To strengthen your thighs, here are 5 effective exercises.
Do you want to have firm, defined thighs with reduced fat? Certain exercises and physical activities help to tone this area of the body. Women tend to store more easily in the thighs, so targeted exercises are more suitable. Mourad Bendjelloul, a sports coach, presented us with different effective exercises.
Small clarification which is important: if the bodybuilding exercises dedicated to the thighs remain quite similar whether for men or women, it should be remembered that we do not have the same reaction to muscular demands for reasons that we tend to forget. ! As for physiological, mechanical or hormonal changes.
Men secrete more testosterone than women, it is easier for them to gain muscle, because it is an anabolic hormone
Adipose cells (fat cells) are located in different areas: in women, fat reserves are located around the hips and thighs, particularly in anticipation of a possible pregnancy, while in men, they rather concern the abdomen
On average, men have greater muscle mass and density than women, which explains why women generally have less strength and power when performing similar exercises.'
These differences lead to choosing specific training programs and subjecting the body to different physical constraints depending on the objectives and gender.
And of course, without forgetting the pleasure: there is no need to force yourself to do physical activity just for the desired result! Maintaining the same motivation for months (or even years) before seeing the effects would be all the more difficult if the sport is done out of “obligation”.
How to strengthen your legs quickly?
In the list of the most effective sports for toning the muscles of the lower body, we unsurprisingly find jogging, cycling or RPM classes, and brisk walking. These activities help strengthen the main muscles of the legs, from the calves to the buttocks, including the thighs.
As for muscle strengthening exercises, we can cite the squat, lunges (weighted with loads or body weight), or even the pistol squat. Exercises with large ranges of motion will also help strengthen the entire leg muscles.
Strengthening the adductors: how to strengthen the inner thighs?
If you want to strengthen the inner thighs, you need to use the adductors. The muscles of the inner thighs are made up of 5 different muscles: the gracilis, the pectineus, the adductor longus, the adductor brevis, and the adductor major.
All exercises requiring them to be contracted will help tone the inner thighs, such as lunges, deadlifts, squats, or adductors using a dedicated machine in the gym. If you are in the gym, don't hesitate to ask the coaches for advice to discover other variations!
What exercises strengthen the thighs the most?
Exercise to shape the quadriceps with a chair
The starting position: you invent an invisible chair. “With your back to a wall, quietly at home, you bend your legs as if you were on a chair,” explains Mourad Bendjelloul, sports coach.
The correct movement: "The leg is bent so as to make a 90° angle. We keep our back straight against the wall, we do not use our hands to keep our balance. It's all in the strength of our legs!”, explains the specialist. The ideal is to hold for one minute and do 3 repetitions.
