Thigh Toning Exercises for Women

Four Exercises for Shapely Legs

Shapely thighs are something that every woman craves. The problem is that women have a habit of gaining weight in their upper legs. 

You can blame it on genetics, hormones, age, or simply the fact that we are women; but, the female body tends to store fat in the thighs. Thankfully there are thigh toning exercises like squats and lunges that can help to give you lower body tone quickly.

These thigh exercises are also very convenient. If going to the gym doesn't fit into your daily plan, most leg exercises can be done in the comfort of your home.

Thigh Toning Exercises

Butt Blaster

The buttblaster is a highly effective exercise to tone the buttock and back thigh area. This thigh toning exercise can also be done on a machine.

Exercise Instructions:

• Begin with your hands and knees on the floor, and your back flat. Lift one leg up, keeping your knee bent at a 90-degree angle. 
  
  
• Slowly press the bottom of your foot toward the ceiling as far as you can go without arching your back or changing the angle of your bent leg. 
  
  
• Lower back to starting position and complete 10-20 repetitions. Switch legs.

Goblet Squat

The goblet squat is super effective for engaging all of the muscles from your butt down to your feet. Because it activates all of your lower body muscles so well, it can really get your heart pounding to speed up your metabolism. 

Exercise Instructions:

• Hold a dumbbell close to your chest with your elbows pointing down. With your legs spread a little more than hip width apart and your toes pointed out slightly, squat down as far as it is comfortable.
  
  
• Make sure to keep your abs engaged and your torso in a straight line. Push yourself back up with your weight on your heels and squeeze your butt muscles on the way up. Try and do 2-3 sets of 10-12 reps

Side Lunge

Side lunges offer a variation over the traditional forward lunge. The sideways action with your legs allow you to work your hips, glutes and inner thighs a little differently because of the angle. The side lunge also puts less stress on your knees.

Exercise Instructions:

• Stand with your feet hip-width apart and toes facing forward. 
  
  
• Step out to the right beyond shoulder width, making sure to keep your toes forward and your feet flat on the floor.
  
  
•  Bend your right knee and squat down through the right hip, keeping your left leg straight and your body facing forward. 
  
  
• Hold for 3-4 counts then return to starting position and repeat on other side. Continue for desired number of repetitions.

• More on the Side Lunge

Bulgarian Split Squats

This is a more difficult version of a normal split squat, with your rear leg up on an incline. You can do split squats without weights by crossing your arms in front of your chest or putting them on your hips.

Exercise Instructions:

• Start out holding a set of dumbbells at arm's length next to your sides.
  
  
• Standing with your right foot 2-3 feet ahead of the left one, place your left foot on a bench. The higher the bench, the harder the squat exercise.
  
  
• Bend your right knee and slowly squat down until your thigh is parallel to the floor, hold the pose for a count and push off of your right foot with force to return to your starting position. Repeat the exercise 5-8 times and switch sides.

Tips:

• With Bulgarian split squats, the higher up you place the back foot the more challenging the exercise will be. Split squats also effectively work your core muscles as you try and maintain steady balance.
  
  

Other pages that might interest you:

• Squat Exercises for Women
• Core Exercises for Women

I will continue to share ideas about diet and exercise that have helped me along the way. If you have any questions I can help you with, or if you have any ideas you want to share, feel free to contact me or visit our Q&A forum.