Do Squats Make Your Legs Bigger Or Smaller?

If you join a gym, attend almost any fitness class, or ask a PT for advice on how to slim down your legs– chances are you’re going to end up doing lots of squats.

But, do squats make your thighs bigger or smaller, or do they actually increase thigh size? Will you end up with bigger legs overall and lots of squatting?

This is the question I get from a lot of girls, especially the ones who feel like they have issues with getting thinner thighs in general.

So, let’s find out.

WHICH MUSCLES DO SQUATS WORK?

The squat is one of the best compound exercises, meaning multiple muscles are activated at once – your glutes, hamstrings, quadriceps, and calves.

This is why squats are included in the majority of fitness programs and routines.

Squats will hit multiple muscles at once and (in most cases) give you a fantastic-looking butt– which is the desired fitness goal for most girls.

But, doing a high volume of squats (especially with heavy weights) will definitely increase the size of your legs (quads and hamstrings).

So if your goal is to specifically slim down your legs – doing squats is NOT the way to go, as doing lots of squats will most likely make your thighs bigger, not slimmer.

Only one female body type can benefit from squats by getting toned legs without becoming bulky. Let me explain how different body types respond to exercise in various ways.

DIFFERENT BODY TYPES RESPOND TO EXERCISE DIFFERENTLY

Are your legs getting bigger from doing squats even though you see your friend getting slimmer legs with the same workouts?

You most likely have different body types.

There are 3 main female body types- ectomorph, mesomorph, and endomorph, and each responds differently to the same diet and workout regime.

And actually, 2 out of 3 female body types can get too muscular!

Endomorphs and mesomorphs build muscle quickly, while ectomorphs usually struggle to gain any muscle size.

Some girls don’t mind growing muscles in their legs as long as they’re building a booty, while others feel like their thighs get bulky from doing lots of squats.

I was one of them.

I did lots and lots of squats, hoping to slim down my legs, but ended up feeling bulky, especially in my thighs.

My legs grew twice in size. I had trouble fitting into my old jeans and shorts, even though I worked out consistently and closely monitored my diet.

Meanwhile, my friend—who followed the exact same gym routine—actually got thinner thighs and toned up her body.

I did countless squats and lunges, expecting my thighs to slim down, but instead, I made them bigger.

I couldn’t understand what I was doing wrong!

Then, I learned about different body types and how to adjust my workout and diet to get the results I wanted.

So, incorporating a lot of squats into your exercise routine WILL make your legs bigger—especially if you’re a mesomorph or an endomorph.

If you’re not sure what is your body type, you can take my FREE quiz that will help you find out in just 2 minutes. :)

BENEFITS OF DOING SQUATS FOR YOUR BODY

Hitting multiple muscles in your lower body burns lots of calories and makes training more efficient by working several muscles with a single exercise.

And doing squats with a proper form will also help you get a lean and toned core and a bigger booty.

But building these leg muscles increases their size, meaning your thighs and hamstrings will grow larger. But building these leg muscles increases their size, meaning your thighs and hamstrings will grow larger.

Squats don’t necessarily get rid of the fat on your legs, either. That can only be achieved with a controlled and healthy diet.

Overall, squats are a great compound workout for your body – they help you get stronger legs and a bigger, rounder booty.

I’m not saying they’re bad at all! :)

But be aware that you can get a bigger booty with other types of exercises that won’t necessarily make your thighs bigger.

CAN I GET A BIGGER BOOTY WITHOUT DOING LOTS OF SQUATS?

Squats are known as the butt-building king of exercise. And, it will definitely work your glute muscles a lot (if done properly).

But, there are still ways of growing your butt without growing your legs.

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This can be achieved with butt isolation workouts, which are especially efficient if you are quad-dominant.

The truth is unless you activate your glute muscles properly before doing lots of squats (i.e. with glute bridges), the vast majority of girls seem to be quad dominant.

This means that when doing squats, your quads (front thighs) are doing the majority of the work and firing up, while your booty…not so much.

To summarize, if you want lean/skinny legs, heavy squats won’t necessarily give you that look (unless you are an ectomorph body type and find it difficult to gain muscle/fat).

And if you want to reduce muscle bulk on your legs, you need to stop squatting.

You won’t reduce the muscle size if you continue to squat and continue to use these muscles. Use it or lose it rule, remember?

THE PRESSURE TO SQUAT 

Everywhere you look, people advocate for squats, squats, squats!

Trainers often insist that squats won’t make you too muscular, and they genuinely believe squats are the number one exercise (I know this because I worked as a personal trainer in a gym).

Whether you have too much muscle on your legs depends entirely on personal preference.

From my experience as a PT, the biggest issue is the lack of communication about the desired physique.

For instance, one person might think a woman’s legs look amazing, while another might find them too muscular.

So if a trainer wants you to achieve this look, and you don’t like it, you’re going to have a problem.

These legs are achieved by squatting with very heavy weights.

CAN I GET THINNER THIGHS WITH LIGHTER WEIGHTS AND HIGHER REPS?

If you continue to squat, you will continue to grow your leg muscles. It’s that simple.

Any workout that targets your quads heavily, will maintain or grow your muscle size (depending on your diet).

Even with lighter weights and higher reps, you’re still actively engaging these muscles.

While you might not build as much muscle as with heavy lifting, you’ll continue working these muscles, preventing any decrease in size.

To reduce muscle size, stop squatting and avoid other exercises that directly target these muscles.

This is the quickest way to decrease muscle size for any body part.

IF MY THIGHS ARE TOO BIG, CAN I JUST DIET TO SLIM THEM DOWN?

Diet will help you with reducing the fat in your body, which is great! And it will also help you reduce fat on your legs (although not as much as cardio).

If you diet and eat better, but continue to squat, your legs won’t go down in size. You can still maintain muscle at a slight calorie deficit.

So, this might help you lose weight but won’t change the size of your thighs.

Related Post: How To Slim Down Muscular Thighs

WILL SQUATS MAKE YOUR THIGHS SMALLER: SUMMARY

• Squats will most likely make your legs bigger – especially if you’re an endomorph or mesomorph (and especially if you’re doing heavy-weight squats)
• Squats increase the size of your leg muscles (especially quads, hamstrings, and glutes) and don’t do much to decrease the fat, so overall your legs will look bigger.
• If you’re trying to decrease the muscles in your legs, you need to stop squatting.

I hope you found this blog post helpful!

HOW TO EXERCISE TO GET SLIMMER THIGHS, NOT BULK UP

If doing squats has made your legs bulkier, and you would like to lean them out, I should also mention my Lean Legs Program 1, which is designed to help you get lean legs without bulkiness. :)

There are 3 different versions of my program, one for each body type.

Each version includes the right type of resistance training for one particular body type, so you can be sure you’re going to get the best possible results. 

The resistance training has FULL-LENGTH videos that you can follow from warm-up to cool down.

To find out more about my Lean Legs Program 1, CLICK HERE!

Love Rachael xx