude towards your health...

Sounds like you have a perfect figure to me!

OP, sounds like you are very healthy and athletic, but if you have a goal to slim down thighs, here are a few suggestions:

Temporarily switch from heavy weights low reps to low weights high reps

Add lots of cardio (running is best), not HIIT or sprints, low intensity cardio

Look up callisthenics - build workouts with lots of jumps and step-up / step-down motions

Yes, I've listened to a few lectures by her and I have her book

But the osteoporosis element of my journey affects what I do. For the poster suggesting low weights, lots of reps - this is not how I improve bone health, unfortunately

Thank you, I appreciate hearing that

Thanks - need the heavy weights for bone health

But I do do callisthenics

I wish I liked running or that my knees liked it! Maybe I need to start swimming, which I also don't like or am very good at it but it's good all round cardio

Sounds like you have a body shape like me, I am an hourglass which means whilst i have a small waist my bum and thighs could rival Kim K and Beyonce. Whilst I would rather have long slim legs and a tiny pert bum it ain't happening so I concentrate on keeping them toned and strong. Look at Beyonces thighs, they are toned but they are not tiny. I run and also do HIIT and weights, I do a couple of Barre and/or Pilates workouts too as these help to lengthen the muscles. It is hard but love what you have.

oh this is so common and it comes from a lifetime of bad messages being given to girls and women about what shape we should be, you sound healthy and fit and I agree you maybe should try some therapy or online some Youtube therapists have good meditations and stuff on body acceptance, good luck

I think this is really simplistic.

It’s not a ‘lifetime’ of messaging - what’s in fashion in terms of body shape varies hugely. Back in the 90s it was very thin and willowy, now it seems to be bigger bum and thighs that’s desirable.

I don’t think OP needs therapy just because she’s not happy about a part of her body. We all have things we don’t love so much about ourselves.

As an aside, OP are you on HRT? This would help to protect against osteoporosis if you are concerned about that.

it sounds as though she doesn't see herself as acceptable despite being fit and healthy, and as I have had body dysmorphia most of my life I found therapy really helpful but the op can disregard if it doesn't feel right for her

I love therapy, I've had tons in my life, but I can't face it right now. But thank you for the thought.

And yes, I'm on HRT for osteoporosis.

If you're in your 50s, you should put some
Effort into your self esteem

Your body shape and statistics sound fab

Stop obsessing on the negative and learn to focus on positive

Hi @emptiedout, I'm coming at this a bit differently to most of the replies. I'm 5ft 2 and perimenopausal with a low amount of body fat (8% - v small boobs!). I strength train consistently and also mix it up with yoga/Pilates and cardio.

If you know it is fat, rather than relaxed muscle, this would say to me that your calories are likely to be too high for the amount you are burning and your body's needs. It's pretty simple, excess calories = fat and we all know our bodies need less calories as we get older and the metabolism slows. I do strength training but also make sure to include two cardio/HIIT sessions a week as that keeps on top of my actual fat weight and doesn't impact my muscle mass. You can keep at the same calories and increase cardio to a couple of times a week so you're burning off more. Stick with high protein if that suits you but any extra protein your body doesn't use will be turned to fat or you wee it out...v expensive wee.

Also, just as an aside for anyone else who is interested, high reps and low weights are also good for bone health - it's the effort we put our muscles under that counts. You will also build muscle this way but not as fast and you're more likely to plateau. On the other hand, I would also say that high reps as you get older isn't necessarily a good thing for wear and tear.

Swimming is also fab for cardio as it's similar to resistance training with a good burn too. I get very sore muscles after a good swimming session.

Thin, willowy shapes were desirable in the 60s and 70s too. DM was very much under the impression that muscle was unfeminine and spent my 80s-90s childhood doing exercise no more strenuous than Lizzie on TVam, or yoga, and going on low calorie diets like the Cambridge diet in an attempt to return to the Twiggy-esque figure of her youth. She's also had osteoarthritis for the past 25 years.

How I haven't ended up with body dysmorphia in that culture with my pear-shaped tendency to gain muscle, I don't know, but I've always been active and embraced what my body does for me. The health benefits of being pear-shaped and muscle were becoming clearer too which helped in the face of comments like "thunder thighs". These thunder thighs did the awesome task of running a marathon 😎

This is really the first time that physical strength in women has been encouraged, and moved away from aspiring to thin builds since women's clothing became more revealing in the 1960s. It's a healthy trend for once!

I'm just hoping that I won't be breaking bones in my late 50s, and having my activities impaired by osteoarthritis for over a quarter of my life.

Ive got thick thighs and a good bum, but I think it’s from all the squats and lunges in my class. But I’m not giving up my class as I enjoy it.
Im hoping gym goers forgive me for my thighs 🤣