issues with being "thick" vs being "fat"

hey everyone, i hoping someone here can help me out....

currently i am 5'10" and weigh approx 165lbs.  i've been trying to lose 20lbs for the better part of 2 years.  i've been doing pretty good at maintaining my weight at 165 and if i lose any lbs... ill get down to 160 and a handful of times i've seen 155, but that was very short lived.

the problem is i wouldnt call myself "fat" because i cant really pinch my love handes, i dont really have flabby arms or legs, but i am really thick.  i have a bubble butt with thick llegs and a big torso, so i dont look good in tank tops or cute shorts because of this thickness. 

currently i workout anywhere from 4 to 6 times a week, but i was wondering if there are specific foods, a workout plan or something that i could do to look leaner and perhaps lose this weight that has been haunting me for years.. :( 

I don't know if this is the answer you are looking for, but perhaps that is just the shape of your figure. I don't know that you can alter nature. If you exercise regularly and maintain your weight easily and find losing, even when restricting calories, very difficult, perhaps you are at your optimum weight. You can lose fat with aerobic exercise and tone your muscles with strength training but a lot of your "shape" is just genetic. I think part of life is acceptance -- maybe you can learn to love your powerful body instead of thinking of it as thickness? :)

Or... I might be completely wrong. lol

Are you classed as overweight, or are you within your healthy weight range and just looking to get a little lower?  If "thickness" is a problem, you can increase cardio and cut back on weight training.  Yoga also helps to lengthen muscles.  meg is right though, alothugh you may be able to alter it a bit, frame size is genetic and can't really be changed. 

As megmc135 said, we all are pre-destened to a certain body type and lean but thick is usually a good thing.  You can "lean-out" by getting into a high intensity endurance type cardio routine such as running or cycling for distance. 

you are within a healthy weight range. yoga and running will make your mucsles longer and leaner, but you have to find the things you like about yourself if you ever want to have self esteem. God made you and I know He thinks you look great, You are taking good care of the body He gave ya!

I know dancers and actors do Pilates to give themselves long, lean muscles. That may give you more of the slender look you are going for. Good luck!

OMG   I too suffer from THICK I am thinking it maybe all the exercising.  I am building muscle but not losing body fat ???

buffbetty unless you're making an effort to gain muscle, you're not. People don't wake up one day and realize "OH MY GOD I'm ready for a body building competition!" It takes more effort for a woman to get bulky than most of us would want to give: a precision work out, eating 3000 calories-all over those carefully planned out. You have to eat a lot over what you spend calorically to get bulky so please don't let your exercise suffer!

If somehow you are gaining a bunch of muscle, thank your lucky stars because your metabolism is going crazy in a fabulous way!

The same thing was happening to me, until I changed my workout.  I had always used weights and circuit training with a little work on the stationary bike but I was remaining thick.  I only lost the thickness when I switched to aerobics (45 minutes of constant movement) class; at first I went to the class with friends just to work out as a group, and the thickness started to melt off.

The research behind it is:

Pear shaped people with more mass on their legs and slimmer up top lose more when working out with weights.

Apple shaped people like us with thicker trunks and arms and upper body lose weight faster with aerobics.

For us who are thick we have great muscle tone, but we need to do a metabolic workout that gets our heart rate up and where we work out our whole bodies and tone our muscles to burn the fat that can stay trapped up top on us.  Our bodies fight us the whole way by storing fat around our waits, upper arms and back, places that if you notice are very hard to work out.

This is why walking, dancing, running, swimming, basketball, martial arts and cycling are so great for toning a thick body.

Try the Turbo Jam DVD's, which you can get used on Amazon or Ebay.  They have both a 20 and 40 minute workout that gets the heart rate up.  The DVD's like the Firm where you are always stopping the aerobic to stretch or lift weights just wont' cut it if you are thick.  Unfortunately if you are thick you have to sweat the weight off which I personally hate!  But it's the only way to melt the thickness. 

The old fashioned aerobics with the music blasting where you are always moving is the best.  The whole Billy Blanks stand and kick just won't work because you don't keep the heart rate up.

fifiloo,

I think that body type workout thing is a bunch of malarchy.  A consistant program of weights and cardio will help anyone of any size lose weight.  No body part should be neglected during training.  What kind of weights were you using?  Were you using free weights or machines?  Heavy or light weights?  You are never going to "tone" a muscle doing cardio....its impossible.  You will lose fat but also loose muscle if you are not weight training.  Don't get me wrong I believe in cardio.  I do 20 min sessions 3 times a week and I am doing just fine....I would be considered a thicker girl as well, by the way.

Tae bo does get ones heart rate up plenty if you are putting effort into it, my heart goes like crazy and I sweat all over the place.   Excellent workout for the home

I had the same problem several months back. looking "thick" and wanting to wear shorts...

I started stretching on a regular basis, and I've taken up a Yoga course (NOT power yoga that is more like strength training, but rather relaxing meditation-type yoga) and I look a lot leaner. I'd recommend stretching your legs, arms, torso on a regular basis.

I 'suffer' from thick as well.

I can never get below a size 6 pants no matter what I do, and my mother is losing weight and she has become a stick and she weighs more than me! It might be part genetic, but some random chance too because I am the only 'thick' one in my family.