What's up w/ no muscle tone?

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lculian
lculian Posts: 313 Member
in Fitness and Exercise
I've lost 23 lbs since January 16th. I work out three times a week and do 80% cardio and about 20% weights/ conditioning. I am losing size and inches, but last night at the gym I noticed my legs looking not so sleak or toned. :grumble: How do you get toned???

I increase my protein on days that I exercise, but really have no idea how to tone up. I don't want to end up a smaller version of my heavier self. I'd like to have nice tone to my legs and abs. If I'm gonna do the work I'd like to see some results!!!

ANY ideas are welcome. Help!

Replies

  • kdiamond
    kdiamond Posts: 3,329 Member
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    Bump up your weight training! Weight training does not make women bulky! I do more weight training than cardio, and I am slim but toned. Give circuit training a try...it is like weights and cardio in one.

    And congrats on losing the weight, that is great! :)
  • havingitall
    havingitall Posts: 3,728 Member
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    If you want to tone your legs do lots and lots of squats.

    They are awesome
  • aippolito1
    aippolito1 Posts: 4,894 Member
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    I agree with both of the above posters. I do strength training 3x/week but also do cardio on those days - just not for as long as my cardio only days. I've been doing this for 4 1/2 months & can tell I'm starting to tone up. Don't get discouraged, it takes time. I have to keep telling myself this as well. Every time I do my strength training, I watch my form in the mirrors and assess the difference in my body from the time I started in January and now.
  • Crickks
    Crickks Posts: 94
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    Hey :),

    To tone your legs/Abs/body, you have to do more weight training/ circuit training and less cardio... at the moment, I'm doing Chalean Extreme, it's a 90 day program, and I'm in my third week. I must say, the LEGS are looking good. The workouts last 30 to 40 minutes, you workout 5 days per week and you have 2 rest days...Muscle burns fat and tone, the more lean muscle you have, the more fat you burn. You can burn up to 60% of your body fat.

    For more information, go to beachbody.com.. and it's true,weight training does not make women bulky! Also check out youtube.com, there are regular people like us who are using the program and chat about their experiences...

    Good Luck!!
  • lculian
    lculian Posts: 313 Member
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    Thank you for all the info. I can commit to strength training more, especially if it will give me some results. Thank you for all the support!!!:flowerforyou:
  • byHisgrace
    byHisgrace Posts: 175
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    It is also possible that hypotonia (low muscle tone) can be caused by various childhood and adult medical conditions and even some complications at birth. If you've never really had good muscle tone, you may want to talk to your doctor.

    I have a child with hypotonia, who is in generally great physical health. She has autism and another as of yet undefined neurological disorder and the hypotonia is related to those issues. I only mention this because a stranger looking at her playing, and kicking her big brother's behind all over the yard, would never know, lol. I've read hypotonia can be associated with SO many different disorders.

    Just a thought though, I don't want to alarm you. If you've had good muscle tone in the past, you're probably just in need of the advice already given by others :)
  • questionablemethods
    questionablemethods Posts: 2,174 Member
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    A lot can really depend upon where you tend to store your fat. I am starting to see muscle tone in my arms, back and stomach but, even though the muscles in my legs are feeling a lot firmer and stronger, I'm still not seeing a lot of change in how they look visually. I think that's because I store a lot of fat in my legs (especially my calves and ankles -- grrr... the bane of my existence!). I know other people who, even at a lot higher body fat percentage than I have, have these slim, fabulously toned looking legs, but maybe their stomachs and hips are carrying more weight. You get the idea. You might be doing everything right, but you just still have some fat covering the muscles you want to show.
  • mysometimeisnow
    mysometimeisnow Posts: 18
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    I agree with everyone on doing more strength training. I lost 40 lbs and did weight training with heay weights and saw good muscle tone. When I say heavy weight I mean as much a you can lift using proper form and for a normal about of sets/reps. Women's bodies don't build muscle the same as men, so don't worry about becoming bulky or overly musclular. You'll just end up with a toned figure :)

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