Losing fat in certain parts of the body is not always easy. It is hard enough to lose weight in general, but shaping the legs to improve your appearance is quite a challenge, especially if you want to do it fast. How to reduce thighs in a week, for example, may mean you have to lose a couple of pounds in days and trim the fat off your legs. That entails not only dieting, but exercising as well, to get the best result.

How to Reduce Thighs in a Week with Exercises

1. Cardio Activity

To reduce overall body fat, you have to burn a lot of calories. Experts recommend doing cardio exercises to boost the pumping action of your heart and improve overall health. Try activities like running, biking and jumping rope. These will not only help you burn calories, they will also help tone your thigh and leg muscles. Remember, however, that if you want to have smaller thighs, you must burn fat without getting too much muscle.

2. Low Resistance Workouts

After losing fat from the thighs, use resistance training exercises to improve their shape. Use moderately light weights (about 70% of your maximum lift) to build harder and more defined thigh muscles. Do more repetitions, but with less resistance.

3. Long Duration Cardio

To avoid getting big and bulky thigh muscles, use long-duration cardio exercises like long-distance running which targets smaller muscle fibers with limited capacity to grow. These result in stronger muscles, but not bulky and big. Avoid short intense workouts like sprinting which can increase your thigh muscle size.

4. Endurance Running

Try endurance running to reduce fat around the thigh muscles. You can also use the elliptical trainer, but be sure to use minimal resistance and to maintain correct posture to build good muscles in your butt and thighs, while reducing the strain in the front muscles of your thighs.

5. Toning Exercises

Cardio exercises will help you burn fat, but if you want well-toned thigh muscles you also need to do some toning exercises. These will also sculpt your butt, thighs and legs to make them look slimmer. Here is how to reduce thighs in a week with some toning exercises:

• Slimming Skaters

Starting with feet together, point your toes forward and place your arms at the sides. Keep head straight. Do a wide ‘skating’ step with the right foot towards your right side, dragging the left foot towards it. Move your arms accordingly, as if you were skating. Quickly repeat movements toward the opposite side. Repeat alternately for one minute.  

• Side to Side Plies

While looking straight ahead, stand with feet wide apart. Your toes should point about 45 degrees outward. Rest your hands on the hips. Bend knees and lower hips as low to the ground as you can. Keep shoulders and back straight. Hold this position for 30 seconds. Now slowly straighten legs and slide left heel towards your right.Then squeeze inner thighs together for 30 seconds. Next, take a big step backward to the left and repeat the plies, sliding your right heel in. Repeat 10 times.

• Crescent Kicks

Crescent kicks help tone and slim the inner thighs.Stand with feet apart, relax arms at your sides and look straight. Step with the right foot onto your left, brushing your leg forward and creating a large circle. Do the same with the left foot. Repeat these movements 10 times.

• Inner Thigh Attitude Pulse

While standing on the left leg, lift the right leg off the ground and bend the knee. Turn knee outward and bring the heel up towards the ceiling. Bring right leg across the front of the body and past the left leg. Then lower the leg and lift up as high as you can with heel up. Repeat 15 times and do the same on your left.

• Towel Squeeze Bridge

While lying down, bend your knees, keeping feet flat on the floor and arms relaxed at the sides. Place a hand towel between knees and squeeze to tone inner thighs. Lift your hips off the floor as much as you can. Hold the position for two counts and then bring down. Repeat 15 times.

• Seated Bent-Knee

Sit on the floor and press your hands on the floor beside your hips. Keep elbows slightly bent. Bend knees towards body with toes pointed ahead. Now lean forward slightly and contract your abdominal muscles. Open knees towards the sides and then draw them together. Repeat 20 times.

• Frog

While lying on your back with arms beside you, bend knees towards chest and draw your abs in. Then flex feet and turn knees outward. Keep heels together. Then press legs outward to make a 45-degree angle. With legs turned outward, squeeze your inner thighs and knees together. Bend knees back in while maintaining the 45-degree line. Repeat 15 times.

• Butterfly Stretch

For a relaxing stretch, sit with the bottom of your feet together and knees relaxed outward while holding your ankles. Slowly lean forward, lower your chest towards feet. You must feel your inner thighs stretching. Hold the position for 30 seconds and then relax. Do this stretching movement once.

Watch this video of thigh workouts you can do at home. 

How to Reduce Thighs in a Week with Diet

Aside from exercises, you must subtract about 500 calories every day. Here are some tips:

• Prepare foods using only vegetable-based oils and olive oil. Cut down on butter, cheese, and margarine.
• Limit carbohydrate intake. Avoid eating white rice, potatoes, sago, pasta and products made from refined flour.
• Instead of whole milk, use skimmed milk.
• Avoid eating fried foods like fries and chips.
• Increase your fiber intake. Eat fruits and vegetables, brown rice, oats, whole cereals and brown breads.
• Eat fish up to four times a week. But instead of frying, bake it or grill it. Eat lean meats only twice a week. Eat egg whites for breakfast.
• Keep your dinners light. Eat vegetable salad, fruits and soup. Take a small portion of brown rice and protein rich dinner.
• Take an early dinner and take a short walk after.
• Drink as much of water as you can during the day.