Weight Machine Question

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nlp308
nlp308 Posts: 6 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi everyone.
So when I was at the gym today a woman pointed out that on the hip abductor machine I was using a high weight amount- 195 pounds. She asked if I was looking to build muscle or tone my legs (my thighs aren't super "thundery" but they're also not slim and toned). I said tone and she said to use a less heavy amount of weights with more reps. Does anyone have any experience with this situation or know which is actually better for overall weight loss?

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  • vismal
    vismal Posts: 2,463 Member
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    She is WRONG WRONG WRONG! To build muscle you have to be eating in a way to do so (caloric surplus) for a long period of time. Gaining muscle is actually not all that easy to do. Lifting heavy while trying to lose weight (caloric deficit) simply preserves lean mass which is always a good thing. Toning doesn't really exist. You can't "tone" a muscle. Muscles get bigger or smaller. To look toned you need to have some muscle mass built and a low enough body fat for the muscle to be visible. So next time you see the lady, tell her she is WRONG!
  • carolineat111
    carolineat111 Posts: 97 Member
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    Agree with the above. She's wrong. You won't look like a bodybuilder without serious diet adjustments, so don't worry about bulking up. Lift heavy, end of discussion.
  • stillhere1981
    stillhere1981 Posts: 119 Member
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    That is a pretty old way of thinking about lifting for women. I have had at least three people say the same thing to me. Ignore it.
  • af1973
    af1973 Posts: 7 Member
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    She is WRONG WRONG WRONG! To build muscle you have to be eating in a way to do so (caloric surplus) for a long period of time. Gaining muscle is actually not all that easy to do. Lifting heavy while trying to lose weight (caloric deficit) simply preserves lean mass which is always a good thing. Toning doesn't really exist. You can't "tone" a muscle. Muscles get bigger or smaller. To look toned you need to have some muscle mass built and a low enough body fat for the muscle to be visible. So next time you see the lady, tell her she is WRONG!

    From what I know this is correct. I lift as heavy as I can and strive to lift heavier . Women always say they want to "tone" up but really there's no such thing. You build muscle lifting heavy.
  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,652 Member
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    She is WRONG WRONG WRONG! To build muscle you have to be eating in a way to do so (caloric surplus) for a long period of time. Gaining muscle is actually not all that easy to do. Lifting heavy while trying to lose weight (caloric deficit) simply preserves lean mass which is always a good thing. Toning doesn't really exist. You can't "tone" a muscle. Muscles get bigger or smaller. To look toned you need to have some muscle mass built and a low enough body fat for the muscle to be visible. So next time you see the lady, tell her she is WRONG!
    This covers it.
  • ana3067
    ana3067 Posts: 5,623 Member
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    Lower weight + higher rep = hypertrophy range. So if in a caloric surplus, this will make you larger. If you are eating in a caloric deficit, then you're better off strength training (low rep + high weight) as you can still maintain and make strength gains at this time.

    but I highly suggest you stop using the machines and use free weights/barbells. The machines IME do not really translate as well to free weight performance and do not mimic real-life movement. It's like people who squat, bench, or shoulder press with a smith machine when they should really be using dumbbells/barbells.
  • fallenangelsdescent
    fallenangelsdescent Posts: 2
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    Believe me I use to have the same mindset at the lady who approached you in the gym. My fiancée is huge and when he started bumping up my weights I fought him tooth and nail. But then I saw several women lifting twice what he wanted me to lift and they were in no way big (and recently we had an ex-crossfit girl in who did 8-45lb plates on our incline leg press machine who was developed in her legs but overall petite). So yes, you can get the weights up high enough to bulk, but you also have to have the calorie and protein intake to go along with it. (Side note: instead of the hip machine, look into squats. There are several varieties and they will work thighs and butt).
  • alereck
    alereck Posts: 343 Member
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    In my understanding it's more about the number of reps and the intensity in which you are working then the weight. For leaning out 8-12 reps where the last 3-4 are hard to get thru is optimal. The weight is irrelevant since I might be able to do 5 reps with 100 lbs while you can do 10 with 200 lbs...
  • nosebag1212
    nosebag1212 Posts: 621 Member
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    you should always lift heavy, and there is no such thing as toning, she is clueless, and no you won't look like a "bodybuilder" without exogenous hormones
  • nlp308
    nlp308 Posts: 6 Member
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    Thank you everyone. I thought her "advice" sounded off base but wanted to be sure! :)

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