Big lower legs not getting smaller - is my training wrong?

[gamesmaster1]

Hi all, need some help.

I'm down to 18% body fat. My upper body is toned and amazing, my bum and thighs are amazing. I have abs and flat stomach, lovely arms............... and rubbish fat legs from the knees down with loads of fat on my calves and ankles.

The squats and lunges and leg presses etc have given me thighs and bum that are amazing, but I can't shift this stubborn fat area on my lower legs.

My diet is dialled in, I am doing everything right, or so I thought .....until I did a bit of research and alot of people with same fat distribution as me have said this is genetic and there is nothing you can do and also I should be lifiting with lighter weights when doing lower body as I want to condition the muscles and not make them any bigger!

But, so far in my calves there is so much fat I can't even see muscle!

Should I just stick to running long distance to try and slim them down along with lighter and more reps with lower body weights along with the calorie deficit?

I'm so fustrated, I've always had this problem with fat in my lower legs, perhaps I should just forget about trying to change them as it is bringing my motivation right down. Even if I get down to 17% body fat I still think I will have the fat here!!

[CFO]

Hi all, need some help.

I'm down to 18% body fat. My upper body is toned and amazing, my bum and thighs are amazing. I have abs and flat stomach, lovely arms............... and rubbish fat legs from the knees down with loads of fat on my calves and ankles.

The squats and lunges and leg presses etc have given me thighs and bum that are amazing, but I can't shift this stubborn fat area on my lower legs.

My diet is dialled in, I am doing everything right, or so I thought .....until I did a bit of research and alot of people with same fat distribution as me have said this is genetic and there is nothing you can do and also I should be lifiting with lighter weights when doing lower body as I want to condition the muscles and not make them any bigger!

But, so far in my calves there is so much fat I can't even see muscle!

Should I just stick to running long distance to try and slim them down along with lighter and more reps with lower body weights along with the calorie deficit?

I'm so fustrated, I've always had this problem with fat in my lower legs, perhaps I should just forget about trying to change them as it is bringing my motivation right down. Even if I get down to 17% body fat I still think I will have the fat here!!

Subscribing to this. I'm interested to see what gets posted here.

[swoleit]

With a calorie deficit and enough time your body will eventually have to give that fat up.

You might have to get really really lean before this happens. Then after it is gone you can slowly gain weight if you like.

If you don't want your legs to get any bigger then don't do a hypertrophy inducing workout anymore.

If you get between 5 to 8 percent body fat and your calves still have too much then you might consider surgery if your still fed up with it.

[gamesmaster1]

With a calorie deficit and enough time your body will eventually have to give that fat up.

You might have to get really really lean before this happens. Then after it is gone you can slowly gain weight if you like.

If you don't want your legs to get any bigger then don't do a hypertrophy inducing workout anymore.

If you get between 5 to 8 percent body fat and your calves still have too much then you might consider surgery if your still fed up with it.

Gosh, for a female to get down that low in body fat wouldnt be good! I'm sticking with the deficit plan and running, just dont know if I should stop the calf raises with weights etc

[britchick884]

OP you look great in your pics and what you're seeing might not be what everyone else sees. What are your goals in terms of lean body mass? you look incredibly slim but you're not carrying a lot of muscle. As for this lower weights higher reps this is typical nonsense you hear all the time. You will not turn into a football player if you pick up anything more than a barbie weight, you need to train as heavy as you can within the rep range that fits your goals.

What does your work out look like now? Are you making progress with your lifts? If your diet is on point including your macro breakdown, then eventually you'll strip the excess fat. Remember as you get nearer to your goal it becomes way more difficult, you need to be patient. You might want to switch up the long distance running for some HIIT sessions and if you've been doing the same thing for a while with your lifting change that up too.

As for the poster who mentioned 5 - 8% body fat that would put the OP'S health in SERIOUS danger.

[gamesmaster1]

OP you look great in your pics and what you're seeing might not be what everyone else sees. What are your goals in terms of lean body mass? you look incredibly slim but you're not carrying a lot of muscle. As for this lower weights higher reps this is typical nonsense you hear all the time. You will not turn into a football player if you pick up anything more than a barbie weight, you need to train as heavy as you can within the rep range that fits your goals.

What does your work out look like now? Are you making progress with your lifts? If your diet is on point including your macro breakdown, then eventually you'll strip the excess fat. Remember as you get nearer to your goal it becomes way more difficult, you need to be patient. You might want to switch up the long distance running for some HIIT sessions and if you've been doing the same thing for a while with your lifting change that up too.

As for the poster who mentioned 5 - 8% body fat that would put the OP'S health in SERIOUS danger.

oh glory, You know I know deep down I am being impatient here. I've only been at this for 6 months! My goal is just to be able to wear skirts and dresses to the knee. I have a family wedding in December and I have a knee length dress and I'm panicking. I also have a beach holiday next week!
Long term, I want to maintain my lifiting and cardio 3 times a week combined with eating healthy food. I eat 40% protein, 30%carb and 30% fat, I eat around 1500 cal per day, sometimes more or less dependiing on when I do the cardio.

I'm so far near my goal, and it is getting so hard now to see the fat % decrease going down so slowly, and I need patience!

I have been doing the HIIT on the treadmill after my workouts, but haent seen much results on my lower legs.

So, you think I should continue with the calf raises up and down on stairs with heavy weights etc and forget about more reps at lighter or no weights?!

[elaina08]

With a calorie deficit and enough time your body will eventually have to give that fat up.

You might have to get really really lean before this happens. Then after it is gone you can slowly gain weight if you like.

If you don't want your legs to get any bigger then don't do a hypertrophy inducing workout anymore.

If you get between 5 to 8 percent body fat and your calves still have too much then you might consider surgery if your still fed up with it.

She is a women. If she got to %5 BF she'd be hooked up to a feeding tube in the hospital. You are in the women's section eh ...

[swoleit]

She is a women. If she got to %5 BF she'd be hooked up to a feeding tube in the hospital. You are in the women's section eh ...

Some women do get to very low body fat. I'm just saying that the more fat she loses she will at some point see a decrease. I don't know what her legs look like, they might look good and she thinks they don't. OP could you post some pics of your legs?

A woman can lift all the weights she wants and doesn't need to worry about looking like a man, so get on a real weight lifting program.

Getting huge muscles is extremely hard even for men, it doesn't happen by accident, don't worry OP you are very small, you will not look like a man, unless you take some roids.

OP what does your weight lifting program look like. Weight lifting exercises, sets, reps, weight used?

Women with low body fat percentages link.

http://www.bodyfatguide.com/CelebrityBodyFat.html

[britchick884]

oh glory, You know I know deep down I am being impatient here. I've only been at this for 6 months! My goal is just to be able to wear skirts and dresses to the knee. I have a family wedding in December and I have a knee length dress and I'm panicking. I also have a beach holiday next week!
Long term, I want to maintain my lifiting and cardio 3 times a week combined with eating healthy food. I eat 40% protein, 30%carb and 30% fat, I eat around 1500 cal per day, sometimes more or less dependiing on when I do the cardio.

I'm so far near my goal, and it is getting so hard now to see the fat % decrease going down so slowly, and I need patience!

I have been doing the HIIT on the treadmill after my workouts, but haent seen much results on my lower legs.

So, you think I should continue with the calf raises up and down on stairs with heavy weights etc and forget about more reps at lighter or no weights?!

Patience is the key... and I know that's not what you want to hear lol. It is fact than when you are so near your goal your progress goes at a snails pace. Check out Lyle McDonalds body recomposition site, he has some great stuff on there and it might help you shake things up a bit. Carry on with calf training - standing calf raises on a machine, seated calf raises, calf raises on the leg press, etc.

Fat loss is going to come down to diet. You're looking great

[louloulou]

I feel your pain OP, I am very similar. I carry fat in my lower legs and it is so stubborn to get rid of! I have found lifting heavy on calf raises seems to be helping the appearance as it is making my calf muscle larger, thus making it look like I have more shape in the lower legs but loosing the actual fat there is a painfully slow progress. Another thing I am finding is helping is focusing my cardio/HIIT on legs eg hill walking, running, biking. I have also heard skipping is really good so I am going to buy a rope to do it at home.

[gamesmaster1]

Thankyou so much everyone for helping me!

I measured those darn calves this morning and I can't believe I have actually lost 1 inch in a couple of months! I am amazed they are now about 14 1/2 inches!

I honestly didn't think they were getting smaller and was convinced the fat was not shifting, but I must have just not noticed as the rest of my body was shrinking so much in comparison!

I decided today just to keep with what I am doing, lifting heavy on leg day and HIIT cardio running 30mins 3 times per week as well as the calorie deficit!

I think it is more the fat between the ankles and calves that is driving me crazy, but I'm checking out the Lyle site and stubborn fat solution!! I think I have read this before and its only when you get down to 17% or less body fat that you start working this program! So probably will need it soon!!!

[NJ77]

If it is any consolation, I don't think overly lean lower legs look attractive on a woman, anyway... you look great right now.

[JGFR]

Some women do get to very low body fat. I'm just saying that the more fat she loses she will at some point see a decrease. I don't know what her legs look like, they might look good and she thinks they don't. OP could you post some pics of your legs?

A woman can lift all the weights she wants and doesn't need to worry about looking like a man, so get on a real weight lifting program.

Getting huge muscles is extremely hard even for men, it doesn't happen by accident, don't worry OP you are very small, you will not look like a man, unless you take some roids.

OP what does your weight lifting program look like. Weight lifting exercises, sets, reps, weight used?

Women with low body fat percentages link.

Please do not post in the womens section stating to get to 5% body fat. Yes, some women do get to that. A very, very, VERY small percentage and for a very short period of time and they do it for their career not daily living. Do you know what that does to a womans reproductive organs? Or how that would lead to serious osteoporosis? I know you probably mean well but there are a lot of women who read one thing and it sticks to them .. So if one little piece of info like this sticks in their mind they may actually shoot for 5% bf. Most competitors don't compete at this and it is very dangerous. Women *typically* are more sensitive than men and you must be very cautious about what you say especially to such a large demographic of women (including teens).

[TheSmiley]

If you dip your calories too low, you will make it more difficult to lose. Also, if you ditch training your legs and running is the only exercise, you will get back to skinny fat. Everyone loses fat at a different rate in different sections of one's body so just give it time. Also have you been dieting for six months? That is a very long time for cutting calories. FYI, If you don't have muscles on your calves, and you continue to "cut" down, there won't be much muscle popping through so that is something to consider. Also at your height/weight, 1500 calories seems so low. How active are you at the gym?

Keep training heavy regardless. There is no way (naturally) that you will get humongous through heavy lifting. It's not possible for women

[gamesmaster1]

Hi, thesmiley, I had been cutting for 14 weeks and am going up to maintenance for about 3 weeks and after that I am going to try cutting again!

I dont want to loose the hard earned muscle so am going to continue with the heavy lifting (i love it too much!) followed by the HIIT - 3 times per week!

I think I maintain at about 2000, so have been trying to cut at 1400/1500, and I feel that I have hit a plateau, so maybe going to maintenance for a while and then cutting again may kickstart the fat loss?!

I know my stubborn leg fat will go eventually, genetically this is where I store the fat.....but it has to go..... patience is key and fustration is the enemy which I will not allow to beat me mentally and physically!!!!!!!

[TheSmiley]

Hi, thesmiley, I had been cutting for 14 weeks and am going up to maintenance for about 3 weeks and after that I am going to try cutting again!

I dont want to loose the hard earned muscle so am going to continue with the heavy lifting (i love it too much!) followed by the HIIT - 3 times per week!

I think I maintain at about 2000, so have been trying to cut at 1400/1500, and I feel that I have hit a plateau, so maybe going to maintenance for a while and then cutting again may kickstart the fat loss?!

I know my stubborn leg fat will go eventually, genetically this is where I store the fat.....but it has to go..... patience is key and fustration is the enemy which I will not allow to beat me mentally and physically!!!!!!!

When did you start lifting?
Going by your join date... have you been only cutting since you started on bb.com? Have you ever had a bulk cycle? You need to pack on some muscles, before ever cutting unless your bf% is at an unhealthy high level. It just doesn't make sense to cut if you don't have muscles to reveal underneath in the the first place. Going back to maintenance for three weeks won't do you much good; again, because of an insufficient muscle base.

[coconuttree2009]

Some women do get to very low body fat. I'm just saying that the more fat she loses she will at some point see a decrease. I don't know what her legs look like, they might look good and she thinks they don't. OP could you post some pics of your legs?

A woman can lift all the weights she wants and doesn't need to worry about looking like a man, so get on a real weight lifting program.

Getting huge muscles is extremely hard even for men, it doesn't happen by accident, don't worry OP you are very small, you will not look like a man, unless you take some roids.

OP what does your weight lifting program look like. Weight lifting exercises, sets, reps, weight used?

Women with low body fat percentages link.

http://www.bodyfatguide.com/CelebrityBodyFat.html

I suggest you go away and do not post in the Female section as it seems you do not have slightest idea what 5% body fat would look on a woman. Pro female bodybuilders get down to 8-9% for the show and do not maintain that long term.
Also the link you have posted is an utter nonsence - these celebs are not anywhere near those percentages.