It's common to experience an increase in thigh size at a certain point in a new workout routine. This phenomenon is not exclusive to your thighs, but it can be more noticeable in that area for some people.
Switching up your exercise routine or diet may help you achieve a more balanced approach. However, understanding your self-image and having some patience around self-image during body changes is essential.
The Science Behind Muscle Enlargement in Exercise
From an aesthetic point of view, exercises can help you lose weight, build muscle, and in many cases, accomplish both. When you engage in high-intensity workouts, you recruit low-endurance muscle fibers known as fast-twitch, or glycolytic, fibers.
These fibers break down, and as they rebuild, they get larger. These fibers are also responsible for the size and definition of the muscles you're working.
But muscle hypertrophy (the enlargement of muscle fibers) isn’t the only culprit.
When you start your workout routine, you can expect to see significant fat loss results. As you progress, your body adjusts to the intensity of the exercise, leading to a plateau during which you may see a noticeable decline in the rate at which you are losing weight.
This combination of a decline in fat loss and muscle hypertrophy gives the impression of bigger thighs.
How to Reduce Excessive Thigh Growth During Exercise
You can take several approaches to try and slow thigh muscle hypertrophy while following a workout plan.
Lower Your Workout Intensity
Although hypertrophied thighs may be a little concerning, they’re not necessarily a bad thing. Increasing lean muscle mass helps your body burn calories more efficiently, even at rest.
However, if you want to slow the growth of your thighs, lower the intensity of your workouts by reducing weight resistance, eliminating explosive movements, and prioritizing rapid recovery time between sets.
Adjust Your Diet
If you’re on a weight management plan and have hit a plateau, you may want to make some adjustments to move past it. To ensure that you can maintain a safe and steady weight loss rate, you can try modifying your diet by reducing your daily intake by around 600 calories.
However, Harvard Health Publishing advises never dropping below a certain number of calories per day: 1,200 for women and 1,500 for men. Consuming too few calories a day risks depriving you of necessary nutrients.
If you have a history of disordered eating behavior, calorie counting may not be the best tool for you, as it can be triggering.
Before you start a weight loss plan, talk to your healthcare provider to determine a healthy weight for your body and needs.
Switch Up Your Workout Regularly
Mix up your workout by adding variations so your body cannot adjust to it. You can change weight resistance, the speed of each rep, the equipment you use, and more.
The goal is to keep your body guessing so it can't adapt, potentially enabling you to break through a training plateau and maintain consistent results.
When adjusting your workout or diet, consult your physician first to ensure that you’re not placing yourself at risk.
Be Kind to Yourself
When people are losing weight, gaining muscle, and changing shape, perceived flaws may start to become more noticeable to them.
Your body may not look the way you expected.
However, larger thighs may simply be part of your genetic makeup or unique body shape. Research suggests that a close focus on body measurements can encourage critical self-evaluation, which risks a broad spectrum of adverse mental health effects, including low self-esteem, body dissatisfaction, depression, anxiety, eating disorders, and social isolation.
Be patient and loving with yourself. After all, you’re still making plenty of health gains (muscular and otherwise) from regular exercise.
Rachel Green
Rachel Davis
Derek Schulz
Sophia Martinez
Dr. Amara Okafor