Having a 34 inch leg circumference means one of two things; either you’re a bodybuilder, or your thighs are storing a lot of excess fat.
Some people have medical conditions that cause disproportionate amounts of fat to accumulate on their legs compared to their upper bodies.
Others have genetically muscular legs, which, when combined with powerlifting or bodybuilding training, causes their quads to balloon to 34 inches.
With this in mind, the following guide, which uses 4 real-life case studies, analyzes the pros and cons of having 34 inch legs.
How big are 34 inch quads?
Considering that 34 inch quads are around 12 inches bigger than average, your legs are extremely big if they measure 34 inches.
Many men, for example, have waists that are 34 inches. So your legs have some serious meat on them if they truly are 34 inches.
But what causes someone to have 34 inch thighs in the first place?
Some men and women just have genetically muscular legs. And so, when you add a bit of excess body fat into the equation, their thighs can easily grow disproportionately big compared to the rest of their body parts.
On the other hand, years and decades of heavy squats can lead to the development of 34 inch quads, especially if the lifter has a big frame and bulks up to 20% body fat and beyond.
Who has 34 inch thighs?
See what 34 inch thighs look like on people of different heights, builds, and body fat levels.
Garage Muscle
The man behind the YouTube channel Garage Muscle posted a video of himself showing what real 34 inch quads look like.
As you can see, his thighs are absolutely massive and surprisingly lean for a pair of tree trunks that measure 34 inches.
Of course, it takes years and perhaps decades of heavy, progressive leg training to build quads this big. But it just shows that with good leg genetics and the determination to lift hard, it’s possible to build bigger thighs than 99% of gym-goers.
Rich Piana
When Rich Piana was competing, he had lean 34 inch quads. His legs were, in fact, one of his best body parts on stage. He used to say that they actually made his upper body look smaller than it really was.
Once he stopped competing, Piana purposely downsized his legs so that his thighs wouldn’t rub together, which he said made walking around very impractical.
He also noted that squats are the key mass-building exercise that you need to be doing if you want to grow your legs. Since free-weight squats are so hard, it’s often not the answer to their leg training questions that lifters want to hear; but it’s the reality that they need to hear if they want to get 34 inch quads.
Ryan Crowley
At the age of just 23, Ryan Crowley had colossal 34 inch quads. In the video, he flexes his quads next to Larry Wheels—who is huge in his own right—and completely dwarfs him.
At 34 inches, Crowley has bigger thighs than many Olympia competitors, a feat which is made all the more impressive considering that he’s very tall.
His huge 34 inch quads are bigger than some men’s waists while also being considerably leaner. It’s amazing what capacity the human body has to carry muscle mass!
Heather Johnson
Heather Johnson is a model who decided to embrace her 34 inch thighs after struggling with excess weight her whole life. [1]
Since finding out about her condition, however, Heather became much more optimistic and grew in confidence.
Lipedema is a painful health condition that causes large amounts of fat to build up around your legs. [2]
People with lipedema often feel like their legs, which bruise more easily than normal, are pulling their body down to the ground, which can make it difficult to perform simple everyday activities.
Is it bad to have 34 inch legs?
As you saw above, some people have 34 inch thighs through no fault of their own.
But despite this, having 34 inch legs is often indicative of obesity, which increases your risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, disability, and depression. [3]
So while you shouldn’t be ashamed of the way you look, there appears to be no healthy reason for someone to have 34″ thighs.
This is also true for bodybuilders with 34 inch quads.
While such a thigh size may well look impressive and earn you a good career as a bodybuilder, there are undeniable downsides to carrying around excessive amounts of body mass, even if it’s mostly lean mass.
The verdict: How normal is it to have 34 inch thighs?
34 inch thighs are much bigger than normal. The good news, however, is that you can drastically slim your thighs—and other problem areas—by reducing your body weight.
Losing weight necessities being in an energy deficit which, in simple terms, means eating fewer calories than your body requires to maintain its current weight.
Also, the more fat that you have now, the more dramatic your transformation will be down the road.
Even for a bodybuilder, 34 inch legs are still on the large side and are a sign that a competitor has very good leg genetics indeed.
References
- Ibrahim, S. (2021, August 23). Model embraces 34-inch thighs: ‘If I didn’t lose weight, I would die’. New York Post. https://nypost.com/2021/08/23/woman-with-34-inch-thighs-embraces-life-as-curve-model/
- NHS website. (2021b, November 18). Lipoedema. Nhs.Uk. https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/lipoedema/
- Hruby, A., & Hu, F. B. (2014). The Epidemiology of Obesity: A Big Picture. PharmacoEconomics, 33(7), 673–689. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40273-014-0243-x