Body pump v weights

sfriel68

Hi, just wondering what would be best for toning. Body pump 2/3 times a week or a gym routine with weights ?
Thanks in advance

Fit4LifeAR

Body pump is more cardio, and works with lower weight and higher reps. It is great for toning, but free weights can do the same thing. If you are looking to build strength, I would recommend the gym floor, with higher weight and lower reps.

I know personally I see a faster change in my body when I am doing body pump.

sfriel68

Do you think I would get faster results with body pump or the gym ?

jim180155

Toning is a misnomer. Muscles don’t “tone.” They get bigger, they stay the same, or they get smaller. The same can be said for strength.

If you want the toned look, what you’re really looking for is less fat and probably a little more muscle for an overall lean look with some muscle definition. You don’t want to get bulky, but that’s not going to happen anyway. Muscle growth is heavily dependent on testosterone, and women produce less than a tenth of what the typical male produces.

The most efficient way to get that look is in the gym or at home with weights. You want to be working in the four to twelve rep range (four to six, six to eight, eight to ten, or ten to twelve, depending on your comfort levels). In other words, you want to be “lifting heavy.” You can achieve a lot of the same benefits with bodyweight exercises, but working out the right variations and progressions can be tricky. With weights, you just add another five or ten pounds each time you hit your upper rep range limit. Along with lifting heavy you need proper diet and adequate rest.

So work on strength, increasing muscle mass and reducing fat. The end result will be the “toned” look.

sfriel68

Thanks very much Jim, that makes a lot of sense to me. just need to find a programme to follow now lol x

summerkissed

jim180155 wrote: »

Toning is a misnomer. Muscles don’t “tone.” They get bigger, they stay the same, or they get smaller. The same can be said for strength.

If you want the toned look, what you’re really looking for is less fat and probably a little more muscle for an overall lean look with some muscle definition. You don’t want to get bulky, but that’s not going to happen anyway. Muscle growth is heavily dependent on testosterone, and women produce less than a tenth of what the typical male produces.

The most efficient way to get that look is in the gym or at home with weights. You want to be working in the four to twelve rep range (four to six, six to eight, eight to ten, or ten to twelve, depending on your comfort levels). In other words, you want to be “lifting heavy.” You can achieve a lot of the same benefits with bodyweight exercises, but working out the right variations and progressions can be tricky. With weights, you just add another five or ten pounds each time you hit your upper rep range limit. Along with lifting heavy you need proper diet and adequate rest.

So work on strength, increasing muscle mass and reducing fat. The end result will be the “toned” look.

Wow!!! What a great, well informed, correct, perfect response!!!!

BusyRaeNOTBusty

summerkissed wrote: »

jim180155 wrote: »

Toning is a misnomer. Muscles don’t “tone.” They get bigger, they stay the same, or they get smaller. The same can be said for strength.

If you want the toned look, what you’re really looking for is less fat and probably a little more muscle for an overall lean look with some muscle definition. You don’t want to get bulky, but that’s not going to happen anyway. Muscle growth is heavily dependent on testosterone, and women produce less than a tenth of what the typical male produces.

The most efficient way to get that look is in the gym or at home with weights. You want to be working in the four to twelve rep range (four to six, six to eight, eight to ten, or ten to twelve, depending on your comfort levels). In other words, you want to be “lifting heavy.” You can achieve a lot of the same benefits with bodyweight exercises, but working out the right variations and progressions can be tricky. With weights, you just add another five or ten pounds each time you hit your upper rep range limit. Along with lifting heavy you need proper diet and adequate rest.

So work on strength, increasing muscle mass and reducing fat. The end result will be the “toned” look.

Wow!!! What a great, well informed, correct, perfect response!!!!

I am also impressed.

Fit4LifeAR

I personally have lost a lot of inches, very quickly, with body pump. In an hour you do over 800 reps, and it's a total body workout. I chose to go three days a week and used the highest weight I could for that many reps. My HRM averaged around 300 calories per hour.

I think that if more people participated in body pump, they may not be so quick to discount it. Saying that, I definitely think there is a place in every workout for lifting heavy.

hill8570

Bodypump is kind of in that middle zone of "endurance lifting". It's not pure cardio (there are some stretches that get the heart rate up, but other parts that are slower), and it's not really "lifting heavy" unless you've never lifted before. If you've never lifted, you'll see some good results if you stick with it as long as you keep your diet in check. Be warned, 'tho, if you do move on to lifting heavier weights outside of BP, you'll have to unlearn a lot of bad habits -- the tempo that the class proceeds at makes it damn near impossible to do a lot of the lifts with good form (squats, lunges, and deadlifts especially).

nordlead2005

sfriel68 wrote: »

Thanks very much Jim, that makes a lot of sense to me. just need to find a programme to follow now lol x

Losing weight is easiest if you focus on the calories in first, so it isn't just the weight lifting program. With that said, there are many programs to follow. Some of the favorites for beginners are Strong Lifts 5x5, Ice Cream Fitness 5x5, New Rules of Lifting (for women, if you want that version), Starting Strength, and Strong Curves.

All of them are great for beginners, pick the one that fits your comfort level, the equipment you have access to and what fancies you. There are other beginner routines that would work great too, if you find one that looks interesting you can ask here or just try it. Mostly, you want to find a routine that primarily focuses on compound movements and has simple rules for progressing and setbacks (for example, SL uses add 5lb each lift, 3 consecutive failures you drop 20%)

ninerbuff

Fit4LifeAR wrote: »

I personally have lost a lot of inches, very quickly, with body pump. In an hour you do over 800 reps, and it's a total body workout. I chose to go three days a week and used the highest weight I could for that many reps. My HRM averaged around 300 calories per hour.

I think that if more people participated in body pump, they may not be so quick to discount it. Saying that, I definitely think there is a place in every workout for lifting heavy.

I've taught Bodypump (substituted) and will tell you it's a "muscle endurance" workout leaning more toward cardio and DEFINITELY not a strength program. If you've lost inches, it's due to your diet and not the lifting program. Calorie deficit for weight loss, exercise for health and fitness.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

ninerbuff

sfriel68 wrote: »

Hi, just wondering what would be best for toning. Body pump 2/3 times a week or a gym routine with weights ?
Thanks in advance

"Toning" as mentioned, doesn't have a definition that's standardized. What you're likely looking for is to look lean without a lot of muscle definition. Consistent calorie deficit and a decent resistance weight training program along with some moderate cardio is what people usually shoot for.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

sfriel68

nordlead2005 wrote: »

sfriel68 wrote: »

Thanks very much Jim, that makes a lot of sense to me. just need to find a programme to follow now lol x

Losing weight is easiest if you focus on the calories in first, so it isn't just the weight lifting program. With that said, there are many programs to follow. Some of the favorites for beginners are Strong Lifts 5x5, Ice Cream Fitness 5x5, New Rules of Lifting (for women, if you want that version), Starting Strength, and Strong Curves.

All of them are great for beginners, pick the one that fits your comfort level, the equipment you have access to and what fancies you. There are other beginner routines that would work great too, if you find one that looks interesting you can ask here or just try it. Mostly, you want to find a routine that primarily focuses on compound movements and has simple rules for progressing and setbacks (for example, SL uses add 5lb each lift, 3 consecutive failures you drop 20%)

Thank you for the advice. much appreciated. I've downloaded the stronglifts 5x5 and I'm looking in to that. Thanks again