Lately everyone seems to be obsessed with having slimmer thighs and an inner thigh gap and to fitting into skinny jeans. Although having a thigh gap isn’t an accurate measure of health or fitness, women still want to tone their thighs and lower body to look and feel their best. Here are 17 little known tips for slimmer thighs so that you can rock those skinny jeans, summer dresses and shorts with confidence!
1. EAT HEALTHY
We can do all the exercises in the world but it won’t make a difference unless we eat healthy. Try as I might, I’ve learned that it’s impossible to lose weight in one specific area, so eating a healthy diet of fruits, vegetables, grains and lean protein along with exercise is essential to trimming down and getting slimmer thighs.
2. GET LOW
Lunges and squats are the most effective exercises to do get slimmer thighs and tone your lower body. Lunges strengthen the quadriceps, hamstrings and your glorious gluteus while squats work the thighs, hips, quadriceps, bootie and hamstrings. There’s no way to avoid these bad boys if you want slimmer thighs.
3. KICK IT UP WITH CARDIO
Burning calories is key to reducing your overall body fat, and heart-pumping cardio is going to make that happen. Choose the types that burn the most calories, such as biking, running, and jumping rope. As a bonus, these also tone the legs while you’re doing them.
4. GET HIGH
With your incline, that is. Pump up the treadmill’s incline, find some hills to bike or run up, or take the stairs outside or in your home. You’ll instantly feel your heart rate increase, which means you’re working harder and burning more calories than if you were to stick to a flat surface. Incline also targets the thighs, hamstrings, and tush, toning your lower body.
5. SPOT TONE
With all the cardio you’re doing that’s stripping away that extra layer of fat surrounding your lower body, you want to reveal strong, toned muscles underneath. Doing moves that sculpt your inner and outer thighs, hamstrings, and butt will make your legs look leaner and slimmer.
6. FUEL YOUR DAY
Definitely don’t skip the first meal of the day since it’ll jumpstart your metabolism, which helps to reduce your overall body fat to reveal your leaner legs. Pass on sugary meals with refined carbs, and opt for a combo of protein and fiber-filled complex carbs. The protein will give you energy so you’ll feel pumped for that early-morning cardio workout. As an added bonus, it also helps build muscle. The carbs will sustain that energy and keep you feeling full.
7. KISS SUGAR GOODBYE
If you think the trick to slimmer thighs is all about your fitness regime, think again! Eating lean and clean isn’t just about eating fruits and veggies, but also about cutting down high glycemic foods that cause your body to store fat, such as in your thighs. Getting rid of all refined and added sugars will slim every part of your body down in no time, especially your waist and your thighs. Working out is important, but if you want slimmer thighs, ditch the energy bars, all those healthy organic sweets and instead, nosh on nature’s sweetest foods like carrots, grape tomatoes, berries, organic plain Greek yogurt with stevia, and even 100% dark chocolate. It works, it tastes good, and your body will burn fat when you ditch the sugar addiction and eat real foods instead.
8. SNACK OFTEN
Eating a little something every few hours will prevent hunger from causing you to overeat, so be sure to eat a snack in between meals. Keep it under 150 calories, and choose foods high in protein and fiber to fill you up and offer energy.
9. EAT MORE PLANT PROTEIN
Plant proteins like hemp protein, sprouted brown rice protein, spirulina and hemp seeds are all wonderful for taming your appetite and slimming you down. Keep animal proteins to sources like organic Greek yogurt and fish for the slimmest options and try to eat more plant protein. Plant protein fuels your muscles, burns fat and helps slim down your thighs the healthy way. Eating more protein from clean sources is a great way to up your metabolism fast.
10. TRY HIIT
High intensity interval training, known as HIIT, is one of the best ways to tone your entire body, but especially your thighs. Because movements are fast-paced and use your legs a good bit of the time, you’ll not only tone those thighs, but slim them down as well. The best part is, HIIT is shorter than long cardio sessions, so it saves you plenty of time to get on with your life instead of spending ridiculous amounts of time working out.
11. DRINK MORE WATER
Choose water every time you reach for a drink, and you’ll save hundreds of calories by avoiding sodas, fruit juices, and other sweetened beverages. Aside from being zero calories, H2O will keep you hydrated, which also helps with weight loss. Keep water close by, and sip it often, especially before meals—filling up on water before eating helps encourage portion control.
12. SLEEP RIGHT
Getting enough rest is also proven to aid in weight loss. Sleepiness makes people snack more, while also making them too tired to work out.
13. STAND AND WORK
One easy way to thin your thighs is to stand while you work if you can. If you have a desk in a cubicle, this might be challenging and cause an awkward amount of attention. If you can’t get a more active job, then stand while you talk on the phone, get up every hour and walk for five minutes, and move however you can. If you work at home, create a standing desk so you’re not sitting down the majority of the day. Sitting stores fat, and standing burns fat.
14. QUIT OBSESSING
Just the mere stress of trying to lose weight can make you gain it, and I’m not even kidding. Forget about trimming down and focus on eating right, being active and doing stress-relieving activities such as walking, yoga, meditation, etc. These practices teach your body that it isn’t stressed, so it won’t send out stress hormones that cause your #body to store fat.
15. WATCH YOUR HEALTHY FATS
Yes, almond butter, olive oil and #coconut oil are all great for you, but you don’t need over a serving of these foods a day if you want to slim down. These foods are extremely high in #calories for such a small amount. Don’t overdose on healthy fats and expect to lose #weight. Moderation is key. Eat more green vegetables, leafy greens, lean proteins and raw veggies like carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers and celery instead of high fat foods.
16. BUTT LIFTS
It is most commonly known as a butt exercise, but amazing for thinning your thighs. Get on the ground, lie on your back and prop your feet up at an angle as if you were going to do sit ups. Place your hands behind your head and lift your butt off the ground into the air, but leave your shoulders and back on the ground. Hold your butt in the air while you squeeze your thighs together and hold five seconds. Lower down and repeat 20 times each day. These are called butt lifts and they’re awesome! They tone the inner, outer and backs of your thighs so you get an all-around workout that works fantastic!
17. SQUAT
When you’re trying to pick something up around your house, instead of bending with your back, squat with your legs. We are prone to bend with our back when lowering our body down to pick up something off the floor, or just reach for something beneath us, such as in a cabinet. Instead of bending, squat down with your #legs to lower your body down. This not only strengthens your back and prevents injury, but it also works your thighs more and can even help your posture!