Do You Know How You Can Be More “Toned”?
If you desire to look more toned, trim and chiseled day after day then you read this article.
People (women predominantly) state that they want to be more “toned”. In short, they don’t necessarily want to build more muscle mass, but then they want the muscle that already have to look more in shape, toned, and defined.
How most people screw up attempting to get “toned”
A number of people completely screw this up. They make an effort to get in shape by “going for the burn” when training. They do this for the reason that
1. Somebody told them heavy weights make you hulking…
2. Their muscles feel and look toned when they “Feel the burn” when exercising with high reps.
Here’s why you shouldn’t “go for the burn” when keeping fit if you want to get toned
The Burn is an increase in lactic acid
The reason you feel hard during and after the ‘burn’ is the same reason a corpse is stiff. Your muscle fibers are akin to mouse traps-they go off by themselves, but need energy to be reset to contract once again. A dead body is out of ATP, the energy compound that relaxes the muscles, that’s why their muscles are permanently contracted.
An extreme rep exercise session weakens ATP in your muscle and leads to a brief hardness very much like what happens to a dead body. But you probably don’t want to be dead, and yet you still want to be toned. The solution?
Real Muscle Tone = Tension
To get lasting tone, you need to train your nervous system to keep your muscles half flexed when you are relaxed. This is what muscle tone is-residual tension in a relaxed muscle! The kind of tension that comes from neurological activity, and not energy exhaustion.
Increased muscle tone is not a physical transformation of your muscle. It is the result of the nervous system being more alert. It keeps the muscles partially contracted all the time.
Strength / Tension / Tone
Strength and tone training is the same thing. If you learn to produce tension to achieve strength, instead of building more muscle, then the stronger you are, the harder you will be. This means you need to concentrate on strength training to get that the body of your dreams. Max tension – max strength.
For Women
* Want buns of steel? Extreme, high-tension deadlifts work your butt WAY more than butt squeezes, ‘fire hydrants’, or similar silly moves popular in ‘muscle sculpting’ classes
* Sculpt abs of steel? Intense, high-tension deadlifts, squats, overhead presses, ab wheel routines, planks, and the like force your abs to produce high tension
* Want chiseled, sleek, sexy hips and thighs? Deadlifts, squats, and other full body movements done with high tension, heavy weights are the ticket.
For guys:
* Want a Big Chest and Shoulders? Heavy, High Tension Overhead Presses and Bench Presses will get you there
* Desire for a barnyard back? Weight Pullups and Bent over Rows to build those lats
* Ripped Abs? Squats, Deads, Overhead Squats, Overhead presses, Ab Wheels and planks like the ladies
* Want firm, sculpted arms? Heavy presses and other overhead work.
You Can Strength Train and Not “Get Bulky”
Here’s how you strength train without getting bulky: keep the number of repetitions at a low level. Then you will get stronger, harder, and more toned without getting any bigger. Keep the total number of reps short for every workout. A general rule is 10 reps or less. So two heavy sets of 5 would work with the major exercises.
If you want to build a hard body with mega-muscles of steel: Lift additional volume during your exercise. Keep the reps minimal though so you’re still able to lift with maximal tension and build more strength. 5 sets x 5 reps as an example per major exercise.
So there you go. If you want to get maximum hard-body results and a lean chiseled abs, then you have to build strength.
