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Photo credit by Oneras

While just about everyone likes to be in good shape, there are situations where the muscles in the thighs tend to overdevelop. While this is great for professional bodybuilders and some athletes, men and women who want a toned but slimmer physique may find the extra muscle a bit disconcerting. Fortunately, there are ways to minimize the size of the muscular thighs, while still retaining tone and solid definition.

Much of the gain in muscular thighs has to do with the development of the quadriceps and hamstrings. For people who regularly work out, a simple solution is to cut back on the number of repetitions of any exercise that is aimed at toning thigh muscles. Lowering the amount of weight used in the repetitions will also help. As an example, if you current do four sets of five repetitions at a high weight, reduce the number of sets to two or three. At the same time, reduce the weights by roughly twenty to twenty-five percent. This should be enough to maintain solid thighs, but allow the muscle mass to reduce slightly.

It is important to not abandon your workout. All this accomplishes is allowing the muscle mass to go slack, leaving you with flabby thighs. The idea is to still provide and decent workout for your thigh muscles, just ease the response so less bulk is maintained. You may find that going with a lower amount of weight and some additional repetitions is still sufficient to keep your thigh muscles strong, but will allow them to shrink back down to a size you find more appealing.

Another approach is to substitute running for the resistance exercises that promote the bulking up of thigh muscles. Distance running is particularly effective. Your thighs and legs still get a great workout, plus you get the cardiovascular benefits associated with running. What is missing is the stress that usually results in increasing muscle mass, allowing your thighs to reduce to size that is more to your liking. For novices, try starting with something simple, like a half mile, then work your way up to five to ten miles over time.

Keep in mind that genetics also plays a role in how your body responds to exercise. If you have always found it easy to develop muscle mass, it may require some additional strategies to help you reduce your thighs to the desired size. Working with a personal trainer who knows a bit about body sculpting will help you adjust your exercise regiment in a way that allows you to remain fit, while also getting a decent idea of what can reasonably be done to reduce your thighs.

As you go about looking for ways to slim down your thigh muscles, make sure you are keeping your body type in mind. If you have a large frame to begin with, it is not reasonable to expect your thighs to look like those of someone who has a naturally slight build. For this reason, set your expectations for your thighs in terms of what would be considered in proportion to the rest of your body, rather than focus too much on the actual measurements. This approach will go a long way toward helping you look great in anything from a swimsuit to formal dress, while also preventing you from falling into the trap of becoming unhappy with the condition of your body.