Muscle Building vs Toning Up?!!!

clarehaines

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!!!

sarahlyzzibeth

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Being female, your genetically predisposed to not bulking up. You can thank your estrogen for that.

miadvh

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

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

Thank you all so much for your help!!

JDMPWR

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

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

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

"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

"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

"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.

mapexdrummer69

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.
[/quote]


Calories>protein if wanting to build muscle.


Protein is needed in every diet, to what amount is determined by specific and individual goals.

HeidiMightyRawr

To "bulk up" you will need to eat more than you burn as well as train seriously hard for that exact purpose. So many men have trouble bulking up, and as a woman it's going to be ALOT harder than it is for a man, you don't have the right amount of testosterone for serious muscle gains.

By adding cardio (as well as) strength training you should create the "toned" look you are going for. But the idea that endless reps of a really light weight will get you this, and heavy weights will make you bulky is rubbish. You have to push yourself in what you're lifting and the last few reps should be a struggle whether you are going for 6, 10 or 15 reps.
It's generally seen that 4-6 reps is for strength, 8-12 I think for muscle size and 15+ for stamina, but even then the muscle size here is not going to be big and bulky the way it can be for men. I lift heavy (4-6 reps usually) and am not bulky.

JDMPWR

"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.

Not true.

oddyogi

Calories>protein if wanting to build muscle.


Protein is needed in every diet, to what amount is determined by specific and individual goals.

Mmmm.. nope. No one's going to build muscle eating 15% of their calories from protein, even if they're eating 3000 calories per day. In order to build one pound of muscle you need 454 grams of protein. If you eat 1500 cals/day and eat 30% of those cals from protein, that leaves you with 787 grams of protein weekly, which sounds all find and dandy until you take into account the protein turnover that happens every minute of every day. Long story short, you need a lot of protein to build muscle.

Edit: Which is why I'm a 5'5, 150-lb woman attempting to eat 160+ grams of protein every day.

mapexdrummer69

"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.

Not true.

Please,


Elaborate.

mapexdrummer69

Calories>protein if wanting to build muscle.


Protein is needed in every diet, to what amount is determined by specific and individual goals.

Mmmm.. nope. No one's going to build muscle eating 15% of their calories from protein, even if they're eating 3000 calories per day. In order to build one pound of muscle you need 454 grams of protein. If you eat 1500 cals/day and eat 30% of those cals from protein, that leaves you with 787 grams of protein weekly, which sounds all find and dandy until you take into account the protein turnover that happens every minute of every day. Long story short, you need a lot of protein to build muscle.

Edit: Which is why I'm a 5'5, 150-lb woman attempting to eat 160+ grams of protein every day.

I'm not saying that protein is not required to build muscle, quite the opposite. I'm simply stating that a diet can consist of 1800 calories or 450g of protein, be 300 calories UNDER maint., and still not build muscle.

oddyogi

I'm not saying that protein is not required to build muscle, quite the opposite. I'm simply stating that a diet can consist of 1800 calories or 450g of protein, be 300 calories UNDER maint., and still not build muscle.

Guess I don't understand what your argument is, then.

mapexdrummer69

I'm not saying that protein is not required to build muscle, quite the opposite. I'm simply stating that a diet can consist of 1800 calories or 450g of protein, be 300 calories UNDER maint., and still not build muscle.

Guess I don't understand what your argument is, then.

Lol, sorry, no argument. I just thought by your first response you were implying that a calorie surplus is not needed to build muscle. :-)

chevy88grl

Unless you are taking supplements and doing some kind of body building workout - women don't "bulk up" the men do. We are missing a high level key component in order for this to occur - testosterone. When I first started at the gym, I was nervous about using the weights because of the bulk up issue. Did a lot of research - body building women are usually taking some kind of supplements. So, no worries.

BTW, I do a medium weight range until I experience muscle fatigue and I'm not bulking up at all. I am, however, toning up and love it. From everything I've read - start low and work your way up. If you can do 20 or more reps and you don't feel like your muscles are working very hard, it is time to up your weight. I don't feel like I'm doing ANYTHING if I try and do arm curls with 20lbs - I could probably do 100 reps of that weight. Am I really working my muscles then? Nah. It's too easy. When it gets too easy - up the weight.

Teemo

Eagerly awaiting the response on how I can add muscle/lean body mass on a caloric deficit. Will save me a fortune in food.