Heavy or light weights for toning and fat loss?

Emma1903
Emma1903 Posts: 195
edited September 26 in Fitness and Exercise
im going to start going on the weights, I want to loose a few pounds and tone up. I already do about 4 hours of raquet sports a week and 2 swimming sessions now I'm going to hit the weights twice a week too.
What I wanted to know was what is best, should I lift heavy so I'm struggling slightly with the lift, or easy just so it's working my muscles?

Replies

  • Aetarac
    Aetarac Posts: 135 Member
    lighter weights more reps for toning. Lifting heavy generally used to build mass.
  • DonnaLFitz
    DonnaLFitz Posts: 270 Member
    Actually, lifting heavier weights exhausts the sugar in your muscles faster. To burn fat, you must get rid of muscle sugar first.
  • Egger29
    Egger29 Posts: 14,741 Member
    Neither.

    If the weight is too heavy, you're just risking injury....if the weight is too light...you're just going through the motions without any real benefit.

    In any strength training, you select a weight and rep range where the last few reps are the most you are physically capable of doing. In that respect, if you're shooting for 10-15...then you should be able to do 10 fairly easily...then have to focus and push to reach 15.

    Then, once you reach that goal...increase the weight slightly and repeat the cycle.

    Remember, the number of reps you're counting isn't just a number....it's the number you are physically capable of doing before exhaustion. That challenges the muscles to recover and re-prepare themselves for the next stress overload.

    Cheers! :-)
  • ShaneT99
    ShaneT99 Posts: 278 Member
    Heavy. Always. Light weights don't really accomplish anything more than a calorie burn (and not much of one at that). It's a fallacy to say that you build mass with heavy weights and you "tone" with light weights. Whether your goal is to "tone" (which really means reduce your body fat so your muscles are more noticeable) or actually build muscle mass, you need to use heavy weight. The number of sets and reps may vary depending on your goals, but you should always use enough weight so that the last 2-3 reps of a set are very difficult to finish (but not so much weight that you can't perform the reps with good form).
  • kensky
    kensky Posts: 472 Member
    As heavy as you can lift with good form for 8-12 reps. Toning = building muscle which happens via lifting (heavy) weights. The more muscle mass you have, the better your ability to burn fat (there is likely a more science-y way to put this).
  • HeidiMightyRawr
    HeidiMightyRawr Posts: 3,343 Member
    I think that the last rep should always be a struggle, so heavier weights less reps but then many people do the opposite and have great results. I'm currently doing strength training twice a week, 5 sets of about 3-8 reps on each exercise and move up a weight when I hit about 8 reps.
    Make sure you learn the correct form for the exercise or you can risk injury :)
  • Emma1903
    Emma1903 Posts: 195
    Oo thank you everyone will give it a try tonight
  • med0404
    med0404 Posts: 4
    If you are just starting out and need a good guide, I recommend "The New Rules of Lifting for Women" by Lou Schuler, Cassandra Forsythe, and Alwyn Cosgrove.
  • Emma1903
    Emma1903 Posts: 195
    I'm not trying to build like a body builder, I just want to loose fat and tone up. Would this book still be good?
  • HeidiMightyRawr
    HeidiMightyRawr Posts: 3,343 Member
    I'm not trying to build like a body builder, I just want to loose fat and tone up. Would this book still be good?

    I've not read this book, although I've seen a few people mention it. I can almost guarantee though, you won't start build insane amounts of muscle like that unless that's you're number 1 goal and you're purposely setting out for that - even then it's extremely hard for anyone, especially women.
    Worst case scenario and you build more than you like, you can still change that, change your routine and it wont stay around for long :)
  • RunHardBeStrong
    RunHardBeStrong Posts: 33,069 Member
    I'm not trying to build like a body builder, I just want to loose fat and tone up. Would this book still be good?

    Yes it would be a great book for that, the more muscle you have the more calories/fat you burn. I love and follow this book! I lift heavy and am no where near the "body builder" look. It takes alot of work to build muscle like that. As females we don't have enough testosterone to look like that without supplements and years of training. I highly recommend getting the book!
  • a_stronger_steph
    a_stronger_steph Posts: 434 Member
    I'm not trying to build like a body builder, I just want to loose fat and tone up. Would this book still be good?

    The book actually specifically addresses this point! So it will probably make you feel much more comfortable about "lifting heavy". :) I recommend it as well.
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