I can't stand this, pot belly and hips have gone flat. So much sitting this winter, though!

How can you make your shape better (lower body, I guess)?

.. the best lower body exercizes are squats and lunges. With no weight.. 3 sets of 25 reps 3x a week. If you use weight then reduce the number of reps to 12. You should see a noticable difference after 3 months. Just in time for Summer.

You'll have to reduce to stomach area to give the "illusion" of an hour glass. The actual hip width is heridatary and sometimes spreads with pregnancy. You can't spread your hip bones, so you will need to work the torso and stomach to bring in the waist. Exercises that focus on the core are of the torso like pilates or even getting an exercise ball and doing crunches is a good. start. Note: there is not such thing as spot reducing, so diet is KEY. to be successful in reaching your goals you must track every morsel of food. We undersestimate the amount ot calories we consume and overestimate how much exercise we get. Tracking food consumtion brings you to reality.

I have the same problem. I have a sit down job 8hrs a day and I HATE this gut!!

When and if ever it warms up outside and there is still daylight after work I am back to walking. GOD I hope it helps.

This has been a problem for me my whole life. Large breasts and belly and no hips. I'm swaybacked, so even when I'm not overweight (the good ol' days) my belly sticks out. Walking fills out my butt so I have some shape, but I've never had the hourglass. I've noticed that my belly tends to get smaller if I cut out bloaty things, like carbonated drinks.

Oh, I'm doing crunches, trying to get that belly more in proportion, alright. I get such thin legs, though, when I finally get my stomach down from dieting.

Webalina, large breasts here, too. And when you gain weight in the stomach and bust, it's so apparent. Is where I gain it first.

I will do the lunges. I wonder if getting out and just walking wouldn't work wonders. The ice from Xmas still hasn't melted here, though. Gonna have to mall-walk, I think.

Thanks so much!

Sounds like you're built like me...like an upside-down Y. In college my measurements were 42-32-35 (same general shape now, just much higher numbers...sigh). I have a terrible time buying clothes. If they fit in the waist and tummy, they're too big in the legs and butt. If I fit my legs and butt, they're too tight in the waist.

Like I said earlier, walking is the best thing for me. I was walking about 30 minutes a day (about a mile and a half). Within just a couple of months I got a really nice butt and my legs shaped up really nicely too. And the best part is that it flattened my tummy a little too, I guess from stretching the muscles when I walked. I also lost 20 lbs and looked like I had lost more because I firmed up so well. I'm out of shape now though...haven't done the walking in a while.

Good luck!