Can you get thinner legs

No specific diet is best for reducing leg fat. In general, a person loses weight if they burn more calories than they take in, and healthful foods, such as fruits and vegetables, usually have fewer calories. Also, eating plenty of high-fiber foods can help with weight loss. The body takes longer to digest these foods, so they make a person feel fuller for longer.

Many people looking to lose weight turn to low- carbohydrate diets, which emphasize foods that have few carbs and are rich in protein and healthful fats. Investigations into whether low-carb diets are more effective than others at promoting weight loss have returned mixed results, but some research supports their effectiveness. One randomized control trial , for example, found that people following a low-carb diet saw a more significant reduction in weight than those on a low-fat diet.

It is worth noting that a healthful diet boosts well-being in many ways. Read more about the benefits of healthful eating here.

Alcohol intake can contribute to weight gain because alcoholic drinks often contain high numbers of calories and provide no nutritional value. In addition, drinking large amounts of alcohol can lead to unhealthful dietary choices, such as overeating. Avoiding overconsumption may help prevent weight gain and reduce unwanted leg fat. High levels of stress can damage health in various ways, including leading to changes in appetite, overeating, and excess weight gain.

One study found that participants with higher levels of baseline stress gained more weight over 6 months than those with lower stress levels. Finding ways to relax, such as meditation , deep breathing, box breathing , and relaxation exercises may help combat this issue. Not getting enough sleep may increase the likelihood of gaining weight. Sleep regulates various hormones, including those that affect hunger. Since every step requires you to lift your body upward, it forces your leg muscles to fire.

To get familiar with exercising on the sand, start with walking in the sand for 20 minutes each day. As your body gets used to exercising in the sand, you can add time to your daily workouts. This YouTube workout with a Pilates sequence is great for lengthening and toning your thigh muscles. Bouzinova says the specific sequence is designed to lean the thighs and create long, toned lines by working all of the important thigh muscles in a specific order.

The quick change of direction required in many sports will help shape your legs from all angles, according to Ghazarians. Consider sports that require you to work your thigh muscles aerobically, such as:.

Participating in total-body, muscle-strengthening activities at least two days a week may help you burn calories, reduce fat mass , and strengthen your thighs. The key to strengthening the legs without bulking up is to keep the reps high at least 15 reps per set.

Perform three rounds of each exercise with minimal rest between each movement. You can also add upper-body movements to your lower-body exercises for a great two-in-one move for overall fitness. For example, grab some dumbbells and do lunges with a bicep curl, or squats with an overhead shoulder press. Bodyweight squats, which is squatting using your own bodyweight as resistance, burn calories, strengthen your leg muscles, and tone your thighs.

Plus, you can do them anywhere, anytime. Ghazarians recommends starting with 25 bodyweight squats, two times per day 50 total. You can squat while watching TV at home or after climbing a flight of stairs at work. Bouzinova says the inner thighs are notoriously difficult to target, and the exercises that do tone them are a little awkward. So, many people skip them altogether. This kickboxing-inspired thigh-slimming exercise is a terrific way to hit your outer hips too.

Start kneeling on all fours on carpet or a mat with arms extended under shoulders and knees bent under hips. Next, lift left knee keeping it bent straight out to the side of body, trying to bring it up to hip height. Form Tip: Draw your abs in tight and try not to lean away from your legs as you lift it into your kick — press both arms strong into the floor, keeping hips square.

Condition the backs of your thighs, glutes, and get a bonus core workout with this targeted isolation exercise. Start kneeling and bend both elbows down to the floor below shoulders, hands clasped. Bend left knee and draw left leg in, lightly tapping the back of right knee with left kneecap. Form Tip: Press both arms down into the floor to avoid collapsing into your chest, and keep your abs drawn in tight so that your lower back doesn't sag while doing this leg-slimming exercise.

This tough thigh-slimming exercise improves flexibility in your hamstrings and hips while also toning your core, legs, and back. Start at the top of a push-up position or a high plank. Keeping abs drawn in tight, step right foot in between hands, bending knee so that right thigh is parallel to the floor, keeping back leg extended. Push weight into right foot while slowly standing up out of the lunge, leaning slightly forward with upper body, and tap left foot on the floor behind body at the top.

Bend right knee and lunge back down to the floor, placing hands flat on either side of right foot. Step right leg back to plank position and then repeat with the left leg. Form Tip: If it's too difficult to stand up with your hands on the ground, place your hands on top of your front thigh for more support. Do the same on the way back down during this thigh-slimming worklout move.

This thigh-slimming exercise shapes up the hamstrings and lifts that hard-to-reach spot where the glutes and hamstrings meet. Extend both legs straight out behind body, pointing toes and squeezing heels together.

Keeping feet touching, bend knees knees can open out to the sides slightly as they bend and curl both heels in towards body. Without letting knees touch the ground, slowly extend both legs back out straight. Form Tip: Be sure to keep your kneecaps lifted off the floor during the full movement, and imagine you're pressing your heels into something as you bend your knees in to really squeeze the backs of your thighs. By Jessica Smith Updated September 22, Save FB Tweet More.

Side lunge. Start Slideshow. Another alternative is stair climbing. This simple, at-home, no-equipment exercise tones the legs, butt, and thighs, and it's great for getting rid of cellulite.

In fact, the older you get, the more important it is to regularly do moves like this one. Do these lunges like clockwork.

Most of us—especially walkers, runners, and cyclists—already have well-developed quadriceps muscles. But to get the slim, sculpted leg look you want, don't forget the hamstrings and inner thighs. And it's not just about aesthetics: "If you're not working every muscle equally, you'll tighten your hip flexors and put yourself at risk for knee injuries," says Lauren Boggi, founder of Lithe Method workouts.

For the hammies, do glute bridges. For the inner thighs, do these two ballet-inspired moves. To really change your muscles, you've got to challenge them.