Seriously, what does "toning up" mean??

emmab0902
emmab0902 Posts: 2,338 Member
edited October 1 in Fitness and Exercise
Does it actually equate to losing fat and/or gaining muscle, or is it actually possible to transform wobbly fat into firm fat?? Or is it just a nebulous word given to justify "gentle" exercise??

Replies

  • mideon_696
    mideon_696 Posts: 770 Member
    hate that term, lol. it basically means to lean out...to become "toned" (shudder).
    someone is generally not "toned" because of the body fat %. Lower it, then you'll look "toned".

    my explanations are often horrible. :p
  • bry_all01
    bry_all01 Posts: 3,100 Member
    toning up to me means tightening muscles to give them more definition, which would not be "gentle" exercise by any means. I am toning and getting ripped.
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
    It's the worst word in the fitness industry
  • Buddhaboy
    Buddhaboy Posts: 60 Member
    For me toning up meant...not sagging
    Sad but true
  • emmab0902
    emmab0902 Posts: 2,338 Member
    so in order to not sag and look leaner doesnt that mean having to lose body fat?
  • msmith5251s
    msmith5251s Posts: 80
    I always thought of it like this, there is toning, and there is bulking.
    Toning, to me, is where you look leaner and have muscle tone (tone: firmness), whereas bulking would just be gaining muscle mass... think model as compared to body builder... I think?!
  • azsuzi
    azsuzi Posts: 1,169 Member
    Toning up is about the muscles - if you don't use them, they get flabby. If you exercise them, they develop definition - they become toned. Losing body fat has nothing to do with toning, but by losing body fat, you can then see the muscle.

    Yes, like she said: tone = firmness
  • KeepOnMoving
    KeepOnMoving Posts: 383 Member
    so in order to not sag and look leaner doesnt that mean having to lose body fat?

    Not necessarily. My husband is a great tennis player and is training for a Marathon upcoming this fall. Despite all his exercise efforts, he has an obese stomach. His arms and legs looks muscular, defined and sexy! But his middle sticks out like a water melon. He has lost weight being on the Abs diet in the past. He really needs to get back on the Abs diet and quit eating late night snacks that are very high in calories. It doesn't matter what he eats for supper, he will always stay up and eat while watching TV at night.
  • mideon_696
    mideon_696 Posts: 770 Member
    It's the worst word in the fitness industry

    its up there with cellulite. also bicep curls.
  • emmab0902
    emmab0902 Posts: 2,338 Member
    so regular use of muscle groups, possibly at moderate intensity cf a routine for bulking is the key to dejellyfying oneself?
  • greatdragon
    greatdragon Posts: 64
    "toning" refers to developing more "slow-twitch" muscles the end results are thinner, stronger and denser muscles think runner or gymnast. while "bulking-up" referees to building more "fast-twitch" which are stronger but take up more space and at a lower density think body builder weight lifter flab has nothing to do with it one way or the other flab is the % of fat

    your goals of fast and slow twitch muscles and % of fat should be based on the type of body you are looking to create

    if you wan that ripped 6 pack look, you need some fast twitch muscles and a low % of fat, looking for that slim yoga look you want very little fast twitch muscles and a fair amount of slow twitch but a mid % of fat
  • mideon_696
    mideon_696 Posts: 770 Member
    what?

    again, toning is a rubbish term born from, no doubt, fitness industry marketing. probably from the nautilus marketing times, when everyone was a sucker. lol.

    lose some more fat, gain some more muscle. look lean and mean.
  • seanoca1
    seanoca1 Posts: 7
    "Toning" means you're already in shape, very close to your goal weight, but still don't quite look like Brad Pitt naked. It means no more cheesecake after your Kobe Beef burger at Cheesecake Factory. It means splitting most of your uber delicious restaurant meals in half in order to fit under the MFP calorie guidelines. It means replacing the 3000 calories you burned on that 50 mile road ride with 2600 ft of climb with about 1000 calories of pasta and calling it a night. I'd go on, but then I'd have to listen to Linkin Park and start cutting myself...
  • bhagavatilad1
    bhagavatilad1 Posts: 277
    Toning up is used when referring to your muscles you need to work your muscles(tone) by lifting weights etc and those muscles will stretch your skin back into shape in the right form (firming). Often used together to tone and firm you body.
  • mideon_696
    mideon_696 Posts: 770 Member
    http://velocity.t-nation.com/free_online_forum/sports_body_training_performance_bodybuilding/i_just_want_to_tone

    perhaps this guy will help y'all undrestand...

    Jeez.
  • emmab0902
    emmab0902 Posts: 2,338 Member
    If I one day look like Brad Pitt naked I will have more than a few pounds to worry about!
  • sugarbone
    sugarbone Posts: 454 Member
    Toning is a BS word but an easy one to explain what you mean. In actuality, losing weight and strengthening muscles does NOTHING to "tone" your muscles. The tone of your muscles is predetermined, it's the composition, what the texture is like, etc.

    If an exercise program is telling you how to "tone up" it is probably trying to sell you something. Most weight loss and body building authorities recognize this is a nonsense term. However, you will see it from time to time, and the speaker usually means to lose fat and gain muscle in that area so there is "definition".
  • emmab0902
    emmab0902 Posts: 2,338 Member
    Great link mideon!
  • IronSmasher
    IronSmasher Posts: 3,908 Member
    I still don't get it.

    If I tense my muscles, am I now toned?

    If some wants to be more toned, how do they measure the progress of their tonedness? Surely fitness professionals have to provide proof of progress if this is what a client demands?

    Can a muscle of the same size and weight have more tone than another?
  • stayxtrue
    stayxtrue Posts: 1,186 Member
    I tend to agree with most of the people here in saying that this term is a rubbish term... But in general a tone up does mean losing more body fat% and strengthening the muscles... As:

    fat is wobbly and shakes like jelly
    Muscle is firm and sexy! Lean and mean sounds better than toned
  • HeidiMightyRawr
    HeidiMightyRawr Posts: 3,343 Member
    As much as I hate that phrase...
    Lower body fat + some muscle definition = a toned look.

    You may see skinny people with hardly any body fat, but it doesn't look very firm, and things sag or don't look like they have much shape - that's not very toned. If you create some muscle there, even a little, it will create more shape and definition making you look more firm and toned.
    If your body fat is quite high, you need to lower it a little or you won't have much definition.
  • MaximalLife
    MaximalLife Posts: 2,447 Member
    Less Fat - More muscle!
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