To want straight legs at the top without the curvy bit?

[cultkid]

I am small I will start by saying I'm ;
5ft 1 and weigh 48-49 kg at the moment.
I know the legs with the curve at the thigh are appealing to lots of women.
I haven't exercised for years because I've had a very bad back. I've enjoyed Pilates on a reformer and also I do walk but my legs are not toned at all. My tummy is flat but legs are just really underwhelming
I have zero stamina. How do I make my legs tone up? I am actually really not clued in on this. Is there anything I can do in particular to bring the tops in so my legs are deeper instead of wider?
I don't want to run I haven't got the child care at the minute to make that happen.

Aibu to want deep set legs more sporty looking is it genetics?

She doesn’t have hip dips, that’s when there’s an ‘in’ bit and ‘out’ above and below. Google images has examples.

Hip dips are a completely different shape.

The first thing to do is step away from social media, instagram especially as all the celebs at the moment are doing LIVES with their PT and it makes the rest of us feel like shite.

I'm the same height and weight as you. To be honest, I k ow what you mean, but its just because we're short.

Your legs are much nice than mine though, they're fabulous!

@Eckhart

It's just an accumulation of fat, OP. You can't spot-reduce fat, and whatever tone your muscles are at won't make a blind of difference while they're still hidden. You need to reduce overall body fat. So, CV (pick something you can do that'll keep your heart rate up for a long time, like medium brisk walking, and get out for an hour at a time) If you want 'tone', that's basically 'muscles you can see clearly', which for a lot of people, is actually 'bigger muscles'. Bigger muscles don't have to be like melons. So, I'd lunge from room to room rather than walking, for a while, to make the toning fit easily into your schedule. Bigger muscles will mean higher metabolism too, so while you're growing them and once they're bigger, you'll burn fat faster.

This! Absolutely agree!

Unfortunately your body decides where you lose fat from so doing only leg exercises won't get you there.

Eat a balanced diet and find a form of exercise you enjoy to burn calories and fat reduction will follow. That alone will change the shape of your legs although won't necessarily make you look "toned" so you'll also need to target your legs and glutes to build muscle (eg lunges, squats). It'll take time but you'll immediately feel better for the exercise and once you start seeing small changes and feeling stronger, you'll definitely feel inspired to do more.

Some of the responses on here are eye opening! There’s an awful lot of unhealthy attitudes to bodies, exercise and diet on this thread.

If you want to access a new exercise regime then consult a professional OP, not only are they actually knowledgeable but they can also help you figure out the ‘why’ you want to exercise which is just as important as ‘what’ exercise you want to do.

There's been some mention of BMI and being within the "healthy range". BMI is an estimate and doesn't distinguish muscle and fat. You can be a "healthy" weight according to BMI and appear outwardly thin but if you've got a disproportionately high percentage of body fat compared to muscle that can be unhealthy and lead to problems generally considered to be a result of, but which are not exclusive to, being "overweight". It's often called being "skinny fat" (hate that term). BMI isn't a conclusive measure of health and doesn't mean there's not body fat to be lost. You can lose fat but maintain weight if you're eating well and exercising to build muscle mass at the same time.

If your back is bad I would get swimming once the pools open again, it is great all over your body and no impact. Aqua fit/jog/hitt can also help toning x

There's a lot of posts here telling OP how she should be thinking about her body. Don't we get enough of that from the diet/exercise industry, and celebrities, and advertising and.... etc?

Unless somebody is trying to make their body an unhealthy shape or size, then there's nothing wrong with them wanting to change it to fit the way they want to look. Nobody says 'You only want to wear that dress because you take too much notice of the media', or 'Stop looking at social media, be happy with your hair in the style it's in.'

If somebody wants their thighs to be more toned, it's empowering if they find out how to do it, and succeed. A body can be healthy in lots of different ways. It wouldn't be unhealthy, even, to go from swimmer physique, say, to bodybuilder physique. It's all healthy change. There's nothing wrong with changing your body to fit your preferences.

Agreed, BMI can very occasionally prove be a crude measure and there is an issue (I was undoubtedly in this category when I was younger) of being TOFI (thin outside, fat inside). But with a BMI of 20, I think it's fair to say the likelihood of OP carrying any significant excess fat is low.

And for the vast majority of us - barring bed-bound invalids suffering muscle wastage, or olympic athletes carrying disproportionately large amounts of muscle, BMI is a pretty damn good first approximation. If you have a normal lifestyle (walk a bit every day, maybe do a bit of sport, eat a balanced diet), BMI will be a very good indicator of roughly how healthy or otherwise your weight is (despite the growth of a big industry round selling people fitness or diet products which is geared to trying to undermine it as a measure).

My own experience in my twenties for instance was that doing a lot of weight training for a sport I did seriously (daily training sessions for sport, 3X weekly weights training, a lot of fitness work) was it put about an inch and a half on my chest measurement (obviously no impact on bra cup size, because that's not muscle), and put about half a stone on my weight - which equated to going from a BMI of about 23 to a BMI of about 24. It didn't suddenly magically take me outside of the healthy 20 -25 range. Conversely, the summer I got a bad stomach bug on holiday and lost a stone took me down to a BMI of 21 (and I looked unhealthily skinny) - but still didn't take me outside the 20 to 25 range.

BMI is a good first approximation, and if someone has a BMI of only 20, no-one should be encouraging them to lose weight from that starting point.

Listen there's so many replies I will come back and reply individually to people
There's some great ideas I'm going to look at Barre
I know why my back is back it's nerve damage nothing structural
I have had input for years from wonderful doctors, physiotherapist and chiropractors.

Why I want to have nicer shaped legs is this
I am 27, I had my first son when I was 23. I know it isn't that young. But it is young by my social circles norms in the countries I was raised in.
I was very sick when I was pregnant with him and I gave up my job that I fought tooth and nail to progress in. It knocked my confidence.
I was fatter when I was younger and it made me feel shit. I also never managed to hold down a boyfriend. I met my husband and I blossomed. I couldn't believe someone would ever love me like he did. My sister is stereotypically beautiful and I always wanted a boyfriend like she had.
In the end, I lost weight got hair extensions and found my way. I stopped being promiscuous and my confidence flourished.
I have been dependent on pain killers and had all the fucking grit in the world to get off them. I am fierce proud.
I was very thin when I was very sick but it wasn't the look I want. I want to be a strong and healthy woman.
My legs are not what define me but it's symbolic of me being healthier and having the head space to think about the condition of my body and not only the form.

My husband is really hot. I want to feel hot for him too. He finds me beautiful and kind but I find myself only kind. And that's why I want to tone my legs. Because they are the part that I resent the most.

Sorry for the very emotional reply I just wanted to give context and I don't know why but I felt I had to justify myself

These are my legs when I was 3 kg less
I might just have to lose the weight to be honest

I was doing a lot more Pilates then I need a reformer and someone to do it with me as I'm worried I would have an accident on the table

@BubblyWater

I wish that we all had the power to see and feel what other people see and feel about us
I bet I would think you are beautiful

Is this the sort of look you are wanting or is it just to smooth out the saddlebags?

Having seen your pic of your legs OP, I must ask, have you ever actually seen a flaccid willy?

@PhoneLock

Little less muscly only because it's hard work 😬

Yes I've seen a flaccid willy and my tops of my legs look like a saggy dick

How sad. You resent your body that's been through so much and come through the other side and produced two healthy children? I think you need to see a counsellor, not a personal trainer. You're almost underweight. There is nothing wrong with your legs and you do not have 'saddlebags'.

I've seen your pics, and unfortunately partly it is genetics - you have a certain pelvic anatomy, and you cannot do anything about that. So you will always have prominent greater tuberosities of your femur (these are the 'lumps' you have circled).

There is no exercise that can 'spot reduce' areas, so your idea of losing weight to be the shape you would like is a good one. On the other hand, the greater tuberosity is not muscular, it is tendinous, so exercise will not bulk it either.

Working on your quads and gluts may help you feel more balanced - but you cannot really balance up the top/bottom thing by exercising your lower body - better to maybe buildup your upper body, especially shoulders/chest to balance yourself out?

You can use resistance bands around your legs to increase the effect of Pilates exercises. Then you won't need a table. Or just make sure you are tensing the appropriate muscles when you exercise to create the resistance in your own body. How old are your children, could they go jogging with you? Running is what worked for me. C25K starts off gently and won't take much time out of your day.

This looks a great video, just browsing about hip dips from here so had a look online-really great description of muscle/bone anatomy. Fatter or thinner I have these, they don’t go away no matter what I do. Deffo look better in certain beer wear too!

Wtf is beer wear-I meant underwear 😂

But beer wear sounds quite pleasant 😀

Squats and lunges with weights particularly Bulgarian split squats

@ChristmasFluff
does that mean it's my tendons 😳 oh no 🤣

Well some exercise will do me good anyway 😱

@Oilyoilyoilgob going to look at it when I've put my son to bed 🌝

On the other hand, the greater tuberosity is not muscular, it is tendinous, so exercise will not bulk it either

Stop blinding us with big words you don't understand. OP may have certain shaped bones (was it the greater trochanter you were getting at? Or the gluteal tuberosity? Neither of which are tendinous..), but can certainly change how much fat lies on them. The picture with areas circled is not indicating a fat free area, so, the shape can change.