The training payoff:Working your abductors can firm up your outer thighs
and prevent hip injuries. Athletes and seniors should pay special attention
to strengthening their hip muscles. You need strong abductors for running,
jumping, pedaling, kicking, and skating — just about any movement that
involves your lower body. Strong abductors also are important for maintain-
ing a natural walking stride. If your hip abductors are weak, you tend to
shuffle along.
Special tips:Some exercise programs advise you to do hundreds of leg lifts
to tone this area. But as we explain in Chapter 14, following this advice won’t
get you anywhere. Work your outer thighs as you would any other muscle
group — by doing 8 to 15 moderately challenging repetitions.
Our favorite exercises:Outer-thigh machine and internal hip rotation
Leg adductors ....................................................................................
Given name:Leg adductors
Street name:Inner thighs
Whereabouts:Your adductorsare several muscles that run from inside your
hip to various points along your inner thigh (refer to Figure 12-9). You don’t
need to know each by name.
Job description:Your adductors help you move one leg in front of the other,
especially moving your leg to the midline of your body.
The training payoff:When you sit astride a horse or motorcycle, your inner
hips squeeze inward to keep you from sliding off. You also use your inner-
thigh muscles for skating, soccer, and swimming the breaststroke.
Special tips:Forget the ThighMaster and the other “thigh toner” gadgets you
see advertised on TV. You can work your inner-thigh muscles more effectively
by adding exercise bands to floor exercises or by using machines in the gym
specially designed to focus on these muscles. Don’t become fixated on ton-
ing your inner thighs; the New England Journal of Medicinereported about
a woman who had overused a thigh-toning gadget to the point that all the
tendons of her inner thighs became inflamed. Ouch.
Our favorite exercises:Inner-thigh machine and side-lying inner-thigh lift
Chapter 12: Your Muscles: Love ’Em or Lose ’Em 187