Yoga can help you slim your entire body, including your legs. Yoga provides aerobic exercise to burn calories, as well as resistance training, to build muscle and burn fat. A consideration is that calming yoga burns fewer calories than its more intense counterparts, although it still has health benefits and provides strength training. To burn more calories, try "Flow Yoga" or "Power Yoga," which provide more of an aerobic workout along with strength training.
Targeting the Legs
Yoga includes a number of poses that specifically target your legs. Alisa Bauman of "Yoga Journal" explains that yoga standing poses work the entire legs, instead of only specific muscles in them. With the proper alignment you can learn in many yoga classes, you can strengthen muscles in your legs that are often neglected, to firm your legs for a slimmer look.
Poses
Standing poses are some of the best leg-strengtheners. The Chair pose sequence strengthens your quadriceps, inner thigh, outer thigh and hip muscles. The Chair pose tiptoe balance sequence works the same muscles as the Chair pose sequence, but adds a calf workout as you perform the pose on your tiptoes. Warrior II works your quadriceps, hamstrings, front outer thigh and hip muscles. Triangle pose works the quadriceps, inner thighs, outer thighs and hips. Some poses, aside from standing poses, also work the legs, including Staff pose, Bridge pose and Locust pose.
Nutrition
Keep in mind that to lose weight in your body and legs, it is important to focus on your diet, as well as exercise. Choose low-fat and low-calorie foods instead of high-fat and high-calorie choices. Include a variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, and -- in moderation -- nuts and seeds, in your diet. To lose 1 lb. of weight a week, you need a deficit of 500 calories per day. Use a combination of diet and exercise to achieve this.
Considerations
You might not be able to completely change the size of your legs. An October 2007 article in the "Journal of Applied Physiology" explains that the genetic factor plays a role in the shape and size of your leg muscles, which is a factor you cannot change. However, some environmental factors can also play a role, which are factors you can change. These include smoking, a pregnancy history or using oral contraceptives.
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