BIG THIGHS!!!

Hi I've been running for many years now. I LOVE IT.I run about 30 miles a week- i try & do a vareity -  a hilly run, 40mins on treadmill - quick - well quick for me12.5k(speed) to 14k(speed) & a long run 90mins .. although i ahve recnetly been doing a lot of 1hr runs starting at 12k(speed) and going up & down throughout the time up to 13.5k and then full pelt for the last 4mins as about 15k.  I feel like my legs are getting bigger..I know this may be a bit obssessive but i measured the tops of my legs with a tape measure and they are the same measurements as my husbands who does NO exercise and eats cake !!!..I want thinner thighs how can i reduce the size of them- am i doing something wrong- am i best doing less speed but longer runs or shorter quicker speeds? IM VERY CONFUSED.. i did start running to loose weight and i did, but now i seem to be putting it on again-well on the scales and i am convinced this is because my thighs are getting bigger...

I was doing quicker shorter runs to get fitter & quicker as i was traininng for GNR but now i just want to be thin- all the runner on the front of the magazine are ..

Ps-I maintain a healthy diet, salads and fruit ..

SOME1 HELP ME

Sorry, cant help on the thigh issue as mine appear to have reduced (minimally) in size... Sorry....  

The girl on the front of the magazine is NOT real!!!  She is more than likely not a runner and has definately been airbrushed to death and therefore not an image us mere mortals can ever replicate.  Stop fretting about how much bigger you are to an airbrushed image, if I actually sat down and thought about it then compared to an image that I can never acheive I have bigger love handles, a wobblier tum, smaller boobs, fatter thighs & chunkier ankles, on the plus side my feet are smaller...  But then again, if I compare me to me pre-running or even Josephine Average  then I Iook just fine thank you very much and have a perfectly normal body.

If your thighs are muscly rather than flabby I don't really see the problem.......be proud of your athletic build I say!

I have always carried my weight on my thighs but have to say that introducing cycling into my running week really seems to have trimmed them down at last. I run mixed distances and paces of about 25 miles per week, but also cycle about 20 miles a week on top of that....

 Although this is not a great distance it has really made a difference to the shape of my legs and helped me drop another stone....The other bonus is that the its greatly improved my times.  Last years Great South (10 miles) was 90 minutes..this years was 82!  I think cycling is a more 'fat burning' exercise whereas running tends to be more 'cardio vascular' and would thoroughly recommend giving it a go!

he he he.. they dont have big thighs either!!

I'm serious! I need some serious thigh shrinking tips!! I may try the cycling - .. i was worried that may make them worse..

but am i doing the rright running someone else has told me to run slower but longer distances - will this help?? Do hills make your legs bigger ??

Melly

I know what you mean I'm only 5" 2" so I've got short legs any way, and running has built up the muscle in them, but the norm now seems to be legs that are just striaght all the way up, which in real woman just doesn't happen.

I fine when I've got 4inch heels on, but it a bit hard to run in them. So me and my wobble thights just have to plod along. do you think maybe we store more fat on our bodies when the weather turns cold ? as I too have put weight on since GNR or maybe its because the pressure off and not  i 'm training as hard as I think I am now. 

 But FB probaly right about it being our genes.

Acceptance, acceptance, acceptance.

There are more important things to worry about.

Enter a race that scares the cr*p out of you and have that as your focus or goal. You'll soon forget about your thighs and who knows they may reduce as a happy coincidence to the additional training.

Mel-I think us girls worry far too much about the size of our thighs-I also am not a big fan of mine, as they are not exactly slender, they are pretty solid! But (i'm guessing yours will be similar, due to mileage etc) they are solid, and not wobbly, so I guess we just put on muscle there (especially with running-uses a lot of thigh input to drive it!).  I reckon as long as you're enjoying running and are generally fit and well, you shouldn't worry so much about thighs!  You probably think they are bigger than they really are too..I bet most non running people would love to have thighs like yours. (thats what i try to tell myself on bad days anyway...!).

They cant be as bad as this

After seeing that photo I feel quite proud of my legs.

I think I might even get them out on Saturday night  and put a skirt on when I go out.

MM2, Im sure they are fine & firm!

I'm 5ft1 & 12 yrs ago I was a pear shaped 34-25-37! (I was 23) Now im a 34-25-35, so feel much more in proportion!

I run 3 times a week & have noticed a reduction in body fat since marathon training. (esp my chest! Noooo!!!) However, I still hold fat on the inner & outer area of my thighs & I hate them! They may be smaller, but they are the same shape!

Plus, the right one is bigger than the left. (still talking about my thighs...not my chest!)

You can never spot reduce fat either. Maybe try a different exercise to give them a shock. Swimming? or dancing?? Or Pilates to lengthen them. Other than that, think how strong & fit and healthy you are & how good running makes you feel.

Shorty

xxx

OH NO - they are not that bad.. i am a size 10 5ft 5!!! weighted used to be 9st 5 but asunddenyl nearly 10st now!  My pants just feel slightly tighter around the top leg area.. there MUST be away to reduce them!!

Not sure what the problem is; nothing quite like a cracking pair of thighs.  Lucky husband!

Just need to get my wife to feel the same way about my love handles.