“I just want to get toned.”
“I want to tone up.”
“I don’t want to get bulky.”
“I’m afraid I will look like a man.”
I hear these statements all the time, especially from women, who want that lean, muscular look of the bikini competitors they see on stage.
But getting “toned” (I HATE that word, just ask my wife) is NOT going to happen with how most women approach it.
Here are the top 3 reasons why:
- You’re only doing cardio. Hours on the stairmaster are not the answer to looking toned. Yes you will need to lose body fat. But that toned appearance you are going for is going to require you to build muscle. Wanna know how you build muscle? You lift weights, heavy ones. Strength training a few times per week, with weights that cause failure in the 8-15 range has shown to be the most effective way to build muscle. And if you are a female, you aren’t going to end up looking like a man. UNLESS you supplement testosterone you don’t have the correct hormone ratios to add a ton of muscle. It simply cannot happen. I can’t help but laugh that I spend MONTHS out of every year for the past 20 years force feeding myself, lifting as heavy as I can, while having the proper hormones just hoping to gain 10 lbs of muscle while most women think that if they even LOOK at the freeweight section of the gym they will just blow up like Arnold in his prime.
- You don’t eat enough, especially protein. Remember that adding muscle means lifting weights plus eating in a caloric surplus. That magic thing that people think happens when fat turns to muscle???? Yea that doesn’t exist. That is why you see competitors bulk and then cut year after year. Adding muscle requires a surplus of calories while cutting fat requires a deficit. It is next to impossible to do this at the same time unless you are an ABSOLUTE newbie to fitness and even then it is still debatable if it can be done. Wanna look toned? ADD MUSCLE. Wanna be a certain number on the scale but still be skinny fat and unhappy with how you look? Restrict your calories. Most females we coach are specifically missing protein in their diet. For adding muscle I’d try to stay in the 0.8-1.2g of protein per pound of your body weight. For example if you weigh 150 lbs you should be eating 120-180g of protein per day.
- You’re too worried about the scale. Let’s get one thing straight, muscle weighs the same as fat. However, muscle is more dense than fat. 5 lbs of fat takes up way more space on your body than 5 lbs of muscle. So two people at the exact same weight can look VERY different. There is not a magic number that is going to make you feel good unless it LOOKS and FEELS the way you think it should. The scale is one tool to use in our fitness journeys along with progress pics, measurements, BF percentage, and many other things like how you feel and your clothes fit etc. We don’t tell our clients not to weigh, just that it is only one part of the equation.
So those are the three reasons you aren’t toned. Remember to lift some weights, eat enough calories/protein, and don’t worry so much about the scale.
As always reach out with questions to allgainnopaintony@gmail.com or @tonyarnoldfitlife on IG.
All Gain No Pain 