Best Exercise for Saddlebags?!

[LaVida]

Hi Everyone, I eat clean and weight train and do cardio, as I already know these are biggys for fat reduction and I KNOW YOU CAN'T SPOT REDUCE, but I'm looking for ONE exercise that will target my saddlebags that I can do everyday, apart from my regular leg/glute routine.
I already do lunges and squats, Leg kickbacks with ankle weights, cable kickbacks etc. which I find make a great difference in my Butt, but not my saddlebags


I'm thinking of doing walking side steps with a band around my ankles. I
had tried doing side leg lifts with ankle weights before but these didn't make much of a difference either.

I really want to find an exercise where I can "feel the burn" in this area.
Can any of you share ONE exercise that you have found makes a difference in that area?


Pleaseeeeeee and thank-you so kindlyyy!!

[rockangel]

Saddle bags are just fat, losing them comes down to diet. You can not do any excercise to get rid of the specific fat there.

If you are like most people, including me, it just takes consistent diet to bring overall body fat down. If that is where you hold your fat it will be the last place to shed the fat.

You can not spot reduce, there is no ONE exercise for the saddlebags, its just fat. Be patient it will eventually come off.

[KaraPhoto]

I KNOW YOU CAN'T SPOT REDUCE, but I'm looking for ONE exercise that will target my saddlebags

Read that again. That's your answer. "Feeling the burn" in that area is not going to do a darned thing for your saddlebags.

[thepowerwithin]

I can so relate. I started getting saddlebags when I hit purberty and spent years and years trying to target that area with no good results.

All the exercises you are doing are great for the musculature in your quads/hams/glutes, but will not affect your saddlebags, as they are made up of fat. BTW, I love the side-to-side stepping with bands. I do those every other week or so.

So, while eating the right foods is great, it is even more important to eat the right amount. Make sure you are getting the right calories, as getting the desired results will come down to your diet. Are you tracking calories? Eating at deficit? That's what's important.

I started really working on CONSISTENTLY taking in the proper amount of calories for fat loss back in October of 2009 and have lost about 15 lbs and it has really made a difference in that area. What I have left is negligible.

Good luck.

[kdiamond55]

OK, while I really agree that it is mostly diet, I would swear by the use of the elliptical in HELPING me with that area. I always had huge saddlebags (genetic, my mom too), and now my hips are very slim, like 31" around, and the only cardio I ever did was the elliptical. I can feel my hips being worked when I do it in a high resistance. Of course I did weights too, lunges, etc., but I do think it helped.

Just my $.02.

[sy2502]

Movements are mediated by muscles, not fat. The fat just sits on top of it and goes along for the ride. Fat isn't involved in an exercise any more than your pants are. The only thing fat does is store energy. Saddle bags are fat, and the only way you target them is by losing fat. And as you have said yourself, you can't spot reduce fat. Female hormones make us store our fat preferentially on the hips, so that's the first place it goes when you gain weight, and the last place it comes off when you lose weight. With exercise and diet you can lose fat overall, including your hips. That's all there is to it. Liposuction is the only spot reducing method available.

[bradrad]

Movements are mediated by muscles, not fat. The fat just sits on top of it and goes along for the ride. Fat isn't involved in an exercise any more than your pants are. The only thing fat does is store energy. Saddle bags are fat, and the only way you target them is by losing fat. And as you have said yourself, you can't spot reduce fat. Female hormones make us store our fat preferentially on the hips, so that's the first place it goes when you gain weight, and the last place it comes off when you lose weight. With exercise and diet you can lose fat overall, including your hips. That's all there is to it. Liposuction is the only spot reducing method available.

Ahhh the power of lipo. he he

[sy2502]

Ahhh the power of lipo. he he

If only I could afford it!!! LOL!

[SoutherNtellect]

Movements are mediated by muscles, not fat. The fat just sits on top of it and goes along for the ride. Fat isn't involved in an exercise any more than your pants are. The only thing fat does is store energy. Saddle bags are fat, and the only way you target them is by losing fat.

I like this explanation

[bradrad]

If only I could afford it!!! LOL!

yea you and me both. I wanna fix my saggy boobs. Damn recession.

[blonide]

I can so relate. I started getting saddlebags when I hit purberty and spent years and years trying to target that area with no good results.

All the exercises you are doing are great for the musculature in your quads/hams/glutes, but will not affect your saddlebags, as they are made up of fat. BTW, I love the side-to-side stepping with bands. I do those every other week or so.

So, while eating the right foods is great, it is even more important to eat the right amount. Make sure you are getting the right calories, as getting the desired results will come down to your diet. Are you tracking calories? Eating at deficit? That's what's important.

I started really working on CONSISTENTLY taking in the proper amount of calories for fat loss back in October of 2009 and have lost about 15 lbs and it has really made a difference in that area. What I have left is negligible.

Good luck.

Powerwithin, where did you accurately assess how many calories you should
be eating?

[thepowerwithin]

Powerwithin, where did you accurately assess how many calories you should
be eating?

Not sure what you goal is, but in the female nutrition/dieting section, there is a sticky titled calculating calorie needs and macronutrients. There are a few formulas you can use.

My plan was developed by Kimm4, a member on this forum who specializes in nutrition. She is very knowledgeable, and I consulted with her and she created a personalized plan for me.

Here is the link to the sticky. Good luck.

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=121703921

[Num3n]

eat healthy, eat small meals throughout the day, get enough water, workout hard, do cardio.

and have a negative caloric intake = weightloss

*dont starve yourself though, aim for 1200-1600 calories per day

[summertown74]

What I hate about saddlebags is that there's not even a muscle underneath them! So it's not like the abs, where you can strengthen the muscle underneath to kind of "hold up the fat" so to speak. Ugh. hate them.

Imagine if women were programmed to carry their extra fat around their....what's comparable...their ankles...We'd all have skinny hips and butts and bellies and CANKLES, huge lardy cankles. Mmmm lovely picture. I think I'll keep my butt, thanks.

[birdiefu]

What I hate about saddlebags is that there's not even a muscle underneath them! So it's not like the abs, where you can strengthen the muscle underneath to kind of "hold up the fat" so to speak. Ugh. hate them.

Imagine if women were programmed to carry their extra fat around their....what's comparable...their ankles...We'd all have skinny hips and butts and bellies and CANKLES, huge lardy cankles. Mmmm lovely picture. I think I'll keep my butt, thanks.

I carry what seems to be an inordinately disproportionate amount of fat on my calves and ankles. I try to delude myself into thinking perhaps I have muscular calves, but we know that's a load of bull, LOL! I'm glad I've never been obese, I'm sure I would be major cankle woman, but I do have some sturdy-looking trunks of legs, no toothpick ankles here. Maybe one day when I'm leaner I will have normal ankles...

[Pinkpower5]

I mainly agree that it's diet, but there may be a way that exercising differently can help us target our trouble areas. According to John Romanelli (not sure of spelling), hormones affect where we store fat. So yours would be estrogen related. Other places are belly, love handles, and moobs (man boobs). In Final Phase Fat Loss, he talks about how to train for each issue. I am not an expert because I am not quite on my final phase yet and I'm doing a different program now anyway. I think he talks a bit on his blog about this. But diet is key.

[kimm4]

Hi Everyone, I eat clean and weight train and do cardio, as I already know these are biggys for fat reduction and I KNOW YOU CAN'T SPOT REDUCE, but I'm looking for ONE exercise that will target my saddlebags that I can do everyday, apart from my regular leg/glute routine.
I already do lunges and squats, Leg kickbacks with ankle weights, cable kickbacks etc. which I find make a great difference in my Butt, but not my saddlebags


I'm thinking of doing walking side steps with a band around my ankles. I
had tried doing side leg lifts with ankle weights before but these didn't make much of a difference either.

I really want to find an exercise where I can "feel the burn" in this area.
Can any of you share ONE exercise that you have found makes a difference in that area?


Pleaseeeeeee and thank-you so kindlyyy!!

It really comes down to your diet and getting rid of the body fat (that area is always last.)

Here are some exercises you can throw into your plan:

RDL's
Glute/hamm raises
Stiff leg good mornings
Zercher squats/Sumo squats/Goblet squats
Cable pullthroughs
Elevated BB/DB lunges
DB step ups
Uphill sprints, running stairs/bleachers

[kryssi]

At one point i gained a lot of weight like 30 pounds when i moved to a 3 story townhome and was doing about 1000 stairs a day well when my eating was horrible for a few months during that time i thought all the stairs would keep me slim but now it just made me have hard legs but all the fat i took in went to the saddlebag area and ive never had that before in my life so i tried everything from eating clean to liquid diet etc to get rid of it and i moved from that place so that i ld get my boy back to noral which helped but still being left with the saddlebags i researched benefits of water fasting and how it transforms the body and i can tell u 100% i did an 11 day water fast and that melted the fat off like lipo! Its hard to do but I did feel great after I took a daily mulit vitmin and it allowed me to start off fresh.

[MEDUSA02]

SPOT FAT will be reduced with exercise and diet BUT fat will also be reduced from other areas such as your face and breasts. Women lose from the face down and the lower body is the last place to lose......Unfortunately, saddlebags are really a curse.. since it is a very stubborn area to lose fat. As a Women's only Personal Trainer and Nutrition Therapist for over 18 years, I can tell you that spot fat is genes and of course hormonal imbalance which can occur even at puberty. After the age of 45, it is even harder to lose weight as our metabolism slows down and the spot fat worstens IF a careful diet is not followed.
LIPOSUCTION, is something many trainers fear to talk about or they are embarassed to admit they have done it themselves....Some, prefer to fool women with hopeless promises or aren't educated enough about the subject. Liposuction DOES WORK SPECIFICALLY FOR SPOT FAT as it removes extra unwanted fat from areas which disproportion the rest of the body.

I have had clients who carried extra fat on their lower hips and would literally exhaust their bodies with endless lunges only to lose too much fat from their breasts and face looking sick. Some have even done breast implants
to compensate for the great fat loss on their upper body.

To sum up, Liposuction is recommended for spot fat once one knows already how to maintain her/his weight by eating right and exercising. Lipo will not work for overall body fat. I have known women (and some quite famous too..) who had spot fat reduced first and then and competed in bodybuilding!.... Talk with reputable plastic surgeons to determine whether Lipo is a wise option for you. All the best!!!

Hi Everyone, I eat clean and weight train and do cardio, as I already know these are biggys for fat reduction and I KNOW YOU CAN'T SPOT REDUCE, but I'm looking for ONE exercise that will target my saddlebags that I can do everyday, apart from my regular leg/glute routine.
I already do lunges and squats, Leg kickbacks with ankle weights, cable kickbacks etc. which I find make a great difference in my Butt, but not my saddlebags


I'm thinking of doing walking side steps with a band around my ankles. I
had tried doing side leg lifts with ankle weights before but these didn't make much of a difference either.

I really want to find an exercise where I can "feel the burn" in this area.
Can any of you share ONE exercise that you have found makes a difference in that area?


Pleaseeeeeee and thank-you so kindlyyy!!

[discdoggie]

SPOT FAT will be reduced with exercise and diet BUT fat will also be reduced from other areas such as your face and breasts. Women lose from the face down and the lower body is the last place to lose......Unfortunately, saddlebags are really a curse.. since it is a very stubborn area to lose fat. As a Women's only Personal Trainer and Nutrition Therapist for over 18 years, I can tell you that spot fat is genes and of course hormonal imbalance which can occur even at puberty. After the age of 45, it is even harder to lose weight as our metabolism slows down and the spot fat worstens IF a careful diet is not followed.
LIPOSUCTION, is something many trainers fear to talk about or they are embarassed to admit they have done it themselves....Some, prefer to fool women with hopeless promises or aren't educated enough about the subject. Liposuction DOES WORK SPECIFICALLY FOR SPOT FAT as it removes extra unwanted fat from areas which disproportion the rest of the body.

I have had clients who carried extra fat on their lower hips and would literally exhaust their bodies with endless lunges only to lose too much fat from their breasts and face looking sick. Some have even done breast implants
to compensate for the great fat loss on their upper body.

To sum up, Liposuction is recommended for spot fat once one knows already how to maintain her/his weight by eating right and exercising. Lipo will not work for overall body fat. I have known women (and some quite famous too..) who had spot fat reduced first and then and competed in bodybuilding!.... Talk with reputable plastic surgeons to determine whether Lipo is a wise option for you. All the best!!!

Nice and shameless self-promotion.


But as to the original post: I always giggle that posts like these begin "I know I can't spot reduce". <Blah blah blah other stuff inserted here> and then, always to close the post
"How can I spot reduce?"

[dawnmsaunders]

But as to the original post: I always giggle that posts like these begin "I know I can't spot reduce". <Blah blah blah other stuff inserted here> and then, always to close the post
"How can I spot reduce?"

LOL If anyone ever figures out some magical way to spot reduce, then please tell me cause I will give you all of the money in my savings account

...not srs

[MadCatLady]

LOL If anyone ever figures out some magical way to spot reduce, then please tell me cause I will give you all of the money in my savings account

...not srs

I can tell you the secret. But first you must transfer all your money into my PayPal account, then I will send you my SECRET herbal remedy to be massaged into the saddlebags at 3am, 6am, 2pm and 11pm every day that there is a full moon. Also never eat pop tarts and eat 3kg of radishes daily.

[infrateal]

Sumo/plie squats and hamstring curls both help tone that area up, although it takes time!