Toning - after or during weight loss?

24

Replies

  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
    Perhaps you can post an image of a woman you consider to be too "bulky" so I can know what you even mean by that. Also maybe include an estimate of how long you think it took to achieve that much muscle.

    As a woman you would be lucky to put on 6 pounds of muscle in a year through heavy lifting, its not something you just slap on overnight.

    Well, I probably didn't word that perfectly. I am not trying to strength train but aim to reduce fat and sculpt the overall bodyshape. If this is achieved by lifting then sure. I must admit I am not strong so I don't know if it's really suited to me.

    Yes, sculpting your bodyshape and looking "toned" is done through heavy lifting.

    Those women you see in fitness magazines or in the ads on the right of the screen on MFP...the Jillian Michales and what not, that is heavy lifting. They may sell B.S. "toning" workouts but they got that way by deadlifting a barbell.

    Meet Staci

    http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/
  • Unknown
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  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    Perhaps you can post an image of a woman you consider to be too "bulky" so I can know what you even mean by that. Also maybe include an estimate of how long you think it took to achieve that much muscle.

    As a woman you would be lucky to put on 6 pounds of muscle in a year through heavy lifting, its not something you just slap on overnight.

    Well, I probably didn't word that perfectly. I am not trying to strength train but aim to reduce fat and sculpt the overall bodyshape. If this is achieved by lifting then sure. I must admit I am not strong so I don't know if it's really suited to me.

    Toning is rubbish.

    You can do two things:

    1) Increase muscle size.
    2) Decrease body fat.

    Both of these contribute to looking "tone".


    Ok I want to decrease body fat if that makes it clearer.

    best way to decrease body fat is to eat at a slight caloric deficit, and heavy lifting to keep the muscle you already have, instead of losing fat and muscle.
  • Iwishyouwell
    Iwishyouwell Posts: 1,888 Member
    Want to looked "toned"? Cut your body fat.

    That "toned" look simply means somebody's bodyfat level is low enough to visibly see their muscle. There really is no such thing as "toning" a muscle.

    Concentration camp victims look "toned" as all get out.

    Now if you want to look a little healthier than that, lift, built yourself some muscle, lose fat, and BAM, there is your "toned" look.
  • SideSteel
    SideSteel Posts: 11,068 Member
    Perhaps you can post an image of a woman you consider to be too "bulky" so I can know what you even mean by that. Also maybe include an estimate of how long you think it took to achieve that much muscle.

    As a woman you would be lucky to put on 6 pounds of muscle in a year through heavy lifting, its not something you just slap on overnight.

    Well, I probably didn't word that perfectly. I am not trying to strength train but aim to reduce fat and sculpt the overall bodyshape. If this is achieved by lifting then sure. I must admit I am not strong so I don't know if it's really suited to me.

    Toning is rubbish.

    You can do two things:

    1) Increase muscle size.
    2) Decrease body fat.

    Both of these contribute to looking "tone".


    Ok I want to decrease body fat if that makes it clearer.

    Then you need to be consuming fewer calories than you burn. Doing so without any form of resistance training can potentially cause you to lose muscle as you diet down, resulting in a loss of both fat and lean mass. This isn't typically recommended.

    Resistance training of some sort will mitigate losses of muscle while you diet so that your loss in weight is primarily coming from fat.

    Finally, if you don't want to resistance train because you just don't like it, that's your choice.
  • MagnumBurrito
    MagnumBurrito Posts: 1,070 Member
    Compound resistance exercises are the cheat codes to a quicker transformation. You're using your time inefficiently if you're not doing them and making them more difficult when you can.
  • sccet
    sccet Posts: 141 Member
    What do you mean when you say toning process?

    Yoga, stretches and anything that aims to free up certain areas of the body. I call bull**** on anyone who says toning is rubbish. I lose most of my inches from toning certain areas of the body. Be it waist twist, yoga or dumbells. It works for me :)
    As usual, an OP comes on for advice, gets solid advice. And some of it from some very intelligent people and then she argues the advice. MFP you never fail me

    This. Chock full O good stuff in this thread.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Lift heavy. You will change your whole body.

    I don't want to look bulky.

    :laugh:
  • Always_Belle
    Always_Belle Posts: 73 Member
    Tone as you go sweetie - you won't bulk.
  • 1saturn
    1saturn Posts: 95 Member
    Lift heavy. You will change your whole body.

    I don't want to look bulky.

    So long as you're not on the juice it won't be a problem, women don't naturally gain much muscle. "Toning" is not a process, you can either build muscle, or cut fat, the "toning" is merely the muscle definition coming through as a result of diminishing body fat, so you need to either build more muscle, or lose more fat, because there are no special exercises that tone anything.

    Rigger

    So you're saying lift weights? I would be a little conscious doing that to be honest.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    Lift heavy. You will change your whole body.

    I don't want to look bulky.

    You won't.

    http://www.jcdfitness.com/2011/06/i-dont-want-to-get-big-and-bulky-fitness-marketing-and-its-effect-on-women/

    I'm quite weak and I don't know if this would really benefit me. I do yoga and that has worked for me. For what I want it to work for.

    Being weak is probably the best reason to start lifting heavy (heavy for you).

    QFT
  • 1saturn
    1saturn Posts: 95 Member
    Lift heavy. You will change your whole body.

    I don't want to look bulky.

    :laugh:

    :grumble:
  • erickirb
    erickirb Posts: 12,294 Member
    Lift heavy. You will change your whole body.

    I don't want to look bulky.

    So long as you're not on the juice it won't be a problem, women don't naturally gain much muscle. "Toning" is not a process, you can either build muscle, or cut fat, the "toning" is merely the muscle definition coming through as a result of diminishing body fat, so you need to either build more muscle, or lose more fat, because there are no special exercises that tone anything.

    Rigger

    So you're saying lift weights? I would be a little conscious doing that to be honest.

    Why?
  • navyrigger46
    navyrigger46 Posts: 1,301 Member
    Lift heavy. You will change your whole body.

    I don't want to look bulky.

    So long as you're not on the juice it won't be a problem, women don't naturally gain much muscle. "Toning" is not a process, you can either build muscle, or cut fat, the "toning" is merely the muscle definition coming through as a result of diminishing body fat, so you need to either build more muscle, or lose more fat, because there are no special exercises that tone anything.

    Rigger

    So you're saying lift weights? I would be a little conscious doing that to be honest.

    Yes, lift weights, disregard your insecurities and pick up a bar-bell, I promise it'll be the most rewarding experience with regard to your overall health and appearance.

    Rigger
  • 1saturn
    1saturn Posts: 95 Member
    What do you mean when you say toning process?

    Yoga, stretches and anything that aims to free up certain areas of the body. I call bull**** on anyone who says toning is rubbish. I lose most of my inches from toning certain areas of the body. Be it waist twist, yoga or dumbells. It works for me :)
    As usual, an OP comes on for advice, gets solid advice. And some of it from some very intelligent people and then she argues the advice. MFP you never fail me

    I'm just exchanging words and ideas. Yet again, here you are. If you don't like me exchanging ideas with "very intelligent people" maybe just avoid replying to my posts. That would be a perfect solution for you.
  • 1saturn
    1saturn Posts: 95 Member
    Lift heavy. You will change your whole body.

    I don't want to look bulky.

    So long as you're not on the juice it won't be a problem, women don't naturally gain much muscle. "Toning" is not a process, you can either build muscle, or cut fat, the "toning" is merely the muscle definition coming through as a result of diminishing body fat, so you need to either build more muscle, or lose more fat, because there are no special exercises that tone anything.

    Rigger

    So you're saying lift weights? I would be a little conscious doing that to be honest.

    Why?

    I've never used the gym for weight and it's usually filled with men. Should I have a member of staff advice me on what weights I should lift? Because my sister has a personal trainer and he told her to not bother with lifting and to work on cardio?
  • paulawatkins1974
    paulawatkins1974 Posts: 720 Member
    Lift heavy. You will change your whole body.

    I don't want to look bulky.

    You won't.

    http://www.jcdfitness.com/2011/06/i-dont-want-to-get-big-and-bulky-fitness-marketing-and-its-effect-on-women/

    I'm quite weak and I don't know if this would really benefit me. I do yoga and that has worked for me. For what I want it to work for.

    Being weak is probably the best reason to start lifting heavy (heavy for you).
    Thank you for this. I didn't really understand how to "lift heavy" When I am weak. How do you know what's heavy? Is it the heaviest you can possibly manage like 3 times?
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    "toning" doesn't really exist..."toning" is basically cutting fat to reveal the muscle that is underneath. Weight training or otherwise performing resistance training helps preserve muscle that would otherwise be lost while losing weight...more muscle, the more "toned" you look after cutting the fat.

    I highly recommend doing some kind of progressive resistance training program (one that is established...not one that you just willy nilly come up with on your own) while you are losing. It's really hard to build muscle, so it's really best to preserve what you have and as you cut fat you will "tone up." You can't be "toned" without muscle mass.

    But "toning" has always worked for me. I usually do yoga and stretches and for some reason it knocks inches off me. Especially my waistline and thighs.

    You lost inches because you lost fat...you lost fat because you were consuming less energy (calories) than you were burning. It is possible that you were eating less...or it was possible that you were eating the same and the increased activity simply created a calorie deficit because you were burning more with additional activity.

    When you lose fat, the muscle beneath is revealed...as I previously have stated. The revealing of this muscle is the "tone" people talk about. But to have that muscle you have to work that muscle...meaning you need to do some kind of resistance work. I personally do not believe it has to be "heavy" strength training (though that will garner the best and most efficient results)...and from an all around fitness perspective, your lifting protocol should probably include training cycles of higher rep lower weight (12-15 reps) and cycles of moderate weight/moderate rep (8-12), as well as actual strength cycles in the low rep/high weight...aka "heavy" (1-6) range.

    Most importantly would be to follow an actual program like New Rules of Lifting for Women for example...you do not have the requisite knowledge to program your own routine and best results are going to be derived from following established routines with proper progressive programming.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Lift heavy. You will change your whole body.

    I don't want to look bulky.

    You won't.

    http://www.jcdfitness.com/2011/06/i-dont-want-to-get-big-and-bulky-fitness-marketing-and-its-effect-on-women/

    I'm quite weak and I don't know if this would really benefit me. I do yoga and that has worked for me. For what I want it to work for.

    Being weak is probably the best reason to start lifting heavy (heavy for you).
    Thank you for this. I didn't really understand how to "lift heavy" When I am weak. How do you know what's heavy? Is it the heaviest you can possibly manage like 3 times?

    "Heavy" has more to do with the rep range than actual weight...the weight is going to be relative to the experience of the lifter. "Heavy" weight for me is going to be nothing for an experienced power lifter for example. "Heavy" is generally defined by working in sets of 3-5 for reps of 1-5or6. The weight should be heavy enough to where you really are near failure on your 5th set if you're doing sets of 5 or 3rd set if you're doing sets of 3, etc.

    The actual weight is relative to the lifter.
  • 4daluvof_candice
    4daluvof_candice Posts: 483 Member
    I am not trying to strength train but aim to reduce fat and sculpt the overall bodyshape.

    That is what strength training is for...
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
    Lift heavy. You will change your whole body.

    I don't want to look bulky.

    So long as you're not on the juice it won't be a problem, women don't naturally gain much muscle. "Toning" is not a process, you can either build muscle, or cut fat, the "toning" is merely the muscle definition coming through as a result of diminishing body fat, so you need to either build more muscle, or lose more fat, because there are no special exercises that tone anything.

    Rigger

    So you're saying lift weights? I would be a little conscious doing that to be honest.

    You mentioned earlier that you were "weak". Being weak you can probably get some definate results using nothing but a basic set of adjustable dumbbells and a fullbody home workout. No one needs to see you.

    If after a few months of that you like the results you are getting abd have built up confidence you can transition to barbells in a fym when you get to that point.

    Personally at the moment my focus is fat loss and I rely on dumbell and bodyweight training to maintain my muscle. All my workouts are done in my living room.

    Eventually either from advice or from your own personal experience you are going to come to terms with the fact that cardio does not sculpt your body it can just help assist in making you smaller. At some point to get the body you want you will have to pick up weights. Sooner you start sooner you will start making progress.
  • paulawatkins1974
    paulawatkins1974 Posts: 720 Member
    Lift heavy. You will change your whole body.

    I don't want to look bulky.

    You won't.

    http://www.jcdfitness.com/2011/06/i-dont-want-to-get-big-and-bulky-fitness-marketing-and-its-effect-on-women/

    I'm quite weak and I don't know if this would really benefit me. I do yoga and that has worked for me. For what I want it to work for.

    Being weak is probably the best reason to start lifting heavy (heavy for you).
    Thank you for this. I didn't really understand how to "lift heavy" When I am weak. How do you know what's heavy? Is it the heaviest you can possibly manage like 3 times?

    "Heavy" has more to do with the rep range than actual weight...the weight is going to be relative to the experience of the lifter. "Heavy" weight for me is going to be nothing for an experienced power lifter for example. "Heavy" is generally defined by working in sets of 3-5 for reps of 1-5or6. The weight should be heavy enough to where you really are near failure on your 5th set if you're doing sets of 5 or 3rd set if you're doing sets of 3, etc.

    The actual weight is relative to the lifter.
    Thanks! So 3 sets of 3 of 4 or 5 different compound lifts doesn't seem very time consuming. I've been waisting time then. Why do I see people at the gym for like 45 minutes?
  • ASKyle
    ASKyle Posts: 1,475 Member
    Lift heavy. You will change your whole body.

    I don't want to look bulky.

    So long as you're not on the juice it won't be a problem, women don't naturally gain much muscle. "Toning" is not a process, you can either build muscle, or cut fat, the "toning" is merely the muscle definition coming through as a result of diminishing body fat, so you need to either build more muscle, or lose more fat, because there are no special exercises that tone anything.

    Rigger

    So you're saying lift weights? I would be a little conscious doing that to be honest.

    Why?

    I've never used the gym for weight and it's usually filled with men. Should I have a member of staff advice me on what weights I should lift? Because my sister has a personal trainer and he told her to not bother with lifting and to work on cardio?

    Tell your sister to fire her BS trainer ASAP.
  • No_Finish_Line
    No_Finish_Line Posts: 3,661 Member
    if muslce is important to you then you will always want to be lifting and especailly so in a defecit
  • 1saturn
    1saturn Posts: 95 Member
    "toning" doesn't really exist..."toning" is basically cutting fat to reveal the muscle that is underneath. Weight training or otherwise performing resistance training helps preserve muscle that would otherwise be lost while losing weight...more muscle, the more "toned" you look after cutting the fat.

    I highly recommend doing some kind of progressive resistance training program (one that is established...not one that you just willy nilly come up with on your own) while you are losing. It's really hard to build muscle, so it's really best to preserve what you have and as you cut fat you will "tone up." You can't be "toned" without muscle mass.

    But "toning" has always worked for me. I usually do yoga and stretches and for some reason it knocks inches off me. Especially my waistline and thighs.

    You lost inches because you lost fat...you lost fat because you were consuming less energy (calories) than you were burning. It is possible that you were eating less...or it was possible that you were eating the same and the increased activity simply created a calorie deficit because you were burning more with additional activity.

    When you lose fat, the muscle beneath is revealed...as I previously have stated. The revealing of this muscle is the "tone" people talk about. But to have that muscle you have to work that muscle...meaning you need to do some kind of resistance work. I personally do not believe it has to be "heavy" strength training (though that will garner the best and most efficient results)...and from an all around fitness perspective, your lifting protocol should probably include training cycles of higher rep lower weight (12-15 reps) and cycles of moderate weight/moderate rep (8-12), as well as actual strength cycles in the low rep/high weight...aka "heavy" (1-6) range.

    Most importantly would be to follow an actual program like New Rules of Lifting for Women for example...you do not have the requisite knowledge to program your own routine and best results are going to be derived from following established routines with proper progressive programming.

    Thanks! this is very helpful :flowerforyou:
  • fooninie
    fooninie Posts: 291 Member
    Muscle burns fat. + Eating at a caloric deficit.

    Simple, really...Lift heavy...it's sexy!
  • jlapey
    jlapey Posts: 1,850 Member
    Lift heavy. You will change your whole body.

    I don't want to look bulky.

    You won't.

    http://www.jcdfitness.com/2011/06/i-dont-want-to-get-big-and-bulky-fitness-marketing-and-its-effect-on-women/

    I'm quite weak and I don't know if this would really benefit me. I do yoga and that has worked for me. For what I want it to work for.

    Being weak is probably the best reason to start lifting heavy (heavy for you).
    Thank you for this. I didn't really understand how to "lift heavy" When I am weak. How do you know what's heavy? Is it the heaviest you can possibly manage like 3 times?

    Find a program like Strong lifts 5X5 (free on the internet) or New Rules of Lifting for Women. Start with just the barbell (usually 45 pounds by itself), no plates added and if you are comfortable with that add about 5 pounds to the bar on your next workout day. If you are comfortable with that, add 5 more pounds next time....Repeat. Before you know it, you'll be lifting much more than you thought possible. Read up on good form and watch some videos before you start.

    Also, you will find lots of great information here:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/833026-important-posts-to-read

    Good luck to you. I promise, it's really not as hard as you might think.
  • mereditheve
    mereditheve Posts: 142 Member
    **THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS TONING** (not yelling, just emphasizing)

    You can do two things:
    - Build muscle
    - Lose fat

    That's it. There are no other options.

    I lift heavy... usually more than the guys I see at the gym. You can view my photos if you must -- am I "bulky?" If so, then don't follow my advice.

    There's a fundamental law that you have to understand -- Your size is limited by the amount of calories you consume. Even if you are one of those rare men or women who is genetically predisposed to building muscle faster than the rest of us, you are not going to get bulky unless you are eating more than you are burning.

    Saying "I don't want to look bulky; therefore, I won't lift weights" is like saying, "I don't want to win marathons; therefore, I shouldn't use the treadmill" It's absurd because you probably couldn't get "bulky" if you tried.
  • tonynguyen75
    tonynguyen75 Posts: 418 Member
    **THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS TONING** (not yelling, just emphasizing)

    You can do two things:
    - Build muscle
    - Lose fat

    That's it. There are no other options.

    I lift heavy... usually more than the guys I see at the gym. You can view my photos if you must -- am I "bulky?" If so, then don't follow my advice.

    There's a fundamental law that you have to understand -- Your size is limited by the amount of calories you consume. Even if you are one of those rare men or women who is genetically predisposed to building muscle faster than the rest of us, you are not going to get bulky unless you are eating more than you are burning.

    Saying "I don't want to look bulky; therefore, I won't lift weights" is like saying, "I don't want to win marathons; therefore, I shouldn't use the treadmill" It's absurd because you probably couldn't get "bulky" if you tried.

    Just nitpicking, but you can also add fat and lose muscle.
  • czardastx
    czardastx Posts: 127 Member
    Tone as you go, as you lose weight you will notice the toning of the muscle.

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