One of my colleagues, Julia Derek, a personal trainer, has started a newsletter. Check it out - adrenaline fitness ny . It contains a lot of practical advice including the best way to tone your abs, deal with “saddlebags”, etc. You can subscribe to it and receive regular email newsletters.

The following is an excerpt from her newsletter:

Ask Julia - How do I get rid of saddlebags?

Q: I’m in my mid-thirties and I exercise regularly, twice a week. All my excess fat deposits are on the sides of my legs. What is the quickest and best exercise to get rid of saddle bags on your thighs?

A: Fat deposits on the side of one’s legs is a problem many women face. It’s usually referred to as having a pear-shaped body. Few men gather fat this way. Instead, they gather it around their stomach. It’s referred to as having an apple-shaped body. The good news is that having a pear-shaped body is much healthier than being an “apple” because the fat is farther away from the heart in the “pears”. The bad news is that, opposed to the apples, it’s harder for pears to lose that pear-shape. Women are just programmed by nature to retain more fat in their bodies in this particular way. That being said, don’t despair yet. Lots of women do succeed in losing those saddle bags - AFTER they’ve lost all excess fat in every other area of their bodies. In other words, fat deposits on the sides of the legs tend to be the last fat to go. This means that you’ll have to get quite lean (skinny) over all. You’ll probably have to work out a lot more than twice a week - four or five times a week - while eating a healthy, lean diet. In terms of best exercise, try lunges and squats. However, just like I stated in the abs article in this newsletter, you can’t spot-reduce, so you should still work out your entire body - and do cardio. Basically, follow the advice I gave in that article. If you manage to become very lean and those saddlebags are still there (though they will be smaller now) try building up your shoulders. This way the saddlebags will seem even smaller and they probably won’t bother you much any more. While I hate to bring it up, a very last resort might be liposuction. I do it because I know that this one area can be impossible to get rid of for a few women and if it truly bothers them, they should go ahead and use lipo - after they’ve exhausted all other options. Just make sure you find a doctor who’s extremely good. This is NOT the time to use an affordable, mediocre one - too many things can go wrong…

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