I'm new to exercising and really would like to know what works. There are lots of gimmick people want you to buy but I'm sure they don't all work. I do lots of walking, well it's actually a machine called the gazelle. I do at least 2 miles 4-6 days a week. But it's not specifically targeting my saddle bags. They are so over proportioned that I have to buy a size bigger in pants. It is hereditary since my mother and grandmother have them as well. BUT there has to be a way to at least tone and get rid of some of the excess fat.
Any help?

Thanks
Deana

Unfortunately, Deana, you cannot pick the area you would like to see slimmed down (how I wish!). Fat will be lost the same way it went on, and this is individual to each of us. It's based on your genetics and short of liposuction you can't do much about it.

As you lose fat from all over you'll be left with that one area, more or less (less, hopefully!). However, as you have less and less to lose you'll find that one area slims down faster - once it become the last fat holdout, so to speak.

Spot reducing does not work, end of story - with this one caveate:

Abdominal Fat

Generally speaking, there are two types of fat stores; visceral (found around the organs and abdomen) and subcutaneous (found under the skin). Women tend to have higher concentrations of subcutaneous fat around the thighs and butt; men accumulate it around the back. Men also tend to have higher concentrations of abdominal / visceral fat due to their hormonal profile.

Abdominal fat has been highly correlated with diseases such as diabetes, insulin resistance and CVD - it's also the basis for BMI measurements (but that's another story and another question! ) The reason that this type of fat is considered more dangerous than subcutaneous fat has to do with the fact that it is innervated. This means it is riddled with nerves and these nerves allow the fat cells to release their fatty acids into the body. For example, this fatty acid has direct access to the liver, where it can alter the physiology of the liver resulting in a fatty liver. This innervation is what also makes it possible to get rid of it faster when you are dieting and more importantly, exercising. The nerves that allow the fatty acids to release into your system also allow them to be broken down and released as fuel for your muscles when you exercise. This effect is more pronounced when you engage in cardiovascular activity over, say, anaerobic activity.

HTH
-Nat

Not really what I wanted to hear. But the truth is better than a lie.

I was at least hoping there might be some kind of exercise to help tone and maybe trim down.

Thanks
Deana

Deana, you can tone and have great tight muscles, but until the fat is gone they will be covered up. Exrx.net has a great muscle map you can use to target areas, choosing exercises and equipment you can use to work on the areas while you're burning the fat

http://www.exrx.net/Lists/MFemale.html

HTH
N

Well there are exercises that can help tone and firm up the underlying muscles, which does help. I've got flabby upper arms and I pay special attention to them when lifting weights. It helps with my loose skin and more muscles means more fat burned!

I have the same problem with saddlebags and I have found that lunges work the best for me on that area. I agree that you can't spot reduce, but toning the area does help as you lose weight. You don't want to do any leg exercises with heavy weights as this will only add muscle and make the area bigger. Do more reps with light weights to tone.

Unfortunately, this is a common misconception. Lifting heavy weight is how you tone your muscles. Tone is defined as the tension of a muscle while at rest - this is created by causing the muscle to tear and grow. Lifting light weights many times does not produce this effect. It will cause a build up of lactic acid, which causes a 'burn' but it is not the same as working a muscle to fatigue.

Women cannot get 'big and bulky' without the aid of illicit substances. We do not have the natural hormonal profile for this. Just building large amounts of noticeable muscle takes hours of work ( more than your average gym rat endures) and lots of sweat and a very specific macronutrient profile.

Nat

Take a look at this and see if it helps at all,

http://www.mothernature.com/Library...Books/18/10.cfm

Here is another one,

http://www.ivillage.co.uk/dietandfi..._157790,00.html

Nat's post here verifies my thinking ... there is "age" to fat, and the new stuff falls off first. This has been my experience so far, and that means I can pretty much wait quite a while for everything below my waist to vanish!

However, by keeping at induction, I hope to break the spirit of the fat I've held onto the longest and send it packing!

It is true that you can't target the areas you want to lose, but there's something important to know about building muscle in those areas in order to help the situation:

Those areas may actually get larger before they get smaller due to the growth of muscle. The muscle not only weighs more than fat, it takes up space you don't always count on.

Large calves run in my family and walking is something I hope will help them. Running, maybe, eventually. And, now that I've been into a routine for several months I can feel the muscle there. The shocker was that when I put on a pair of jeans for the first time since May, I could barely get my calves into them!

One of these days I'll be pleasantly surprised to find that area shrinking. But, in the meantime I'm happy to know that what's increasing there is muscle and not fat.

I think lunges would be a great exercise for saddlebags, as well as lying on your side and raising your top leg about a foot off the ground -- not kicking it, but a steady, purposeful lift. This will pull those large muscles in the side of your leg and build them so that they can help you get rid of that fat. Donkey kicks are good, too -- hands and knees on the floor and pressing behind you with one foot at a time, as if you're trying to close the door of a bank vault. No kicking and no fast motions, just nice, even pressing straight out behind you.

Good luck!

---Amy

rickb41
Thanks for those websites. They gave me the excercises I needed for all body parts.

Deana

Look into the HCG diet, injections work best, but that is the best diet fir saddlebags. It was actually invented for that problem.

How can one diet target saddlebags in particular?

you cant/target diet any area.. sometimes the already lean areas will get leaner before the stubborn area goes.