For his role as the invincible Greek warrior Achilles in the 2004 Trojan War film “Troy,” Brad Pitt had to hit the gym for months to get the perfectly toned body like that of an epic warrior. But for the part of a skirt-wearing Greek hero, apart from the muscular arms and six-pack abs, he also needed to focus his workout on his thigh muscles.
For men, thighs are not usually the highlight of their fitness routine as they are comfortably covered by their pants and trousers. But unlike men, the clothing style of women gives them ample opportunity to flaunt their thighs. And on not-so-good side, it also makes them avoid wearing their stylish pair of hot pants or summer dress due to over-fat deposits in the very part.[break]
But as the mercury is soaring and temperatures are really hot and humid around this time of year, it’s definitely the right time to dig out all the short dresses and shorts. As shorts are equally the in-thing for men, toned legs are necessary for them as much as for women. And to avoid looking sloppy and unfit in the hot weather, The Week brings you some interesting yet simple steps that you can squeeze in your fitness regime to trim your thighs.
Prisoner Squat
For this exercise, you need to stand as tall as you can with your feet spread shoulder-width apart. Now, as the name refers, place both your hands on the back of your head, as one is made to pose when just being arrested. Now, you’ll need to pull your elbows and shoulders back so that your lower back is naturally arched. Keeping your core tight, lower your body as far as you can by pushing your hips back and bending your knees forward. While dipping low, make sure to keep the tops of your thighs parallel to the floor. Pause for a while and push yourself back to the starting position.
Make sure that the weight of your body is on your heels and not your toes during the entire movement. Keep your torso upright as much as possible.
Ballerina stance
This exercise routine is similar to regular squats but with a twist of ballerina dance style. For this stance, you’ll need to stay upright with your hands on your hips. Now, slowly lower your body as far as you can go. Make sure to hold your back straight and keep your core tight. After a short pause, push your body upwards. While moving upwards, lift you right leg towards the left side of the body, at the same time making a tangent at your knee. Now, move back to the dipping position. Repeat the same while moving your body upwards but lift another leg for the ballerina stance. Take turns with your legs and repeat the process for 15-20 times.
Walking Spiderman
Though the same may sound very fancy, you will (of course!) not be climbing up the walls. Instead, you’ll take the Spiderman stance and move your limbs through the floor. To start with the walking Spiderman exercise, lunge forward with your left leg until your left thigh is parallel to the floor. For stability, place your right hand on the floor in line with your left foot. Now grab your right arm just above the elbow with your left hand, placing your left elbow just below your left knee. In that position, squeeze your glutei a little before stepping your right leg forward, and return to standing. Repeat the same process on the other side as well.
While doing the lunges, keep your body parallel to the floor as much as possible. Try to repeat the process four or five times without pause and you can do the whole set for 10 repetitions.
Wiper toes
You’ll need to lie on the floor, with your heels pressed against the wall, keeping your legs straight upright. Now, keeping your left leg as it is, move your right leg slowly towards the right side of the body and keep moving it until you can stretch the legs apart. After a short pause, bring the legs back to the initial position. Now, repeat the same process with the left leg.
While doing the procedure, both legs should be straight and it should look as if your moving leg is acting like a wiper. This exercise may seem easier but is one of the more difficult routines for burning the thigh muscles. Among all the above exercises, this will also require you to tighten your core, and thus working on your abs as well.
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