I empathize with women who are pear shaped, because I am one myself. I know how difficult it is to get a slim and lean pair of legs. I have learned a few things about how to exercise the lower region to not only lose weight, but also to achieve proportion to our whole body.
For starters, there are a few things we must accept so that we won't beat ourselves up with frustration. 1. Accept that you are built heavier on your lower body - our lower bodies are tend to be fatter than our upper bodies (hips, thighs and butt).
2. Look at your lower body as a place where fat accumulates. Example, fat is easily accumulated on the thighs, hips and buttocks and it is very hard to get rid of (but it can be done!) 3. Understand that it will take a lot of effort to lose fat in the lower half of your body.
By coming to terms with this, you can approach your workouts and weight loss efforts more realistically. You will be able to wait till you achieve your goals instead of giving up in frustration. Now on to the good news! 1.
It IS possible to lean out the hips, thighs and buttock areas. 2. It IS possible to achieve a great pair of legs. 3. You can even out your upper body so that it looks proportionate to your whole body. So how do we go about leaning out our lower bodies and balancing out our upper bodies? The first thing to do is clean up your eating habits and limit how much fat you take in.
It's best to stay with fruits, complex carbs, foods containing high protein like tuna, tilapia, chicken, lean meats and egg whites. Green veggies and lots of salads should be eaten more often. Carbs containing more starch like potatoes, rice and pastas should be limited. Drink lots of water. When eating fruits, try to eat them in the morning, before your workouts. Try not to eat fruits after 2pm - 3pm.
Best fruits: all kinds of berries, grapefruit, apples. Best veggies: brocolli, green beans, asparagus, green, onions, garlic, red, yellow, orange peppers, spinach, cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce. Here are the rules: No fried foods. Grill, boil, steam, bake or pan fry with Pam Spray only.
Cheat days should be done in the mornings so you can burn the calories during the day. No cheating at night. Limit cheating to twice per month only - if not, then try once a week to start.
Definition of a cheat day - eating any ONE thing you want, not cheating the whole day. You will start to notice yourself getting smaller as a result of eating this way. The fat will start to burn off all over your body and your lower body too! You won't have anymore use for your pants and skirts so you'll end up buying a new wardrobe! But this is not all there is to it. You'll have to use specific exercises for your type of body in order to get those beautiful sleek legs. It is my experience that women who are heavier on their lower bodies should exercise using moderate to heavy weights and switch back and forth between very high repetitions and low repetitions. On top of that, they should do a lot of cardiovascular exercise too.
The upper half of our bodies need a different plan all together. To get that harmonious and even look all over, we need to use heavy weights to make our shoulder and backs wider and get sexy arms too. We shouldn't fear lifting heavy. We can't get big. To reassure you (or maybe not!), pear shaped women resist muscle far more than other body types.
It's not easy to hear, but getting the sleek, beautiful, evenly distributed and symmetrical body is something we can still achieve. I'll share with you the workout I am using and that I am responding to very well. You will need to be patient and keep your eyes on your goal as you decide not to be swayed from your program.
Soon you will have the sexy, well shaped and balanced body that everyone admires so much. Here's my workout program: Lower body exercises - 3 times per week. Choose from a range of exercises specifically for the legs such as lunges, squats, butt blaster, leg presses, leg extensions, hip exercises, leg extensions and hamstring curls.
I do between 4 - 5 exercises that target my lower body. For example: Day 1: squats, lunges, leg presses, calves Five sets. Reps - 20 - 30 on moderate weight. Heavier weights - 10 - 12 reps.
I rest for 45 - 60 minutes. Day 2: Upper Body, cardio, abs Chest and Tri's. I choose from 3 - 4 exercises, go with heavier weights and do about 8 - 10 reps. Day 3: Five sets of leg extensions, hamstring curls, butt blaster, calves. 20 - 30 reps with moderate weight.
10 - 12 reps with heavy weights. Rest - 45 - 60 seconds. Day 4: Upper Body, cardio, abs Back and Bi's 3 - 4 exercises with heavy weights and 8 - 10 reps. Day 5: Five sets of walking lunges, hip exercises, hack squats, calves. 20 - 30 reps. with moderate weight.
10 - 12 reps with heavy weights. rest for 45 - 60 seconds. Day 6: Upper Body, cardio, abs Shoulders - 3 - 4 exercises with heavy weights and 8 - 10 reps. Don't worry about the sets and reps in the beginning. Do as many as you can.
You don't want to hurt yourself either. Cardio: 45 - 60 minutes - jogging, treadmill, elliptical machine, jumping rope, swimming, cycling, aerobic classes etc. **If you have a lot of weight to lose, then incorporate cardio at least 4 - 5 times per week if you can. So in closing, here is what my exercise program looks like (most of the times!) Upper body - 3 times per week.
Lower body - 3 times per week. Cardio - 3 - 4 times per week Abs and Calves - 3 times per week I find that this intense workout PLUS eating a CLEAN diet, is very effective in leaning out the lower half of our bodies plus balancing out our upper halves. Make sure you get lots of rest too! Just one thunder thigh sister to another.
Lydia De Leon is an internet marketing mom. Find out what she does to keep lean and trim at 40!
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