Weight loss and toning...confusion

You may gain a couple of pounds when you start lifting, but it's water weight. Beyond that your muscle gains will be so slow it should not register on the scale in a significant way.

The best measure is going to be the mirror.

Soaringhigh2 wrote: »

I'm fairly new here and want to tone up generally, as well as loose about 12 pounds. BUT my understanding is that if I tone my muscles and loose weight at the same time, my scales will get confused since muscle is heavier than fat. Should I just ignore the scales and monitor body fat? Really perexed. Would appreciate some support here.

Toning, as you are describing it, does not exist. Muscles do not tone, they either get larger or get smaller. To achieve a toned look you must meet two conditions. You must have enough muscle built in order to have a muscular base, and you must be lean enough so that minimally fat is covering the muscle. Gaining muscle while losing fat is VERY inefficient. It's best to focus on one goal or the other. Once you have a muscular base built, you can then lose fat and achieve a toned look. I talk more about this topic here if you care to watch:

Yes - just monitor body fat. You can get scale to do this.