5 Best Outer Thigh Exercises in 2023

Outer Thigh Exercise
Outer Thigh Exercise

Have you been dreaming of having strong and well toned thighs? You’ve come to the right place to sculpt them into shape! 

Working toward toned thighs shouldn’t become a hassle in terms of health or mental peace. While looking good is important, your goal should be losing unhealthy fat and building strong legs that can support you. That’s why, we strongly recommend that you have a well rounded and healthy workout. We have the perfect list of effective Outer Thigh Exercises for you! 

Why Do You Need to Work Out Your Thighs?

Why Do You Need to Work Out Your Thighs?
Why Do You Need to Work Out Your Thighs?

A well rounded lower body routine can help build strong and healthy thighs. Since your legs get you from place to place, it only makes sense that you keep them in tip-top shape!

Strengthening your outer thighs can help you with your overall balance and stability. With this, your thigh muscles play a crucial role in all movements that requires you to move your legs away from your body’s midline. 

In the case of losing weight, it’s not effective to only lose fat and neglect gaining muscle strength. What this does is weaken your lower body strength. That’s why it’s important to have a healthy diet when toning any muscle, including your thighs. Having a curated list of outer Thigh Exercises can help you build an overall healthy body.

How Are Saddlebags Formed on Thighs?

How Are Saddlebags Formed on Thighs?
How Are Saddlebags Formed on Thighs?

A saddlebag is the pouch of extra fat that gathers at your outer thighs. It is more common for women to develop saddlebags than men. Women generally gain weight in these areas. Outer Thigh exercises help in reducing this fat.

A few reasons that contribute to saddlebags, are aging, poor nutrition, or sitting for majority of the day. As to how it happens, essentially, the area around the lower hip starts to go soft and begins to gathers fat. 

Besides this, saddlebags can be a result of hormonal imbalance or a hereditary factors.  

Exercise alone cannot help in the long run. Workouts help fat cells shrink in size, however, an unhealthy diet or unhealthy lifestyle, can make shrunk fat cells enlarge and grow back in size. So for sustainable toned thighs, a healthy lifestyle is just as important as your workout. 

Shrink and Tone It! Flaunt and Own It!

Outer Thigh Exercises
Shrink and Tone It! Flaunt and Own It!

There are many outer thigh exercises that can help shrink your fat cells and tone your thighs. Compound exercises, like squats help build overall strength and muscle mass. These exercises require multi-joint movement. It works multiple muscle groups at the same time. Cardio can also help loose overall body weight including the fat in your thighs. 

Your outer thigh exercises must focus more on lateral movements, like side shuffles and side lunges, these movements help to tighten muscles on the outside of your thighs. A combination of cardio, toning exercises along with a nutritious diet can yield fruitful results for a fit and healthy body. 

5 Best Exercises for Toned Outer Thighs 

Some of the most effective outer thigh exercises that concentrates on strengthening and toning your outer thighs are:

  1. Crusty lunges
  2. Lateral lunges
  3. Squat Side tricks
  4. Side plank hip abductions 
  5. Clamshells 

Exercises for Toned Outer Thighs — Step by Step Guide

1. Crusty Lunges 

Crusty Lunges 
Image Credits: Joanna Soh/Youtube

The main muscles involved in this exercise are your quads, glutes, calves, and thighs

  • Space your feet hip width apart.
  • Place weight on your right foot and slowly move your left leg to cross behind the right.
  • Lower your body until the right thigh is parallel to the floor.
  • Return to your original position and repeat the same with opposite leg.

Remember to engage your core muscles while doing the exercise and keep breathing steadily. Keep your face and body erect. Remember, your toes must be aligned with the direction your knees are facing. You can do 10 to 15 repetitions on each side. 

2. Lateral Lunges 

Lateral Lunges 
Image Credits: Hybrid Athlete/Youtube

The lateral lunge is very effective among other outer thigh exercises. It mainly engages your glutes, abductors, hamstrings, and adductors. 

  • Place your feet apart in alignment with your hip width.
  • Take a wide step to the right side with your right leg. 
  • Begin to bend your right knee 90 degrees. 
  • Spring back to your original position and repeat it 10 to 12 times before moving on to the other leg.

Be conscious that your back remains straight and does not hunch over while leaning forward. Do not put pressure on your side foot. Push back your hips to keep your weight centered. 

3. Squat Side Kicks 

Squat Side Kicks 
Image credits: 24Life/Youtube 

Squat side kicks helps engage the glutes, quadriceps, outer thighs, and hamstrings

  • For this you want to start in squat position with your feet spaced shoulder-width apart. 
  • As you rise from the squat position to the standing position, place your weight on your right leg and kick your left leg out sideways. 
  • Return to squat position and repeat the same with the other leg.

Remember to engage your core. Inhale as you squat and exhale as you shift your weight to one leg, and kick out the other. Remember to not slouch and keep a straight back while doing the exercise.

4. Side Plank Hip Abduction

Squat Side Kicks 
Image Credits: Banff Sport Medicine Foundation/Youtube

The side plank hip abduction mainly targets the gluteus medius, glutes, core and obliques. It engages the outer thigh and the core.

  • Start with the side plank, using one hand to prop up your body in the plank position. 
  • Stretch the top leg, keeping your bottom leg bent at the knee. 
  • Lift the top leg as high as possible, and slowly lower it down. Repeat a few times before switching to the other leg. It is one of the best outer thigh exercises.

5. Clamshells 

Clamshells 
Image Credits: TSAOG Orthopaedics & Spine/Youtube

The clamshell, or fire hydrant, is great for strengthening your gluteus maximus and gluteus medius. It is quite effective in working your outer thighs. 

  • Lie on your side with your legs bent at 90 degrees.
  • Keep your feet together as you slowly lift your knee towards the ceiling. Don’t let your hip roll back too much as you do this.
  • Lower your knees to the initial position and repeat a few times before switching to the other leg.

Remember to keep breathing evenly, breathe in and exhale as you lift your knee upward. Tighten your core from not rolling back along with your knees. You can also up the level by adding a restrain band around your knees. 

Frequently Asked Questions 

Can walking help reduce saddlebags?

Sure! Hitting the gym everyday may not be your cup of tea, and it need not be if you keep yourself active. A healthy diet, along with physically engaging activities, like walking, swimming, dancing, and yoga can do wonders for your body!

How to reduce thigh fat through diet?

The first effective change you need to bring to your diet is to lower your calories. Food that is high in carbohydrates, sugar and fat will only lead to unhealthy accumulation of fat. Try fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and other food with rich protein. 

How long does it take to reduce thigh fat?

Don’t fret! All hard work is sure to yield fruitful results. If you are doing your workout right, you should start to see changes in just four weeks! You can gain more leg strength and stamina, and your thighs can start to loose some fat. It may however take two to three months before you begin to notice major changes. 

Fine-Tuning Your Body

With just a few changes in your everyday lifestyle, you can fine-tune your body to have the build you desire, not only in terms of looks but also in strength and wellness. If you found this article useful make sure to visit us often for other great fitness tips! Until next time!

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