Effectiveness of squats/lunges withOUT weights

sherrbearr22

Hi all!  I am wondering if doing my squats and lunges without any added weights will be sufficient enough to tone and tighten my thights and butt.  I take a weights class at the gym 2 - 3 times a week for one hour each class and I speed walk 5 days a week for one hour.

I tend to go up a pant size when I use weights for my squats and lunges and I'm just wondering if I do them with my body weight alone, am I still getting a sufficient leg/butt workout?

Let me know your thoughts or if you have any other recommendations on how to tone up my legs and backside! Thanks so much!

LesPaul

Yes.  Your body weight is enough to get results with squats and lunges.

miguelhilary2010

I do both with and without weights.  Using weights of course is more effective for strengthening your muscles.  However, if you do just body weight squats, do more of them in each set.  Make sure you are going all the way down and back up slowly.  I usually do 20-25 each set and try to do 3-5 sets.

sherrbearr22

Perfect!!  Thanks ladies

raynes

I'm actually going to disagree.  BW squats/lunges are better/more effective than none at all, but will only get you so far.

To build muscle definition (what most think of a "toning") you need to do 2 things: get rid of the fat on top of the muslce, and increase the size of the muscle.

The only way to increase the size of the muscle is to apply progressive overloading, ie, continually increase the weight.  And unless you're consistently gaining weight, that's not happening.  You'll get to a point where there will be no change.  Doing more sets at a lower weight only serves to increase the endurance of your mucle, not build on it's size and strength.

You have to decide what your goals are.  Do you want muslce definition?  Or do you want "skinny" legs?

Kate504

i prefer doing them with weights because i don't feel like i am doing anything with my own BW. i think with weight is better even a small amount at first and then building up as your muscles progress. Remember muscles take up less room and burn calories when you are sedent

sherrbearr22

Raynes - My main goal is to reduce the appearance of cellulite on my upper thighs and butt.  The way I understand it is that I have to do cardio to lose weight and eat a healthy diet in order to reduce cellulite.  But the reason I wanted to know, specifically, if I will still see any differnece with body weight squats alone was because I don't want my legs to get bigger or appear bulky...

What are your thoughts on this?

Thanks again!

natalienoelle27

Everyone's body is different. Ive had trainers my entire life tell me that I should be doing them with weights. My legs ALWAYS got bigger! Even though the trainer would swear up and down they wouldn't! Do what works best for your body. I have been a fitness model for years and what works for me is doing a lot of reps with little to no weight. Unless like you said you want to gain size. I genetically have very muscular legs and I don't need to add weights as you might not either. Using your body weight is sufficient unless you want to gain mass.

raynes

The only thing that I've noticed has reduced the appearance of cellulite in my legs is building muscle.  When I lost weight through calorie restriction alone it didn't make much difference.

Weighted squats would be much more efficient at both building muscle and burning fat than BW squats, that much is for sure.

I always stress that women won't become bulky by lifting and using heavy weights, but the truth of the matter is that some women are more predisposed to building muscle mass than others.  Your legs may get bigger, faster, than others while using weights.  However, if I were you, I'd rather have the muscles and learn to love my strong legs than wimp out with only BW squats when I knew I could do more.

sherrbearr22

Natalie,

You sound like you have a similar body type to mine.  I have never used weights while doing squats before but in this class it seems like all of the women load their bars up really heavily.  The reason I have not yet, (and why I posted this q) is because a.) when I took spinning classes my legs got huge and I went up a pant size and b.) if I use any handweights above 10lbs my arms bulk up very quickly.  So, I assumed the rest of my body would probably bulk just as easily.  But you're right, I should try it out and see what is best for my body!

natalienoelle27

Sherrbearr...I think we do have the same issues. It sounds like you know how lifting weights affects YOUR body. I absolutely believe lifting heavy weights makes ME bulky. So trust yourself and go with what you know!