How to get a Thigh Gap

Now you might first be wondering - "What is a thigh gap???"

Basically it is a term commonly used by fashion-conscious young women to describe legs so skinny that the thighs don't touch when your knees are together.

It is therefore a standard of beauty to which very few women in North America fulfill - Not even Marilyn Monroe had legs that skinny.

It is the kind of legs you would typically see on a teenager or a woman in her 20s who does a lot of jogging, cycling or possibly ballet dancing.

So if you're looking for tips on how to achieve your own personal "thigh gap" then there are three very goods tips for you - running, jogging, cycling and/or dancing - basically any kind of cardio is good for you.

But lets not stop with cardio exercises. What other things could you do to help you get those skinny legs? And do it a healthy way using exercise and diet!

#1. Start limiting your intake of fatty dairy. Avoid cheese, cream, ice cream and anything more than 1% milk. Aim instead for skim milk.

#2. Avoid foods with high sugar or high carbs. Aim for breads with whole grains or multi-grains. Avoid white rice too, aim for brown rice instead.

#3. Eat your veggies and lots of them! Berries, nuts, fruits are good too. Avoid avocados however, they're very fattening.

#4. One way of measuring your legs - Stretch your leg along the floor and pinch the top of your thigh. If you can pinch a lot, it’s more fat; if you can barely get a grip, it is more muscle. Chances are much more its fat so you goal will be fat burning via diet and exercise. If its all muscle than you must be a freaking bodybuilder to have Popeye legs - in which case you won't really be able to do much and in theory would want to avoid exercising your legs if you really want a Thigh Gap.

#5. Daily stretches for your legs! Stretching (including yoga and pilates) helps elongates the muscles and gives you taller looking legs.

#6. Do jumping jacks in the pool/water - the light resistance of the water plus the cardio will help you build lean muscle.

#7. Don’t starve yourself because that will just result in yo-yo dieting - which will lead to loose skin and flabby thighs - Don't over-exercise either. Instead try to eat something small every two hours to keep your metabolism level. Eat moderate amounts of protein but stick mostly to fruits and vegetables.

#8. In addition to basic strength-building / stretching exercises you need to be doing cardio every day. Jogging and running is best, but you can also just walk, cycle, swim or even engage in more fun activities like volleyball, rollerblading or boxing.

#9. You can eat a big meal once in awhile because it helps with metabolism plateaus and makes your metabolism speed up!

#10. Do a lot of jump squats, squats, plie squats, lunges, reverse lunges. For extra challenge use 5 lbs dumbbells in each hand. Walk every day, and jog or bicycle 20 minutes at least twice a week. Do yoga or stretches at least once a week for an hour to stretch and relax muscles.

#11. Aim to eat 5 small and super healthy meals per day. Or if you can't 3 medium meals and 2 snacks in the late morning and mid-afternoon. Remember to take your vitamins and drink LOTS of water too. If bored of water try broths, teas, and pure fruit/veggie juices, and drinking protein shakes if you feel weak/tired.

#12. Dancing in the privacy of your home works really well for some people. The music can get you really fired up to do jumping jacks, abs and squats too. There are plenty of dance videos on YouTube.

#13. Stop drinking regular sodas, coffee with add ins, or any drink with calories and lots of sugar. Liquid calories are a huge factor in weight gain and if you cut them out, you will see results! If you must have caffeine for work in the morning, then only drink in the morning. No more caffeine after 2 PM.

#14. Get LOTS of sleep. Aim to be in bed reading a boring book by 10 PM and awake by 7 AM. On weekends try to get naps. Extra sleep helps recharge your body and speed up metabolism.

#15. Ignore anyone who claims Spot Training works. It does NOT work. (Spot training is the idea that if you exercise one muscle or set of muscles that you will lose fat in that one region. It doesn't work that way. If you want to lose fat, then you lose fat everywhere.)

#16. Stay hydrated - Drinking lots of water is very important. If you start to get a headache, drink water. Avoid alcohol, caffeine and anything that will dehydrate you. Toxins from smoking are also bad because fat cells store toxins and your brain won't burn fat cells with a high toxicity, so you need to detoxify your body by drinking lots of water and avoiding toxins.

#17. If you lose weight quickly, you can get saggy loose skin on your legs, stomach, under arms and thighs - which will look really awful. To avoid this aim to lose weight slowly - about 2 lbs or less per week, and use a moisturizing lotion (Aveeno works great) and lather it on your problem areas as much as you possibly can to help moisturize and improve the elasticity of your skin so it tightens up faster as you lose weight. See more of my tips on how to avoid loose skin.

#18. Don't give up if you don't see improvements right away. Instead what you need to do is set yourself a long term goal - like 25 lbs in 25 weeks. Then get yourself a scale and check your weight once per week, on a specific day and time such as Saturday morning after your shower. Don't bother checking every day because your weight will fluctuate a lot daily from eating, drinking, urination, etc.

#19. Stay motivated. Keep coming back to CardioTrek.ca for more advice on a regular basis. Better yet subscribe by email and get updates whenever new posts go up.

#20. Hire a personal trainer to help you stay motivated. If you live in Toronto you can hire me.