The Easy "How Tos" for Toning Hips ?
by Sarah
(Mississippi)
I am a high school teen girl, almost 16. I want to get my body toned (not really want to lose weight but just want to get it toned and fit), if possible, in a couple of months.
However, here's my problem:
I have this event coming up in 3 to 4 months time where I have to get all dressed up for. Every time I put on a dress, the first thing people notice is my hips. They just stick out. Is there anyway that I can tone my hips to make them not "poking" out so much in a dress and also making them look smaller too?
I know I cannot "spot-reduce" to get rid of fat in my hips; I just want to reduce the size of them.
My Answer
I share your plight as I also have "chunky" hips at one time. However, toning exercise (or strength training) does a lot to help "trim them down" to slimmer and leaner shapes and forms. But I must say this - it's not easy to get your hips "size" down, so to speak.
Well, don't despair! There's nothing you cannot do to improve the look of your hips.
First, I have to stress that for us ladies, hips are normally our biggest problem areas simply because God make our hips bigger to provide us with sufficient cushion and "space" for storing fat for the purpose of child bearing.....Not fair, huh?
It is because of this natural state of thing, when we ladies gain weight, we tend to deposit it in our hips and thighs. Big hip not only presents a bad sight but also poses a health hazard.
Many Exercises can Help Improve your Hip Shape
The one thing that you absolutely need to commit yourself to do is to exercise regularly.
And not any kind of exercise though; it has to be the high impact cardio exercise as this kind of exercise is the most direct and the most powerful to help hike up your metabolism to higher level, causing you that much easier to burn off the excess fat from your entire body (which naturally includes the excess fat stored in your hip regions).
Go jogging, walking, swimming, running, dancing, biking, kickboxing, horse riding and many others which can torch off a substantial number of calories in say a 45-60 minute session, 4-5 times per week.
The secret to sustain this kind of exercise is to engage in one you like and love doing; hence in that way you'll not feel dreadful and would in fact look forward to doing it simply because you enjoy it in the process. You'll then see results - the fat melts away "effortlessly".
With this utmost important exercise taken care of, now you can drill down to focus on hip exercises that target at your hips.
I have featured some effective hip exercises here which not only help build more lean muscle mass into your hips but also train your hip muscles to leaner, slimmer and stronger stance as a result of the lean muscle mass there.
Lean muscle mass, for your information, is compact and taut and burns off fat 3 times faster. It also raises your basal metabolic rate (BMR) which is the state of your body's fat burning ability wherein you torch off calories while not exercising; while you're at rest and while you just do your normal daily activities. 60-70% of your total calories in a day is expanded in this way.
That is why if you can pack in more lean muscle mass into your body, it's beneficial to you as you'll be able to burn off more fat.
1 additional lb of lean muscle mass you pack into your body can help you burn off an extra 50 calories per day, without any extra effort on your part. Just imagine, you can easily blast away 350 calories (50 x 7) per week!
Well-Balanced, Healthy Weight Loss Diet is a Must too
You shouldn't spare this "food part" as it's the other vital component to "size down" your hips. I am recommending diet that is low in fat as fat is the major culprit for big hips seeing that most of the excess fat ends up there (and in the thighs).
If you can consistently cut down fat intake in your diet, you've won half the battle against the bulge, any time, any place!
I've written a page on how to reduce fat intake in a smart way here which you might want to use it as a guide in your daily diet planning.
Do these 3 things consistently and regularly and I promise, you'll see your hips taking on firmer and nicer shapes. Be patient though as it takes time for your body to acclimatize to the changes you impose on it. Normally, you'll need 6-8 weeks to see results.
