My legs are just one thing on a long list of parts that need toning. But I think I want to begin with the legs.

I come from a long line of stout women - we aren't massive, but definitely built large. I already have genetics playing against me, but I'm sick of having fat thighs. Besides walking, does anyone have any suggestions for exercises that will thin my thighs a little bit?

Maybe stretching exercies too - I constantly seem to pull something in my right thigh when I move in a certain way and it tends to hurt quite a bit.

My favorite thing to do for my legs is to jog. Jogging has also helped me burn fat in my midsection as well and I finally have the abs I really want after all my hard work. You can also try the elliptical machine if you have access to one or use a bike. Any of these are great for the legs.

Lunges and squats are great for building muscle. These are good to do in addition to the cardio exercise above to get your legs looking good. It will firm them up while the cardio will burn fat.

Just keep in mind that some people naturally carry more weight in certain areas and you may have to really work at it. I know I gain weight in my midsection easily so I really have to watch my diet and do my cardio. My legs naturally get muscular, so I don't have to do a whole lot of weights for my legs and they look fine mostly from the jogging. It's trial and error... try out a routine and you can always change it up if it isn't working well for you! Good luck!

Thanks for your reply, tUrRrRa.

Unfortunately for me, jogging is something I could enver do, even when I was 60 pounds lighter. I lose my breath extremely easily and often am unable to breathe properly for up to an hour after the jog. I will try the lunges and squats, though. I had to do those in high school, but I'd much rather do those than jog because I can actually do those for longer than ten seconds. :)

How about walking? Doing ONLY lunges won't do the trick because you need some sort of cardio exercise in order to burn fat. Walking should work well too! I know some ladies who would go for walks around the neighborhood and lost a lot of weight doing that. You just have to keep up with it! I like to download a lot of good music for my Ipod and don't let myself listen to it except for during my workouts so it's something to look forward to.

I do that sometimes too. I'll put a new battery in my MP3 player, fill it to capacity with music and just go out and walk for 30-60 minutes or until my feet hurt. I don't do this when the weather is really hot because I sweat very easily and, for some reason, it bothers me a lot when my back gets sweaty and my shirt sticks to me as a result.

I can usually do well walking - some days I would walk to the thrift store (which is a 5-mile round trip) and spend two more hours walking around in the store...I need to do that more often.

If you are getting short of breath as easy as it sounds I would recommend seeing a doctor, this could be a number of different issues. tUrRrRa is correct though, you really need to add cardio, and if you have a medical condition I would highly recommend speaking with a doctor to see how you can battle it.

This means you will also need to be just that much better with your nutrition, make sure you are eating extremely clean, and make sure to strictly monitor your calories, this alone can only have a positive effect on your possible medical condition and your weight.

With diet alone you CAN lose weight, and if all you can do is walk, then that is far better then nothing. You will not achieve results as fast as if you were to intensely exercise, but you have to do what your body allows. Most likely when you start getting in better shape you will see your short of breath problems diminish, and you can accelerate your workouts. People have fought heart problems, diabetes, and even cancer with good nutrition and exercise, so your short of breath problem is definitely manageable, and likely can be completely overcome.

All the best, Brad