Man with fat hips and thighs

Seek writes:

My genes gather most of my fat on my hips and thighs (same as
my mother).

Fat distribution is a function of several factors, only some of which
are genetic. The hips-and-thighs pattern is more a function of female
hormones than of genes; women gather fat in these areas because their
hormones encourage fat deposition in this pattern. Men usually gain
weight around the waist.

I want to lose some 5-6 more kilos, would this do the trick?

Fat cells don't move, so while you can reduce their size by losing
weight, it's hard to change the distribution of fat. Here again,
hormones tend to direct fat a bit--after all, women gain a great deal of
fat on their breasts, even though they have fat cells in many other
locations, and that's entirely due to hormonal influences.

Am I worrying to much over nothing?

Impossible to say without seeing you. You're sure that your large
thighs aren't muscular?

I'm planning to start exercising too (mainly running),
because until now all my exercise was (quite a bit of)
walking daily and some push-ups I do at home.

Exercise helps you lose weight, but some forms of exercise, such as
walking and running, will make your legs bigger (with muscle) as well,
so beware.

--
Transpose hotmail and mxsmanic in my e-mail address to reach me directly.

You're young and that doesn't mean your should wait till you get older.
Start now. Eat healthy foods and do exercise regularly. Sweat daily.
Remember if you eat junk your going to produce junk, eat healthy and you'll
be healthy. I don't believe you can lose fat in any one area, so be active
until you get to the way your happy with yourself, then exercise and eat
right to maintain it.

You seem to be pretty healthy to me, but I'm not sure what the healthy
weight is for someone you height. I'm not sure if your worrying over
nothing or not. I'd say if you can't get to where you want to be by eating
healthy and exercise to go see a doctor and get his or her opinion. It's
hard to give my 2 cents w/o seeing a picture of you...sorry.

Good luck my friend,

Paul

"Seek" wrote in message
...
I'm a 20 year old guy who used to be fat. Now I'm 5'6" and 150 lbs.
(168 cm and 68 kg). I used to be like 185 lbs. But I don't like the way
I look. My genes gather most of my fat on my hips and thighs (same as
my mother). In the past I used to tear my pants after wearing them for
some time because of this and I would feel AWFUL about that, I couldn't
stop thinking about it every step I would take (in fact, that's the
main reason I got thinner). Now this doesn't happen anymore, but I
still don't like my hips and thighs.

My hips measurement is 37.4" (95cm) and my thighs 22.8" (58cm). My
waist is 31.9" (81cm).

I want to lose some 5-6 more kilos, would this do the trick? Am I
worrying to much over nothing? Anybody else had this problem? I'm
planning to start exercising too (mainly running), because until now
all my exercise was (quite a bit of) walking daily and some push-ups I
do at home.


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Seek... You are me. I used to be 5'6" 145 when I was 21 and then I swelled
up to almost 185 last year (24 y/o). I am 25 now, and only RECENTLY got down
to 155 again. I think if you're 150, you're not doing bad at all. I am
struggling to get past the 155 barrier.

Basically, what it comes down to, is some people, like me, are "blessed"
with fat asses and fat legs. But I've got my pants size down to about 30
now, and it looks rather slimming. But when I was 145 I was able to fit into
29s.

Personally, I think the key is to start on a combination of good food
regimen of 1500 calories a day (no more than 2000) and 30 minutes of
interval training per day on a machine line an ellipitical, PLUS a walking
or biking commute to work if possible. I'm in Toronto, so there's not much
other choice to get around the core here. I started by walking, liek you.
Then I added the gym cardio. Most recently, I'm doing upper body weights to
increase the size of my shoulders and arms, to give the appearance of a
slimmer lower-body. It works.

If you have access to it, I would recommend going on a short-term (4-6 week)
weight loss pill if you can afford it (I know everyong is going to blast me
for this now!).

But wow... 185 to 150. Amazing work. I wish I could do it...and I'm doing
all of the above. I'm learning...that sometimes...no matter what you
do...there may be nothing that will work, short of extreme means.

It would help to know about your daily routine and diet...

Mark
Toronto
25 - 183/155/145 - 5'5.5

"Mark" wrote on Wed, 31 Mar 2004
07:08:19 GMT in alt.support.diet:

But wow... 185 to 150. Amazing work. I wish I could do it...and
I'm doing all of the above. I'm learning...that sometimes...no
matter what you do...there may be nothing that will work, short of
extreme means.

It would help to know about your daily routine and diet...


Thanks. It took some time. About eighteen months. But I didn't go on
a particular diet or exercise program. When I was younger I didn't
care about my appearance. I would just eat anything I wanted. So I
got to 185. But at that point I realised I had to do something about
it, mostly because it felt bad rather than because it looked bad. So
I started eating less. That's basically it. I didn't change
(radically) what I was eating, I just ate less. I can remember myself
eating ice-cream, pizzas and other stuff all this time. Then there
was something more which I think helped. I started my studies at
university, and it made me move more than I used to do when I was at
high-school, which was 100m from my house.

And since I'm planning to drop at least 10 pounds more, I have
started eating less fat (for the first time in my life) and avoiding
too much sugar. I'm also thinking to start exercising again (I used
to exercise lots till I was fifteen) but not in a gym, mostly playing
basketball, which I love even though I'm short.

I don't think I'm going to have any problems losing those last
pounds, in fact I have lost about 4 pounds in the last two weeks. I
don't care about eating less. It's only fair. I used to eat lots, now
I have to eat less. It's simple really.

And of course there is some great motivation in the sense of
achievement one gets after losing weight at will. Now I feel
healthier and look healthier, even though I don't eat much.

Sorry I messed the identities. It's me, Seek.

"Seek" wrote in message
...
I'm a 20 year old guy who used to be fat. Now I'm 5'6" and 150 lbs.
(168 cm and 68 kg). I used to be like 185 lbs. But I don't like the way
I look. My genes gather most of my fat on my hips and thighs (same as
my mother). In the past I used to tear my pants after wearing them for
some time because of this and I would feel AWFUL about that, I couldn't
stop thinking about it every step I would take (in fact, that's the
main reason I got thinner). Now this doesn't happen anymore, but I
still don't like my hips and thighs.

My hips measurement is 37.4" (95cm) and my thighs 22.8" (58cm). My
waist is 31.9" (81cm).

I want to lose some 5-6 more kilos, would this do the trick? Am I
worrying to much over nothing? Anybody else had this problem? I'm
planning to start exercising too (mainly running), because until now
all my exercise was (quite a bit of) walking daily and some push-ups I
do at home.

A few thoughts for you:

One way to find an 'ideal' weight for yourself is to compare your current
weight with what you weighed in high school or college. Unless you've been
adding muscle to your frame, which usually requires a lot of hard work and
lots of eating, and unless you didn't finish growing until after high
school, most of what most people have gained since high school is fat. I
think trying to stay within 5 or 10 lbs. of one's high school weight, for
someone not interested in muscle hypertrophy (growth), is a good goal.

A bodyfat measurement would be a useful thing for you. Those electronic
scales don't work very well, but calipers do, and so do hand-held electronic
bodyfat monitors, at least the one I own which costs about $60. It's hard
to say what an ideal weight for you is without knowing bodyfat percentage,
e.g., if you're 10% bodyfat, then you really do have muscular hips and
thighs, and will have to lose some muscle if you want to get smaller, and
that's not a good thing for most people.

Aerobic exercise is catabolic for most people - it helps you lose weight,
and that can include losing muscle. If your bodyfat percentage is more than
10% or so, you might consider a program that has a sizeable cardio component
but also includes regular resistance training to help preserve muscle while
losing weight.

Hope that helps you some.

-S-
http://www.kbnj.com

"Steve Freides" wrote on Wed, 31 Mar
2004 15:52:23 GMT in alt.support.diet:

One way to find an 'ideal' weight for yourself is to compare your
current weight with what you weighed in high school or college.

That wouldn't work in my case. I was 185 when I finished high school
and I've been losing weight ever since.

"Psymaster" wrote in message
...
"Steve Freides" wrote on Wed, 31 Mar
2004 15:52:23 GMT in alt.support.diet:

One way to find an 'ideal' weight for yourself is to compare your
current weight with what you weighed in high school or college.

That wouldn't work in my case. I was 185 when I finished high school
and I've been losing weight ever since.

I forget that this doesn't work as well as it used to. Those of us who are
middle-aged and older went to school before weight problems were as
prevalent as they are today; most of us were pretty thin in high school.

Get a body fat measurement. If you belong to a gym or are a student, you
ought to be able to get someone to do it for you for free.

-S-
http://www.kbnj.com