Muscle Building vs Toning Up?!!!

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clarehaines
clarehaines Posts: 49
in Food and Nutrition
Im new to exercising and ive joined my local gym and since joining ive been everyday apart from the weekend because I have a 3 year old im a single mum to..... I need some advice.....

I do not want to be a muscular woman, my intentions are to "tone" my body.....

How much exercising should I be doing?

Currently im doing about an hour and a half 5 days per week in the gym......

thanks!!!
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Replies

  • sarahlyzzibeth
    sarahlyzzibeth Posts: 108
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    From what I've heard, toning occurs when you have low weight, high rep (ie, curling 5 pounds 100 times) and "bulking up" occurs when you have high weight, low rep (curling 100 pounds 5 times). Can anyone verify that information? It's just something that is commnly said, but I don't know of its accuracy.
  • mindy14456
    mindy14456 Posts: 552 Member
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    actually I am using heavier weights and doing lower reps, and am not bulking at all, just getting leaner and toned. I think it takes super heavy weights and training for women to bulk up.
  • laurenlei
    laurenlei Posts: 96
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    Depends what you are doing for an hour and half at the gym

    No matter how much weights you do, you WONT bulk up!!! unless you are on steroids, or NEVER eat anything bad and exercise hardcore all the time! My personal trainer said that lower weight with more reps is crap basically, it wont get you nowhere!

    I do 3 sets of 12 reps as much as i can push/pull/lift etc!!! Really push yourself! The last 3-4 reps should be a real struggle - dont worry you wont bulk up!!!!!
  • michelle_mareshfuehrer
    michelle_mareshfuehrer Posts: 312 Member
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    It's not how many minutes you put into it, it's what you're doing while you're at the gym. To tone up and not muscle up, you want to do cardio and strength training with high repetitions and low weight.
  • hoya96
    hoya96 Posts: 12 Member
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    Cardio, cardio, cardio and more cardio. Cardio not only allows you to shed the pounds but you'll also see results a lot faster. The thing to also keep in mind is quality vs. quantity. Get a heart rate monitor and see how long you can keep your heart rate at 70 - 80%
  • mapexdrummer69
    mapexdrummer69 Posts: 445
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    Unless you are very new to weight lifting or are coming back from a very long break, you cannot build muscle and burn fat at the same time.


    What you are referring to as "toning up" is most likely a drop in BF which would make your muscles more visible. This is easier to achieve if there is more muscle to cut down to.
  • DeadZip2010
    DeadZip2010 Posts: 111 Member
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    From what I've heard, toning occurs when you have low weight, high rep (ie, curling 5 pounds 100 times) and "bulking up" occurs when you have high weight, low rep (curling 100 pounds 5 times). Can anyone verify that information? It's just something that is commnly said, but I don't know of its accuracy.

    This is the general idea of things. in order to tone, you want to work light weights many times. now this can be like the example that was given, but most of the time youll want to keep your rep ranges in between 12 and 20. and do 2 to 4 sets of an excersice. to tone your body you have to keep your heart rate up, which revs your metabolism, which burns fat, which leans you down, giving you the tone look you want. your muscles will be strong but not huge.
  • registers
    registers Posts: 782 Member
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    Im new to exercising and ive joined my local gym and since joining ive been everyday apart from the weekend because I have a 3 year old im a single mum to..... I need some advice.....

    I do not want to be a muscular woman, my intentions are to "tone" my body.....

    How much exercising should I be doing?

    Currently im doing about an hour and a half 5 days per week in the gym......

    thanks!!!

    Many men try for years to pile on muscle, you have no concern.
  • mapexdrummer69
    mapexdrummer69 Posts: 445
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    Cardio, cardio, cardio and more cardio. Cardio not only allows you to shed the pounds but you'll also see results a lot faster. The thing to also keep in mind is quality vs. quantity. Get a heart rate monitor and see how long you can keep your heart rate at 70 - 80%

    Cardio is a helpful tool, but it is just as easy to eat a little less food than to force yourself to perform cardio. There is nothing wrong with cardio and it of course has health benefits, but it is not completely necessary for weight loss.
  • sarahlyzzibeth
    sarahlyzzibeth Posts: 108
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    My personal trainer said that lower weight with more reps is crap basically, it wont get you nowhere!
    To tone up and not muscle up, you want to do cardio and strength training with high repetitions and low weight.

    hmm... I think we're gonna have to research this :)
  • anubis609
    anubis609 Posts: 3,966 Member
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    Being female, your genetically predisposed to not bulking up. You can thank your estrogen for that.
  • miadvh
    miadvh Posts: 290 Member
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    I've always been told doing cardio to get your heartrate up and then doing more reps with smaller weights rather than less reps with bigger weights.
  • Onesnap
    Onesnap Posts: 2,819 Member
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    A varied workout routine is your best bet. :) Plus, women need weight bearing exercises to help deal with both bone and muscle loss as we age. You can also tone up and use your own body weight in training (try a Power Yoga class or Jillian Michaels Power Yoga DVD).

    Plus, lean muscle mass helps burn calories even while you are sitting on the couch. :)
  • clarehaines
    clarehaines Posts: 49
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    Thank you all so much for your help!!
  • JDMPWR
    JDMPWR Posts: 1,863 Member
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    Toning IS muscle building. You want definition? When if you carry fat in the area you want to appear "toned" the only way to gain that toned or more definition in that area is not just by losing fat but also working on the muscle and gaining some muscle mass in that area to take up where the fat used to reside to give the skin a tigher look. The only way to do that is by replacing the fat with muscle.
  • oddyogi
    oddyogi Posts: 1,816 Member
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    First of all, there is no such thing as "toning" or "sculpting" your muscles. You're either building muscles, or you're increasing the stamina and endurance of the muscles you already have. The only way to achieve the "toned" look is to build muscle and lose body fat. Low weights with high reps will only increase your muscles' endurance. You need to lift heavy weights for lower reps. If you can do more than 12 reps, you're not choosing weights that are heavy enough. Ideally, you should be doing three sets of 6-8 reps.

    Cardio burns fat, yes, but only while you're doing it. Strength training burns a fraction of the calories that cardio burns DURING THE TIME YOU'RE EXERCISING. The most calories burned from strength training are after the fact; your muscles use energy (burn calories) to repair, renew, and rebuild. Honestly, you don't even need to do cardio. Refer to my blog entry entitled Why Women Should Lift Weights to read more "researched information" behind my statements.

    You should be in and out of the gym in under 45 minutes. Incorporate compound moves to achieve maximum results, i.e. deadlifts, squats, back rows, pushups, dips, pullups, lunges, and all-over core exercises such as planks, jackknives, etc. Don't waste time with isolated bicep curls or tricep extensions--compound exercises will work these muscles and more.
  • bpe101
    bpe101 Posts: 53 Member
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    A lot of people on here have it right. It is incredibly difficult for women to bulk up. Mainly they have to be extremely low body fat to look bulky.

    Weight lifting is great, but there are much more effective and quicker ways of toning the female body. Shed the fat by doing cardio such as Zumba. Really burns those calories. Then get the tone by doing Pilates or Yoga. Not only does it give you the look you want, but also does wonders for flexibility and strength.
  • NoWeighJose74
    NoWeighJose74 Posts: 581 Member
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    "bulking up" requires a diet that will support such a goal. Eating at a caloric deficit (which most of us here are doing since our aim is to lose some weight) is not conducive to that end.
  • mapexdrummer69
    mapexdrummer69 Posts: 445
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    "bulking up" requires a diet that will support such a goal. Eating at a caloric deficit (which most of us here are doing since our aim is to lose some weight) is not conducive to that end.

    This.


    Building muscle requires a calorie surplus, meaning more calories in than out.
  • oddyogi
    oddyogi Posts: 1,816 Member
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    "bulking up" requires a diet that will support such a goal. Eating at a caloric deficit (which most of us here are doing since our aim is to lose some weight) is not conducive to that end.

    This.


    Building muscle requires a calorie surplus, meaning more calories in than out.

    True, but even so, to achieve the "toned" look most women strive for, one must build muscle. In order to build muscle, a sufficient amount of protein is needed in the diet.

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