How to lift, tone and minimize muscles
Replies
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ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »I agree muscles are hot; I’m just looking for a slightly less muscular look than Madonna’s arms. Its only one of personal preference. I want the tone, i want the muscles just lean ones
Any recommendation.
stop worrying about what celebrities look like, and focus on your own goals...
wanting less muscle mass is just dumb...
but if you want to go down that path..eat 500 calories under maintenance and do nothing for six months...enjoy the "skinny fat" look...
You have missed the entire point of my post
perhaps- but you aren't listening to what people are saying.
madonna looks odd because she is SO low in Bodyfat with very little muscle- meaning- she sint' bulky- she doesn't have any sizable muscles.
The sure fact is she looks the way she does because she has a scary low body fat and could stand to run Stronglifts 5 x 5.
how about you pick a program like strong lifts- starting strength- strong curves- nrew rules of lifting- and give that 6 months of dedicated work.
then come back and explain more about your goals.
With all due respect. Please read the article recommended by audii http://bretcontreras.com/how-to-attain-a-slender-look-like-jessica-alba-zoe-saldana/. It will help you understand my post
"
I’m talking about women who don’t want big lats, big arms, big erectors, or big quads. They just want to look slender with some decent shape, and they want to know how to best train for this purpose. Ironically, this is the type of woman that gravitates to yoga, Pilates, and certain aerobics classes because they feel that these modalities will better-help them reach their physique goals. But these systems cannot do as good of a job at physique enhancement that proper strength training can simply because we can tailor the workout to the woman.
"
. My post had nothing to do with celebrities. I used Aniston and madonna as an example to illustrate and give more clarity to my question
Also read the recommendation from other posters that had nothing to do with celebrities0 -
Post a picture of your self. If your already very thin, it won't matter how much lifting you do, you won't get bulky.
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HeidiMightyRawr wrote: »I think you're confusing the actual muscle size, with the muscle definition.
If you don't want the muscular defined look, that Madonna has, you don't have to minimise muscle growth, you just have to make sure that your body fat never drops that low. Madonna is (or at least was, at the time I'm you're presumably on about) was extemely lean. If she had a bit more body fat, she'd just look quite toned but you wouldn't see the muscles that clearly.
My advice would be to just lift. Don't worry about gaining lots of muscle, it's extremely hard especially as a woman (thanks, testosterone!) Just lift, and enjoy yourself. Find a rep range you like doing, and exercises you want to do. The ones that give the most bang for your buck are generally full body movements - think squat, bench, deadlift, but the best results are from the exercises you do regularly. If you don't like it, you're not going to stick to it.
If you want to narrow it down, generally:
2-5 reps = strength
8-12 reps = hypertrophy/muscle size (although I think food intake plays more of a role)
15+ reps = endurance
To have the muscles show = less body fat
To have the muscles not quite so defined = slightly more body fat.
To manipulate body fat, you either go into a caloric deficit, or a surplus.
Thanks Heidi. THis was helpful0 -
JeffseekingV wrote: »Post a picture of your self. If your already very thin, it won't matter how much lifting you do, you won't get bulky.
Hi. I am not Thin. I am average. I am 5.6 and weigh 150. I usually flunctuate between 145 and 153. My goal weight is 140-145. I don't want to be below 140 or above 1500 -
ttcbelieve wrote: »JeffseekingV wrote: »Post a picture of your self. If your already very thin, it won't matter how much lifting you do, you won't get bulky.
Hi. I am not Thin. I am average. I am 5.6 and weigh 150. I usually flunctuate between 145 and 153. My goal weight is 140-145. I don't want to be below 140 or above 150
I'd suggest eating at maintenance or a slight deficit and lifting heavy. The article I post had some good advice on programming.0 -
ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »I agree muscles are hot; I’m just looking for a slightly less muscular look than Madonna’s arms. Its only one of personal preference. I want the tone, i want the muscles just lean ones
Any recommendation.
stop worrying about what celebrities look like, and focus on your own goals...
wanting less muscle mass is just dumb...
but if you want to go down that path..eat 500 calories under maintenance and do nothing for six months...enjoy the "skinny fat" look...
You have missed the entire point of my post
perhaps- but you aren't listening to what people are saying.
madonna looks odd because she is SO low in Bodyfat with very little muscle- meaning- she sint' bulky- she doesn't have any sizable muscles.
The sure fact is she looks the way she does because she has a scary low body fat and could stand to run Stronglifts 5 x 5.
how about you pick a program like strong lifts- starting strength- strong curves- nrew rules of lifting- and give that 6 months of dedicated work.
then come back and explain more about your goals.
With all due respect. Please read the article recommended by audii http://bretcontreras.com/how-to-attain-a-slender-look-like-jessica-alba-zoe-saldana/. It will help you understand my post
"
I’m talking about women who don’t want big lats, big arms, big erectors, or big quads. They just want to look slender with some decent shape, and they want to know how to best train for this purpose. Ironically, this is the type of woman that gravitates to yoga, Pilates, and certain aerobics classes because they feel that these modalities will better-help them reach their physique goals. But these systems cannot do as good of a job at physique enhancement that proper strength training can simply because we can tailor the workout to the woman.
"
. My post had nothing to do with celebrities. I used Aniston and madonna as an example to illustrate and give more clarity to my question
Also read the recommendation from other posters that had nothing to do with celebrities
baw ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha
I can't. I cannot. Even.
I quit.
nope nope nope nope nope0 -
No- I can.
Listen up- the post you are quoting to me about telling me I should read- guess who wrote it?
Bret Contreras.
you know what program he wrong.
STRONG CURVES.
Go lift. then come back and tell me what you want.0 -
ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »I agree muscles are hot; I’m just looking for a slightly less muscular look than Madonna’s arms. Its only one of personal preference. I want the tone, i want the muscles just lean ones
Any recommendation.
stop worrying about what celebrities look like, and focus on your own goals...
wanting less muscle mass is just dumb...
but if you want to go down that path..eat 500 calories under maintenance and do nothing for six months...enjoy the "skinny fat" look...
You have missed the entire point of my post
perhaps- but you aren't listening to what people are saying.
madonna looks odd because she is SO low in Bodyfat with very little muscle- meaning- she sint' bulky- she doesn't have any sizable muscles.
The sure fact is she looks the way she does because she has a scary low body fat and could stand to run Stronglifts 5 x 5.
how about you pick a program like strong lifts- starting strength- strong curves- nrew rules of lifting- and give that 6 months of dedicated work.
then come back and explain more about your goals.
With all due respect. Please read the article recommended by audii http://bretcontreras.com/how-to-attain-a-slender-look-like-jessica-alba-zoe-saldana/. It will help you understand my post
"
I’m talking about women who don’t want big lats, big arms, big erectors, or big quads. They just want to look slender with some decent shape, and they want to know how to best train for this purpose. Ironically, this is the type of woman that gravitates to yoga, Pilates, and certain aerobics classes because they feel that these modalities will better-help them reach their physique goals. But these systems cannot do as good of a job at physique enhancement that proper strength training can simply because we can tailor the workout to the woman.
"
. My post had nothing to do with celebrities. I used Aniston and madonna as an example to illustrate and give more clarity to my question
Also read the recommendation from other posters that had nothing to do with celebrities
ohhhh realllly ..
from your OP..
what’s the best way to manage your diet and exercise if you want to Lift, get very toned but not gain tight muscles. By this i mean...I want a lean look like Jennifer Aniston and not the Lean muscular look of Madonna.
why do you want the look like Jennifer Anniston and Madonna if your post is not about celebrities..?
Like I said, focus on yourself and stop worrying what multi millionaire celebrities are doing...they have access to training, dieticians, nutritionists, etc that you will never have access to ...0 -
No- I can.
Listen up- the post you are quoting to me about telling me I should read- guess who wrote it?
Bret Contreras.
you know what program he wrong.
STRONG CURVES.
Go lift. then come back and tell me what you want.
Thank you for your recommendation :-) i lift already, its possible you missed that post0 -
ttcbelieve wrote: »JeffseekingV wrote: »Post a picture of your self. If your already very thin, it won't matter how much lifting you do, you won't get bulky.
Hi. I am not Thin. I am average. I am 5.6 and weigh 150. I usually flunctuate between 145 and 153. My goal weight is 140-145. I don't want to be below 140 or above 150
Depending on how you look now (which was the point of pictures) 5-10lbs might not achieve what want to achieve.0 -
ttcbelieve wrote: »No- I can.
Listen up- the post you are quoting to me about telling me I should read- guess who wrote it?
Bret Contreras.
you know what program he wrong.
STRONG CURVES.
Go lift. then come back and tell me what you want.
Thank you for your recommendation :-) i lift already, its possible you missed that post
what are you lifting? what program are you on?
also is English your first language? and how old are you?0 -
ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »I agree muscles are hot; I’m just looking for a slightly less muscular look than Madonna’s arms. Its only one of personal preference. I want the tone, i want the muscles just lean ones
Any recommendation.
stop worrying about what celebrities look like, and focus on your own goals...
wanting less muscle mass is just dumb...
but if you want to go down that path..eat 500 calories under maintenance and do nothing for six months...enjoy the "skinny fat" look...
You have missed the entire point of my post
perhaps- but you aren't listening to what people are saying.
madonna looks odd because she is SO low in Bodyfat with very little muscle- meaning- she sint' bulky- she doesn't have any sizable muscles.
The sure fact is she looks the way she does because she has a scary low body fat and could stand to run Stronglifts 5 x 5.
how about you pick a program like strong lifts- starting strength- strong curves- nrew rules of lifting- and give that 6 months of dedicated work.
then come back and explain more about your goals.
With all due respect. Please read the article recommended by audii http://bretcontreras.com/how-to-attain-a-slender-look-like-jessica-alba-zoe-saldana/. It will help you understand my post
"
I’m talking about women who don’t want big lats, big arms, big erectors, or big quads. They just want to look slender with some decent shape, and they want to know how to best train for this purpose. Ironically, this is the type of woman that gravitates to yoga, Pilates, and certain aerobics classes because they feel that these modalities will better-help them reach their physique goals. But these systems cannot do as good of a job at physique enhancement that proper strength training can simply because we can tailor the workout to the woman.
"
. My post had nothing to do with celebrities. I used Aniston and madonna as an example to illustrate and give more clarity to my question
Also read the recommendation from other posters that had nothing to do with celebrities
ohhhh realllly ..
from your OP..
what’s the best way to manage your diet and exercise if you want to Lift, get very toned but not gain tight muscles. By this i mean...I want a lean look like Jennifer Aniston and not the Lean muscular look of Madonna.
why do you want the look like Jennifer Anniston and Madonna if your post is not about celebrities..?
Like I said, focus on yourself and stop worrying what multi millionaire celebrities are doing...they have access to training, dieticians, nutritionists, etc that you will never have access to ...
This really is amusing. I really wish I could help but I don’t know how to be clearer. Again...I do not want to look like Aniston or look like Madonna or any celebrity. I do not know how else to make this any clearer. I want a lean look. If you have a lean look, then i want to look like you, if Mickey mouse has a lean look, then i want to look like Mickey, if Kermit the frog has a lean look, then i want to look like Kermit, if Stallone has a lean look then i want to look like Stallone, if Jaime, Ahmed, Michel, Yung le, Josh have a lean look then i want to look like that. I used Anniston as an example so people interested in making recommendations have some clarity on what i mean. It is still baffling to me why you still don't get this. The point is that I want a lean look. The phrase “I want a lean look like Anniston” is an illustration.
However, thanks for your recommendation :-)
0 -
ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »I agree muscles are hot; I’m just looking for a slightly less muscular look than Madonna’s arms. Its only one of personal preference. I want the tone, i want the muscles just lean ones
Any recommendation.
stop worrying about what celebrities look like, and focus on your own goals...
wanting less muscle mass is just dumb...
but if you want to go down that path..eat 500 calories under maintenance and do nothing for six months...enjoy the "skinny fat" look...
You have missed the entire point of my post
perhaps- but you aren't listening to what people are saying.
madonna looks odd because she is SO low in Bodyfat with very little muscle- meaning- she sint' bulky- she doesn't have any sizable muscles.
The sure fact is she looks the way she does because she has a scary low body fat and could stand to run Stronglifts 5 x 5.
how about you pick a program like strong lifts- starting strength- strong curves- nrew rules of lifting- and give that 6 months of dedicated work.
then come back and explain more about your goals.
With all due respect. Please read the article recommended by audii http://bretcontreras.com/how-to-attain-a-slender-look-like-jessica-alba-zoe-saldana/. It will help you understand my post
"
I’m talking about women who don’t want big lats, big arms, big erectors, or big quads. They just want to look slender with some decent shape, and they want to know how to best train for this purpose. Ironically, this is the type of woman that gravitates to yoga, Pilates, and certain aerobics classes because they feel that these modalities will better-help them reach their physique goals. But these systems cannot do as good of a job at physique enhancement that proper strength training can simply because we can tailor the workout to the woman.
"
. My post had nothing to do with celebrities. I used Aniston and madonna as an example to illustrate and give more clarity to my question
Also read the recommendation from other posters that had nothing to do with celebrities
ohhhh realllly ..
from your OP..
what’s the best way to manage your diet and exercise if you want to Lift, get very toned but not gain tight muscles. By this i mean...I want a lean look like Jennifer Aniston and not the Lean muscular look of Madonna.
why do you want the look like Jennifer Anniston and Madonna if your post is not about celebrities..?
Like I said, focus on yourself and stop worrying what multi millionaire celebrities are doing...they have access to training, dieticians, nutritionists, etc that you will never have access to ...
This really is amusing. I really wish I could help but I don’t know how to be clearer. Again...I do not want to look like Aniston or look like Madonna or any celebrity. I do not know how else to make this any clearer. I want a lean look. If you have a lean look, then i want to look like you, if Mickey mouse has a lean look, then i want to look like Mickey, if Kermit the frog has a lean look, then i want to look like Kermit, if Stallone has a lean look then i want to look like Stallone, if Jaime, Ahmed, Michel, Yung le, Josh have a lean look then i want to look like that. I used Anniston as an example so people interested in making recommendations have some clarity on what i mean. It is still baffling to me why you still don't get this. The point is that I want a lean look. The phrase “I want a lean look like Anniston” is an illustration.
However, thanks for your recommendation :-)
what's wrong with wanting to be a better version of you? being stronger with less body fat?0 -
ttcbelieve wrote: »JeffseekingV wrote: »Post a picture of your self. If your already very thin, it won't matter how much lifting you do, you won't get bulky.
Hi. I am not Thin. I am average. I am 5.6 and weigh 150. I usually flunctuate between 145 and 153. My goal weight is 140-145. I don't want to be below 140 or above 150
I'd suggest eating at maintenance or a slight deficit and lifting heavy. The article I post had some good advice on programming.
I agree. I'll try your recommendation0 -
ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »I agree muscles are hot; I’m just looking for a slightly less muscular look than Madonna’s arms. Its only one of personal preference. I want the tone, i want the muscles just lean ones
Any recommendation.
stop worrying about what celebrities look like, and focus on your own goals...
wanting less muscle mass is just dumb...
but if you want to go down that path..eat 500 calories under maintenance and do nothing for six months...enjoy the "skinny fat" look...
You have missed the entire point of my post
perhaps- but you aren't listening to what people are saying.
madonna looks odd because she is SO low in Bodyfat with very little muscle- meaning- she sint' bulky- she doesn't have any sizable muscles.
The sure fact is she looks the way she does because she has a scary low body fat and could stand to run Stronglifts 5 x 5.
how about you pick a program like strong lifts- starting strength- strong curves- nrew rules of lifting- and give that 6 months of dedicated work.
then come back and explain more about your goals.
With all due respect. Please read the article recommended by audii http://bretcontreras.com/how-to-attain-a-slender-look-like-jessica-alba-zoe-saldana/. It will help you understand my post
"
I’m talking about women who don’t want big lats, big arms, big erectors, or big quads. They just want to look slender with some decent shape, and they want to know how to best train for this purpose. Ironically, this is the type of woman that gravitates to yoga, Pilates, and certain aerobics classes because they feel that these modalities will better-help them reach their physique goals. But these systems cannot do as good of a job at physique enhancement that proper strength training can simply because we can tailor the workout to the woman.
"
. My post had nothing to do with celebrities. I used Aniston and madonna as an example to illustrate and give more clarity to my question
Also read the recommendation from other posters that had nothing to do with celebrities
ohhhh realllly ..
from your OP..
what’s the best way to manage your diet and exercise if you want to Lift, get very toned but not gain tight muscles. By this i mean...I want a lean look like Jennifer Aniston and not the Lean muscular look of Madonna.
why do you want the look like Jennifer Anniston and Madonna if your post is not about celebrities..?
Like I said, focus on yourself and stop worrying what multi millionaire celebrities are doing...they have access to training, dieticians, nutritionists, etc that you will never have access to ...
This really is amusing. I really wish I could help but I don’t know how to be clearer. Again...I do not want to look like Aniston or look like Madonna or any celebrity. I do not know how else to make this any clearer. I want a lean look. If you have a lean look, then i want to look like you, if Mickey mouse has a lean look, then i want to look like Mickey, if Kermit the frog has a lean look, then i want to look like Kermit, if Stallone has a lean look then i want to look like Stallone, if Jaime, Ahmed, Michel, Yung le, Josh have a lean look then i want to look like that. I used Anniston as an example so people interested in making recommendations have some clarity on what i mean. It is still baffling to me why you still don't get this. The point is that I want a lean look. The phrase “I want a lean look like Anniston” is an illustration.
However, thanks for your recommendation :-)
what's wrong with wanting to be a better version of you? being stronger with less body fat?
I want to be stronger. I like being stronger. I like how it makes me feel. But i recently started noticing that my arms, especially my biceps are getting huge and i don't know why. I suspect, if i am to be honest with my self and based on some of the recommendations that i have read that the probelm is my diet and not the lifting. I believe i am either eating too much or eating the wrong stuff. I'll try what audii and the article said. I'll keep lifting but watch my diet a bit more. I'm pretty sure thats the problem0 -
ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »I agree muscles are hot; I’m just looking for a slightly less muscular look than Madonna’s arms. Its only one of personal preference. I want the tone, i want the muscles just lean ones
Any recommendation.
stop worrying about what celebrities look like, and focus on your own goals...
wanting less muscle mass is just dumb...
but if you want to go down that path..eat 500 calories under maintenance and do nothing for six months...enjoy the "skinny fat" look...
You have missed the entire point of my post
perhaps- but you aren't listening to what people are saying.
madonna looks odd because she is SO low in Bodyfat with very little muscle- meaning- she sint' bulky- she doesn't have any sizable muscles.
The sure fact is she looks the way she does because she has a scary low body fat and could stand to run Stronglifts 5 x 5.
how about you pick a program like strong lifts- starting strength- strong curves- nrew rules of lifting- and give that 6 months of dedicated work.
then come back and explain more about your goals.
With all due respect. Please read the article recommended by audii http://bretcontreras.com/how-to-attain-a-slender-look-like-jessica-alba-zoe-saldana/. It will help you understand my post
"
I’m talking about women who don’t want big lats, big arms, big erectors, or big quads. They just want to look slender with some decent shape, and they want to know how to best train for this purpose. Ironically, this is the type of woman that gravitates to yoga, Pilates, and certain aerobics classes because they feel that these modalities will better-help them reach their physique goals. But these systems cannot do as good of a job at physique enhancement that proper strength training can simply because we can tailor the workout to the woman.
"
. My post had nothing to do with celebrities. I used Aniston and madonna as an example to illustrate and give more clarity to my question
Also read the recommendation from other posters that had nothing to do with celebrities
ohhhh realllly ..
from your OP..
what’s the best way to manage your diet and exercise if you want to Lift, get very toned but not gain tight muscles. By this i mean...I want a lean look like Jennifer Aniston and not the Lean muscular look of Madonna.
why do you want the look like Jennifer Anniston and Madonna if your post is not about celebrities..?
Like I said, focus on yourself and stop worrying what multi millionaire celebrities are doing...they have access to training, dieticians, nutritionists, etc that you will never have access to ...
This really is amusing. I really wish I could help but I don’t know how to be clearer. Again...I do not want to look like Aniston or look like Madonna or any celebrity. I do not know how else to make this any clearer. I want a lean look. If you have a lean look, then i want to look like you, if Mickey mouse has a lean look, then i want to look like Mickey, if Kermit the frog has a lean look, then i want to look like Kermit, if Stallone has a lean look then i want to look like Stallone, if Jaime, Ahmed, Michel, Yung le, Josh have a lean look then i want to look like that. I used Anniston as an example so people interested in making recommendations have some clarity on what i mean. It is still baffling to me why you still don't get this. The point is that I want a lean look. The phrase “I want a lean look like Anniston” is an illustration.
However, thanks for your recommendation :-)
what's wrong with wanting to be a better version of you? being stronger with less body fat?
I want to be stronger. I like being stronger. I like how it makes me feel. But i recently started noticing that my arms, especially my biceps are getting huge and i don't know why. I suspect, if i am to be honest with my self and based on some of the recommendations that i have read that the probelm is my diet and not the lifting. I believe i am either eating too much or eating the wrong stuff. I'll try what audii and the article said. I'll keep lifting but watch my diet a bit more. I'm pretty sure thats the problem
Have you been measuring? If not then there's a chance that you have lost fat and they are just more visible. Unfortunately for you biceps are used in a large majority of upper and lower body exercises. Usually our biceps look awkwardly bigger than the rest when we start getting leaner because our arms lean out first.
There is no "eating the wrong stuff". Your body simply knows calories, macros and micros. Eating "too much" depends on your goals. If you are trying to lose or maintain weight, but you are gaining weight, then you are eating too much.0 -
For a visual comparison, all of these pictures are of the same woman at different body fat percentages. Same muscles, just different amount of fat.
Now here is another woman, again, same muscles, just different amount of fat:
As others have stated, you aren't going to accidentally start looking like that.
0 -
kommodevaran wrote: »You're thinking wrong. Muscles are hot.
Hell yeah! Definition in those arms and abs is beautiful. Jennifer aniston is thin based on eating less than 1200 calories a day. She has no definition.0 -
So, back to my skinny fat comment. Regardless of what you think lifting is, you’re probably not going to push the boundaries enough to get muscular. Considering that strength and mass are beneficial for your health, it seems you’d rather sacrifice looking a certain way over being healthy. Madonna is nearly ten years older than Anniston. Consider what 45 vs 55 means and what you should be striving for.0
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For a visual comparison, all of these pictures are of the same woman at different body fat percentages. Same muscles, just different amount of fat.
Now here is another woman, again, same muscles, just different amount of fat:
As others have stated, you aren't going to accidentally start looking like that.
The second image of the second woman wasn't showing so I edited it in the quote above.
0 -
ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »ttcbelieve wrote: »I agree muscles are hot; I’m just looking for a slightly less muscular look than Madonna’s arms. Its only one of personal preference. I want the tone, i want the muscles just lean ones
Any recommendation.
stop worrying about what celebrities look like, and focus on your own goals...
wanting less muscle mass is just dumb...
but if you want to go down that path..eat 500 calories under maintenance and do nothing for six months...enjoy the "skinny fat" look...
You have missed the entire point of my post
perhaps- but you aren't listening to what people are saying.
madonna looks odd because she is SO low in Bodyfat with very little muscle- meaning- she sint' bulky- she doesn't have any sizable muscles.
The sure fact is she looks the way she does because she has a scary low body fat and could stand to run Stronglifts 5 x 5.
how about you pick a program like strong lifts- starting strength- strong curves- nrew rules of lifting- and give that 6 months of dedicated work.
then come back and explain more about your goals.
With all due respect. Please read the article recommended by audii http://bretcontreras.com/how-to-attain-a-slender-look-like-jessica-alba-zoe-saldana/. It will help you understand my post
"
I’m talking about women who don’t want big lats, big arms, big erectors, or big quads. They just want to look slender with some decent shape, and they want to know how to best train for this purpose. Ironically, this is the type of woman that gravitates to yoga, Pilates, and certain aerobics classes because they feel that these modalities will better-help them reach their physique goals. But these systems cannot do as good of a job at physique enhancement that proper strength training can simply because we can tailor the workout to the woman.
"
. My post had nothing to do with celebrities. I used Aniston and madonna as an example to illustrate and give more clarity to my question
Also read the recommendation from other posters that had nothing to do with celebrities
ohhhh realllly ..
from your OP..
what’s the best way to manage your diet and exercise if you want to Lift, get very toned but not gain tight muscles. By this i mean...I want a lean look like Jennifer Aniston and not the Lean muscular look of Madonna.
why do you want the look like Jennifer Anniston and Madonna if your post is not about celebrities..?
Like I said, focus on yourself and stop worrying what multi millionaire celebrities are doing...they have access to training, dieticians, nutritionists, etc that you will never have access to ...
This really is amusing. I really wish I could help but I don’t know how to be clearer. Again...I do not want to look like Aniston or look like Madonna or any celebrity. I do not know how else to make this any clearer. I want a lean look. If you have a lean look, then i want to look like you, if Mickey mouse has a lean look, then i want to look like Mickey, if Kermit the frog has a lean look, then i want to look like Kermit, if Stallone has a lean look then i want to look like Stallone, if Jaime, Ahmed, Michel, Yung le, Josh have a lean look then i want to look like that. I used Anniston as an example so people interested in making recommendations have some clarity on what i mean. It is still baffling to me why you still don't get this. The point is that I want a lean look. The phrase “I want a lean look like Anniston” is an illustration.
However, thanks for your recommendation :-)
what's wrong with wanting to be a better version of you? being stronger with less body fat?
I want to be stronger. I like being stronger. I like how it makes me feel. But i recently started noticing that my arms, especially my biceps are getting huge and i don't know why. I suspect, if i am to be honest with my self and based on some of the recommendations that i have read that the probelm is my diet and not the lifting. I believe i am either eating too much or eating the wrong stuff. I'll try what audii and the article said. I'll keep lifting but watch my diet a bit more. I'm pretty sure thats the problem
Have you been measuring? If not then there's a chance that you have lost fat and they are just more visible. Unfortunately for you biceps are used in a large majority of upper and lower body exercises. Usually our biceps look awkwardly bigger than the rest when we start getting leaner because our arms lean out first.
There is no "eating the wrong stuff". Your body simply knows calories, macros and micros. Eating "too much" depends on your goals. If you are trying to lose or maintain weight, but you are gaining weight, then you are eating too much.
Thanks for your feedback and you are right about the biceps, i never gave it much thought...i.e that it is used in a majority of exercises. I was not working my biceps but they are definitely the ones i have a problem with. Based on the feedback i have received i now know what the problem is and will adjust. While there is no "eating wrong stuff", trusting me when i say eating a tub of ice cream, may qualify as "wrong stuff"
especially when i am not doing it in moderation. The reason i call it wrong stuff is because for some reason i cannot have it in moderation, i've tried, just does not work for me 0 -
For a visual comparison, all of these pictures are of the same woman at different body fat percentages. Same muscles, just different amount of fat.
Now here is another woman, again, same muscles, just different amount of fat:
As others have stated, you aren't going to accidentally start looking like that.
Thanks for this. The pictures help0 -
Madonna looked liked she did because her body fat level was really low. Jennifer Anniston looks like she does because hers is higher.ttcbelieve wrote: »Hi
what’s the best way to manage your diet and exercise if you want to Lift, get very toned but not gain tight muscles. By this i mean...I want a lean look like Jennifer Aniston and not the Lean muscular look of Madonna.
Do you focus more on carbs or protein? Do you lift heaver but fewer reps or lighter and more reps. any other suggestion.
P.S. Yoga or Pilates is not for me
Thanks
Lift heavier weight with lower reps to "harden" muscles, but don't lower your body fat too low. Best way to tell is with how you look in the mirror.
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AllanMisner wrote: »So, back to my skinny fat comment. Regardless of what you think lifting is, you’re probably not going to push the boundaries enough to get muscular. Considering that strength and mass are beneficial for your health, it seems you’d rather sacrifice looking a certain way over being healthy. Madonna is nearly ten years older than Anniston. Consider what 45 vs 55 means and what you should be striving for.
With all due respect, my question had nothing to do with skinny fat, health benefits being like Anniston/Madonna or age. I used Anniston and Madonna as an illustration and for some reason you have focused on this rather than helping with my enquiry. The other posters have been kind enough to provide insight and recommendation that have been helpful. Again, i am 5.6, 150lbs, usually swing between 145-153. My target weight is 140-145. I don't want to drop below 140 and i don’t want to go above 150. The other posters have been kind enough to understand my question and provide valuable feedback.
. Please accept my apologies if this comes out preachy, it would be nice if you had understood my enquiry. Thanks for your suggestion. See other feedbacks I am referring to below.LyndseyLovesToLift wrote: »Regardless, you can lift heavy and not be muscular, no doubt about it. Women have to try a hell of a lot harder than men to achieve a more muscular physique. Lift, eat, and lose weight only until you're happy with your body, then transition to maintenance. And you're certainly not going to get muscular while eating at a deficit.HeidiMightyRawr wrote: »My advice would be to just lift. Don't worry about gaining lots of muscle, it's extremely hard especially as a woman (thanks, testosterone!) Just lift, and enjoy yourself. Find a rep range you like doing, and exercises you want to do. The ones that give the most bang for your buck are generally full body movements - think squat, bench, deadlift, but the best results are from the exercises you do regularly. If you don't like it, you're not going to stick to it.
If you want to narrow it down, generally:
2-5 reps = strength
8-12 reps = hypertrophy/muscle size (although I think food intake plays more of a role)
15+ reps = endurance
To have the muscles show = less body fat
To have the muscles not quite so defined = slightly more body fat.
To manipulate body fat, you either go into a caloric deficit, or a surplus.0 -
Madonna looked liked she did because her body fat level was really low. Jennifer Anniston looks like she does because hers is higher.ttcbelieve wrote: »Hi
what’s the best way to manage your diet and exercise if you want to Lift, get very toned but not gain tight muscles. By this i mean...I want a lean look like Jennifer Aniston and not the Lean muscular look of Madonna.
Do you focus more on carbs or protein? Do you lift heaver but fewer reps or lighter and more reps. any other suggestion.
P.S. Yoga or Pilates is not for me
Thanks
Lift heavier weight with lower reps to "harden" muscles, but don't lower your body fat too low. Best way to tell is with how you look in the mirror.
Hi
This is were i get confused. Some recommend "lift heavy, less reps" some say "lift less, more reps" What is the right approach.
Do i do 5 x 5 Deadlift at 135lbs ( i can probably also do 12 reps @135lbs or do i do 1 x 5 Deadlift at 225lbs0 -
As long as you are on a progressive training program where you are adding strength. More reps is generally for endurance training. Less reps is generally for strength training. Both are going to give you "tone". You have to switch things up now and again, deload, so you can continue to progress. Here is an article that talks about this: http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/high-reps-low-reps-which-rep-scheme-is-best.html
Body fat determines how much of the muscle is visible. Diet determines body fat percent. Is your goal definitely to be some certain weight? Do you know your current body fat %? With that information you can project what body fat % you might drop when you drop 10 pounds. I no longer have a specific scale weight goal, I have a body fat % goal.
Some people have to go through cycles of cutting and bulking in order to get the look they want. Cutting and bulking, again, is diet.0 -
I am a little bit confused by your expectations. At your height and a goal weight of 145 lbs or so, you cannot get a "thin" look (if I understand what you mean by "thin"), unless you work really hard on having low body fat and more muscles, which you claim it is not a look you are going for. If the goal is to look really thin, as in movie star thin, and do this without gaining muscle, so just lower body fat, then you probably need to aim at losing weight, I do not think your goal weight is right for what you claim you want.
To give you an example from my personal experience, I am about your height. For me to look like the body type I think you mean, based on the examples you provided, so the thin, feminine, dancer/model etc type of body, it happened when I was doing a ton of dancing, aerobics and running, and was barely 115-116 lbs (yes, this is underweight - I was in amazing shape, but still underweight). My heaviest without trength training, was 138 lbs, and it did not look anywhere close to what you described, it looked flabby. With adding strength training, I am definitely looking better and have gained muscle, but at 130lbs, and having definitely lower body fat than I did when I started 2 years ago, I am still nowhere close to either Madonna or Anniston!0 -
Lean muscles are incredibly sexy. I'm not a heavy lifter and my preferred workouts are classes. So from boot camp, whole body fitness, Aqua fitness, kickboxing, ballet and Zumba, I have visible musclature that is really attractive.
It's way harder for women to build muscle than men and we don't develop it the same way.
With the combination of cardio and strength training classes, I am definitely looking better and have gained muscle; at 128lbs now, I have definitely lower body fat than I did when I started 2 years ago. My clothing dropped 2 sizes at the same weight.
I hardly ever reach my maintenance calorie goal due to being pretty active so I've always been in a a slight deficit. I think my body adjusted to my calorie intake and I'm not losing weight. So my muscle development has actually been in a deficit.0 -
WTH is a lean muscle? Muscle is muscle and fat is fat. Grrr.0
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If you accept that your muscles are like not too big yet, which I doubt they are if you're being objective, I would probably pick a beginning strength program. But, that's really my own bias because when I do higher rep I think "12 is so many! " and my brain wants to give up before my body.
Find a program that works for you, and whatever program it is should have a progression schedule for when to increase weight. I did strong lifts 5x5 and really enjoined it, but there are lots of programs.
Good luck with the lifting. I think as long as you don't cut too lean (which is hard to do unintentionally) you're really going to like the changes in your body once you start lifting.0
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