Leg slimming exercises

[CarpeJugulum]

I'm doing the shred to help lose weight/tone up, but my legs are really chunky (I'm a size 14, but I need a 16/18 and a large belt to be able to fit my thighs into trousers ) - are there any exercises I can add in to slim my legs down?

that depends on the size of your knee joints ; they vary
but lunge and squats will tone up your muscles
however once fat is gone, leg thickness is geneti cand highly variable

Oh yes, my legs will never be in the area of being able to fit into slim jeans, but I really want them to be toned rather than lumpy IYSWIM?

Lunges are what I'm doing now, and they don't seem to be doing a lot, so maybe I need to do more of them!

lunges, squats, stretching, yoga, pilates
hours and hours and hours of it (sadly)

Keep up with the Shred, it definitely works on the legs, and if you feel up to it try Jillian Michaels No More Trouble Zones, longer than the shred, but lots of leg work - You certainly feel it in your thighs and butt the next day!

Perhaps try yoga too. It always feels to me that it's doing nothing but it does help with toning and flexibility.

I have a Barbara Currie DVD which is great. I do her 10min routine after the Shred.

A friend swears by Tracy Anderson's leg routine so that might be worth doing. I'm doing her arms routine and it seems to be doing something. They are marginally less wobbly!

Time is the issue isn't it always?! as I can only really do it in the evening, but the only space is in the living room and DH wants to watch TV and not me getting red and sweaty. At least not in that context.

I've googled Tracey Anderson though and it looks like I could bung her stuff on at the end of the Shred before cool down. Arms are another joy that I'm ignoring...

As a Personal Trainer, I can tell you that there is no such thing as spot reducing I'm afraid. Losing fat starts in the kitchen and LCHF diet (u cam google that for more details) is the best and easiest to lose the fat. Exercise will keep your muscles working and firming it but actual slimmer legs is actually about getting rid off the fat around the muscle. As we all know losing fat starts in the kitchen. An exercise session can be outdone by a few mouthfuls of the wrong food. There is a lot more technical stuff but I hope I have made sense so far. Good luck.

Oh yes, I know about the reducing food intake, and I'm trying to do that sensibly so it's sustainable.

It's more working out if there are specific movements that will help slim rather than consolidating what I have!

Its not about reducing food intake to be honest. Its about eating the right food. High fat keeps us full for longer so we automatically eat less. It also gives alot of energy.
Also, u can do all the commercially available exercises but without getting your muscles assessed to find out which are weaker, you will keep your strong muscles strong and weak ones weak. Also the strong muscles will compensate for the weaker ones. A Resistance Training Specialist can identify that. You tube has plenty leg exercises but the question is are they good for you.

Eat less and run or walk for toning .

Oh you might wanna check some High intensity interval workouts (HIIT) for best calorie expenditure.

Its not about reducing food intake to be honest.
Of course it is.
If your TDEE is 1700 calories and you eat 2000 calories per day,
even if its lean chicken and steamed veg, you will get fat.

I should have explained further. We need to make the right choices first then calories tend to take care of themselves. If we eat a high fat, moderate protein and low carb diet, we will stay full for longer and consume less calories. It is about making a sustained change that is realistic and individual. I hope that makes sense.

It does, and I am trying to not eat as many carbs, but... (and there is always a but!) due to a gallbladder removal, I have a bad reaction if I eat too much in the way of fruit and veg, and reduce the carbs too much.

Catch-22

I'm confused! Are you saying you have a bad reaction if you have too much carb or too little carb? What do you mean by little carb? Where do you get your carbs from? Alot of questions, I'm afraid. Because 1. VERY low carbs diet is not for everyone and 2. I need to understand where you are getting your carbs from and 3. How much carbs you think you are eating 4. Was the removal due to stones? 5 how is your thyroid function? U see other health and hormones affect where you store fat in the body. As you can appreciate losing fat is never about just that. The body is still a mystery to us and it needs to be looked at as a whole and on your part some trial and error might be needed to see what works for your now changed body.

Ooh, lots of questions!

Gallbladder was removed due to it perforating. The result is that since its removal, I now have developed IBS.

It gets much worse when I reduce carbs (pasta, bread, potatoes) and increase my intake of fruit and vegetables.

My thyroid function is fine (or within "normal" range), it's being checked reasonably regularly as due to also having non-anaemic iron deficiency. Probably related to the not eating masses of green leafy vegetables as it causes my IBS to flare up. GP is investigating this and as I can't tolerate iron supplements, we're looking at alternatives.

Carbs are mainly... bran cereal in the morning (IBS related), sandwich or pasta Boots meal deal at lunch. Dinner is potatoes, rice, pasta as part of the main meal although once (maybe twice) per week it's probably carb based - something like lasagna, macaroni cheese, pasta bake. Usually on days I work late so time is short and I can pre-prepare.

Working on potion size (reducing slowly so I don't then get empty and do a panic overeat).

Hope that all makes sense!

RTS is correct you cannot spot reduce any part of your body and dropping body fat from legs is the hardest place to lose it from. Yes its done in the kitchen by eating clean whole foods also cutting out food we can be intolerant too.

Ibs and all the other stuff your GP diagnosed you with SNAP I allegedly had many medical issues according to flawed NHS tests. My coach and I decided to look else where for answers privately and Mmmmm I am drug free with the correct nutrition absolutely 100% healthy all problems solved some with alternative treatment that cured some and the rest controlled by food.

I eat 6 meals a day and in the last year have leaned my legs down by half of what they were. Its not easy to lean off the legs. I was struggling to get them to drop for a few weeks then with some weekly changes to diet and training it now dropping again.

With help and advice off a coach/ personal trainer I am getting the results and hitting my goals. My advice to you is eat clean have someone work out your Macros intake add natural fats to your diet fat burns fat. Workout wise get lifting :)

I partly agree with the above aswell. And if u thought that was a lot of questions then ur about to have a heart attack with the study material I am about to throw at u!! I strongly suggest you log on to www.chriskresser.com and read on IBS. Ur food intake is very high on carbs and fruits n veg are very high on carbs too. U r unlikely to lose much fat on carb based diet unleas ur workputs r crazy high intensity! But plz do read the articles, the info too much to write here, i'm afraid.

Been to the website - thank you for the recommendation. I'll have a good read when work isn't as manic.

Well, I've just been shopping for a nice top for a night out, and I can't find one. Actually, I can't find one that looks nice on me. So, I'm cracking down with a proper healthy eating review and getting back to exercising nightly.

I can recommend the Barbara Currie dvd as well for yoga, I was just thinking this morning I might start doing it a few times a week along with the shred that I've been doing. I definitely looked leaner when I just did the yoga for 10 minutes every day.

I just really hate the sweaty feeling and the wobble that doesn't stop when I do...

I may actually have to invest in leggings and a tighter top!