How to pump up your inner thighs at home

Squats are one of the most popular exercises around the world. It has a lot of variations, and one of them is plie squats. This is one of the few exercises that works the inner thigh, a problem area for many people. The word plie comes from ballet, where it means “to bend the leg.” In this case, the feet are turned as far as possible to the side, which is why a movement of this type is known as a plie squat.

Features of the exercise

The plie squat effectively works the lower body. By varying its technique, you can independently determine which muscles will work better - the gluteal or quadriceps. This exercise is especially popular among girls who want to achieve the ideal shape of their hips and buttocks, but at the same time not increase the massiveness of their legs. With the right plié technique this can be easily achieved while also improving flexibility and coordination.

In the gym, to work out the inner thighs, girls use exercise machines to lower and spread their legs. It is recommended to do a wide plie squat in front of them. This is a basic exercise designed to work the inner thigh. You should get into the simulator after it.

Massage treatments using cream and scrub

Anti-cellulite massage helps get rid of fat on the legs. To begin with, apply a warming cream to the desired area, then wipe it off with massaging movements. It is best to do it after a shower with a scrub.

A homemade exfoliator is much more effective than a store-bought exfoliator. The composition can be selected individually. Suitable ingredients include vegetable oil with sea salt, cinnamon, coffee, honey, kefir. You can apply it during a shower, in a bath or sauna, alternating warm water with cold water to improve blood circulation and enhance the effect.

You can remove fat from your thighs if you exercise regularly and choose proper nutrition, not just for a while, but make it an integral part of your life. An integrated approach will allow you to see the result within a couple of months, the skin will become smooth, toned, and your legs will be noticeably slimmer.

What muscles work?

First of all, such squats effectively load the hips and buttocks, namely the gluteus maximus, quadriceps, hamstrings and, very importantly, the inner thighs. In addition, stabilizer muscles such as the calves, quadratus lumborum and the muscle responsible for straightening the spine work. Thus, plie squats, which muscles work in which, you can see in the photo below, are an effective tool for working out the lower body.

Correct technique

You already know what a plie is, now you need to figure out the technique for performing it. There are different variations of the exercise, and in this paragraph we will look at squats without weights. Before you start practicing, consider the following points:

Stretching is extremely important in the plie squat . You will need to squat deep enough and turn your knees, and without preparing the ligaments this will be extremely difficult. Therefore, we will consider the issue of stretching separately below.
Clothes should not restrict your movements. It should be such that even theoretically you could do the splits in it.
Use stable shoes with hard soles. You can wear weightlifting weights.

Now about proper stretching. You will need to work your lower back and leg ligaments. For the lower back, the classic method is used - with straight legs we try to reach the floor with our hands. You can use tilts and turns. To stretch your legs, it is better to use a Swedish wall. You need to approach her and throw your leg as high as you can. Then the leg needs to be straightened. Bend over, stretch your ligaments. Try to fix your body in positions where you feel slight pain. To stretch your legs, try doing the splits, spreading your legs as far apart as you can.

Let's look at how to do plie correctly without weights . The execution technique will be as follows:

Your legs should be spread as wide as possible, with your toes turned in different directions. Place your hands on your waist. You need to keep your head and back straight.
Inhale and squat until your thighs are parallel to the horizontal surface, your knees are perpendicular to the inner surface, and your knees are perpendicular to your feet. Stay in this position for a couple of seconds.
Exhale, return to the starting position. Do the exercise the required number of times and approaches.

The plie exercise without weights is suitable for beginners. Having mastered it, you can proceed to complicated variations with weights.

Supports muscle tone

Another great way to remove cellulite from your inner thighs is through muscle toning approaches. They are easy to perform, but thanks to regular practice they will help you forget about orange peels on your legs forever.

High chair. This exercise is static and can be performed anywhere. It is enough to lean your back against the wall, bend your knees at an angle of 45 degrees, and hold the pose for 30 seconds. 4 approaches will be enough.
Frog. Starting position: sit on the floor in a frog position, heels touching the floor, hands resting on a flat surface. With a sharp movement, the entire body lifts off the floor, making a jump upward. It is important to keep your feet together and make a slight turn in the air. You need to do the jumps for a minute, alternating turns in different directions.
Ball. You need to sit on a chair, put your legs straight, at an angle of 90 degrees and hold the ball between your knees. As you inhale, squeeze it with all your might, hold the position for a minute, and then release it.

There is also a set of exercises for the adductor muscles of the thigh, which will always keep the muscles toned and the thighs will look beautiful and toned.

Varieties of plie squats

The plie squat, the technique of which you know, can also be performed with weights - one or two dumbbells, a kettlebell, or a barbell. This will help improve their efficiency. At home, instead of shells, you can use ordinary bottles filled with water.

Plie squats with dumbbells

For girls, the optimal weight of the projectile is up to 3.5 kg. Guys should use a heavier dumbbell. The exercise will help to effectively work the same buttocks and inner thighs. The technique for performing a plie squat in this case will be as follows:

You need to pick up the projectile and hold it between your legs with outstretched arms. Spread your legs as wide as possible, pointing your toes out to the side. Keep your head and back straight, look ahead.
Take a deep breath and sit down. In this case, the line of the hips should run parallel to the horizontal surface, and the knees and feet should be in the same plane. Stay in this position for a couple of seconds.
Exhale, return to the starting position, repeat the exercise as many times as necessary.

Kettlebell Squats

A kettlebell can be used instead of a dumbbell as a weighting agent. Select the weight of the apparatus individually, but you should feel comfortable performing the exercise with it. The same parts of the body work in this case.

Squats with two dumbbells

This exercise requires two dumbbells. It is advisable to take a weight of at least 2.5 kg. Follow this technique:

Take dumbbells in your hands, hold them at chest level between you. Spread your legs as wide as possible, turn your toes to the sides. Keep your head and back straight.
Squat after inhaling, at the bottom point your thigh line should be parallel to the surface. Hold for a couple of seconds, exhale and return back.

Also, the plie exercise for the inner thighs can be performed using two platforms . The technique in this case will be like this:

Place the platforms so that your legs are stable on them, take the starting position characteristic of such squats.
Use a dumbbell or a belt with the option of using weights in the form of pancakes (this option is more suitable for men).
Slowly lower yourself as far as possible. Pay attention to your knees. They should not go to the sides or jump out beyond the edges of the foot.
You can linger at the bottom point for a couple of seconds, then come back. At the top, try not to stop. Once you reach the top, lower yourself down. Repeat the exercise the required number of times.

If there is no platform, you can take large pancakes and place them on top of each other. You can also use two benches placed side by side. At home, you can use two low stools or chairs, but make sure they are stable.

Features of choosing a training accessory

A fitness band for the legs and buttocks or other muscle groups can be called many different things. This parameter must be taken into account during the search process, because the accessory does not have a single name. Often inexperienced athletes mistake other types of sports equipment for a mini-band, for example, a rubber band, tape or loops. For home physical activity, it is possible to use leg expanders or elastic bands, but a rubber band is used in strength training and crossfit.

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This training accessory is available in several levels of load, which depends on the hardness of the material. Today, each level has its own designation: in most cases they are marked with different colors. There is no one universal rule for all brands of sports equipment, therefore it is very important before purchasing an assistant to check with the manufacturer for information about the labeling of different degrees of load.

bands for home fitness; for this reason, it is recommended to purchase the entire set of this accessory of varying hardness. Thanks to them, athletes will be able to simultaneously work on all the necessary zones. It is recommended to select the load level according to your own preferences so that a person feels how the muscles are working at the moment. For example, to perform fitness exercises for the buttocks and legs, it is recommended to give preference to an elastic band with medium characteristics or hard. To increase the load on these muscles, you can wear both elastic bands.

Contraindications and precautions

There are conditions in which plie squats may be contraindicated. These are injuries to the spine or knees, hernia, varicose veins, and cancer. If in doubt, it is better to consult a doctor.

It is worth considering common mistakes when performing the exercise. One of them is if you bend forward too much. This usually happens when doing barbell squats if a person is afraid of falling. To avoid this, place a bench behind you so that you can sit on it while moving. Then remove the bench and try squatting lower. There are also other mistakes to avoid:

Knees “walking” from side to side. This can happen if a person does not have enough stretching or the ligaments in his knees are weak. This can also be a consequence of poor technique, in which the feet are not separated enough and you are trying to turn your knees further. This problem can be solved by improving stretching and coordinated work of the feet and knees.
Looking at the floor. You need to keep your head straight or look up slightly.
The dumbbell may dangle between your legs because your arms are too tense. Keep in mind that gravity must work for you. She can even the weight perpendicular to the floor herself. Just trust her.
The mistake may be that you do not stand wide enough and your knees go beyond the line of your feet.
The legs are fully straightened at the top point. This is wrong because the muscles relax and the effectiveness of the exercise decreases. Pay attention to the position of your legs. They should be slightly bent so that you can maintain balance.
If you squat shallowly, with a small amplitude, then the meaning of the exercise is lost, since only the front and outer part of the thighs will sway. The peculiarity of the plie is that it can also work the inner part of the thigh, and to do this you need to drop below parallel with the floor.

When performing plie squats, the legs should work, not the lower back!

First, plie squats, photos of which will help you determine the correct technique, can be performed in front of a mirror. This way you can see many errors and correct them immediately. Also consider the following:

Don't chase the scales. The inner thigh is easily injured and takes a long time to heal. Before moving on to weights, warm up using light weights.
The dumbbell can be replaced with a weight plate, but holding it is more difficult. You can attach it to a special belt designed for weights. This option is convenient because you can free your hands. But in this case you need to study on platforms.
If you have discomfort in your knees, you can use elastic bandages. Sometimes it doesn't help. In any case, it is important to listen to your body to prevent injury.
Stop doing the exercise if you feel pain in the inner thigh, otherwise injury is inevitable. If pain bothers you constantly, consult your doctor.
As you move down, move your pelvis back to better target your glutes.
Plie squats are recommended to be done at the beginning or in the middle of classes.
For greater effectiveness of the exercise, keep your muscles under maximum tension and do not let them relax.

Removing the inner thighs: diet

First of all, you need to adjust your diet. You probably won't be able to lose your inner thighs in a week because the fat in that area is so nasty. But gradually and purposefully you can achieve your goal, ensuring the sustainability of the result.

The diet should be complete, but such that the body can have time to digest incoming food without storing it as fat. It is important to create a schedule for eating and follow it. It is better to eat little and often - this will help speed up the metabolism and reduce the volume of the stomach.

For the body to function normally, it must receive proteins, fats and carbohydrates in sufficient quantities. If he does not receive enough valuable components, he begins to accumulate fat reserves, which makes itself felt by excess volumes in the hip area too. It is important to monitor your diet so that it is correct, moderate, balanced and complete.

To prevent carbohydrates from causing excess weight gain, it is better to eat them in the first half of the day, when they are better absorbed. The ideal breakfast is porridge and complex carbohydrates. Fats are best consumed at lunchtime. It is recommended to eat soup for lunch. You can eat protein foods in the evening. Sources of protein are lean meat, fish, dairy products.

If you want to cope with such a task as losing weight in the inner thigh, prohibit yourself from fast food, chips, large quantities of sweets and other unhealthy foods. If you feel hungry between meals, eat fruits, vegetables, herbs, and a handful of nuts.

Drink a glass of water before every meal. In general, it is important to drink a lot to lose weight. Water helps control appetite and normalizes metabolism. But it’s better to avoid carbonated waters and store-bought packaged juices.