Please help, I'm confused

[Harishnayfoke]

I've been wanting to slim down my legs, they're a size 12 and very out of proportion with the rest of my body and I really don't like them.

I used one of those machines at the gym which measure your weight and body fat percentage and it can out as 140 pounds with 22% body fat (I'm 5ft4). That 22% surprised me as it's on the lower end of the healthy range it seems, which would imply that I'm not carrying much extra weight. However, my legs look really chunky and wobbly and I am right near the top of the healthy weight range for my height. Is this because I have a lot of muscle? Could there be another reason?

Should i aim to lose 2% body fat with my weight loss? Or should I just try and focus on the overall pounds? I have never used weights etc on my leg so I'm not sure how they have ended up muscular if that is the case.

Did you select the gender on the machine? My first thought is you received a male profile. or the machine is a cheap one and not very accurate. Many factor could influence the result. Sweaty feet, you having eaten something in the hours before the gym . The machine at y gym doesn't only do the fat% in the whole body but by body part as well, so legs, trunk and arms.

This said, legs can be muscular even without weights because the muscles carry you around or allow you to the things you do on a daily basis.
I would be cautious in starting weight training if you have a disproportion between legs and upper body. You want to avoid exercises such as squats . Use the weights for your shoulder and arms to bring more harmony and to slim down legs, walk in water at the pool or run on a treadmill. You probably also have a lot of water retention so limit the salt in your food.

Thank you for you response. I did select female and the weight it gave me is the same as my scales at home so i think that part at least is accurate.

I will try the pool and treadmill. I had been planning on following the bbg exercise plan which involves your body weight and some light weights but that may do the opposite. Maybe I should do that for a couple of weeks and see if it makes my legs worse?

Use this formula to calculate your fat%
(1.20 x BMI) + (0.23 x Age) - 5.4 = Body Fat Percentage

I am roughly 10 kg lighter than you and taller but my fat% is higher than 22 according to the machine at my gym.

We can in many shapes and some workout work for some and not for others. Try things you enjoy and see if it makes a difference.

Where does that formula come from, Lilies ?

Is there any aim-off for level of activity? (as proxy for likely muscliness, or is that total red herring?)

Yes, where did the formula come from @LiliesAndChocolate?

I have done it for myself now (BMI26) and it gives me a fat % of 37.3 whereas the scales tell me 36.9. So fairly accurate. But when I consult my records from when BMI was 31 it gives me a fat % of 42.84 when scales told me 46.1

Just google fat% from BMI and you get the formula.

My legs are my weak point as well. Very lean torso, but I am pear shaped so whatever fat I have goes on my bum and upper thigh .
I compensated with doing shoulders and upper back exercises and I am careful not to overload when doing leg work.
However, in my experience, it is how much I weight that defines the shape of my legs and not how much effort I put at the gym. Might be different for others. My best friend is a firefighter, fit as hell, strong and fast, yet by looking at her, you would never know, because it doesn't transpire in her appearance. She looks soft, maybe it is her soft heart that wins.

All these machines have estimates based on speed of the current through body. Many factors can influence results. So unless it is done with medical machines, you will never really know. Maybe your gym has a skin fold caliber and they can take your measurements and then calculate your fat% more accurately than a scale.

Hari - was it a Boditrax machine? If so you can look further into the results on the app and under composition you can look at the fat and muscle % in your legs (as well as arms and trunk)

OP, I would be dubious about Boditrax (if that's what it was). I've got a BMI of 27.3 (5 ft 3 and 70kg) and am pretty muscly (do lots of strength work) but the Boditrax has put me at 13-17% body fat, which just can't be right. My leg strength and whole body strength are better than my upper body (if I compare myself with men at the gym, say), but I think that's pretty common for women. Do your legs look muscly?

BMI - and calculations derived from it - are a blunt tool, and can be wildly off base unless you're a very standard slightly-lardy shape. I'd not hang anything on it.

If you really want your fat%, ask your gym for a measurement session - they'll do it with both conductivity (like the machine) and calipers, and will be able to tell you for real.

To get in before anyone mentions targeted exercise, weight reduction isn't location selective - it's a full body thing. If your genes say "thighs lose fat last", you're stuck with that and have to keep going (watching out for body-image obsessiveness) or just learn to love them. My genes say "belly loses last" which doesn't make me happy either!