What is 'toning'?

[Tatyana]

Hey ladies,

I noticed a lot of you mention you want to get 'toned'. Soooooooooo, I though that it would be a good idea to distinguish exactly what this term means to you.

I do have an agenda, as I want to eliminate this word from any sort of fitness training and the vocabulary of women wanting to get into shape.

What do you mean when you say you want to get 'toned'?

It is a physiological term, I will put that up later.

 

[blueta2]

yeah the term tone is a huge no-no on so many fitness boards.

I think it's the laymen term for wanting to not jiggle and just have some definition.
I think the term is ok

 

[localgirl]

Tat- I can honestly say one of the first things I picked up from this board was you telling me..theres NO SUCH THING as toning.

I think what most ladies mean is they're looking for more definition.

 

[Ash1978]

Yeah to me it means lean, no jiggle and some muscle. I'm horrible and use the word tone all the time.

Now one thing that really gets on my nerves is all my friends and my mom say " why do you lift such heavy weights, it will make you bulky" Or why do you eat all that protein, it will make you fat." Now that right there makes me want to poke myself in the eye with a fork.

 

[Tatyana]

lollololololollololo

Great answers so far.

Anything else?

 

[needtogetaas]

Yeah to me it means lean, no jiggle and some muscle. I'm horrible and use the word tone all the time.

No one thing that really gets on my nerves is all my friends and my mom say " why do you lift such heavy weights, it will make you bulky" Or why do you eat all that protein, it will make you fat." Now that right there makes me want to poke myself in the eye with a fork.

Most women think the same. Its funny how its been drilled into there heads. Training and eating like the men will not make you look like one.

 

[chazk]

Hey Tat ,

I hear this world slung around. It really is very open and loose to definition.

It is eazier to say " I am wanting to tone up "
Then to say " I am trying to drop overall body fat ,condition and show some definition in my muscles "

As far as people trying to tone up certian areas of the body . Spot reduction is possible.I have read of a study that showed heat readings of a area being worked. I remember The test subjects were hooked up to medical equipment and made to run 2 miles a day for 30 days.The group that ran lowered bodyfat in the upper thighs ,glutes and calves. The only explination was circulation in the lower limbs was increased and blood flow was able to get into the muscles and fat cells and do its job. ( Alot of fat had poor circulation) as well as the heat produced by the muscles warms the entire area helps the areas improve circulation to the fat cells.

So some proof dos exist of spot reduction (toning some call it ) BUT it is only at very high rep training session such as doing 100 leg extentions, running miles, doing endless tricep extentions literally for 15-30 minutes straight and so on.

 

[titeNtonedN08]

LOL- well, since i'm supposed to get tight and toned in 08 i guess i can tell u

to me it just means replacing blubber with tight skin on top of muscle.. like sculpting...

Chaz- interesting point! too bad it doesn't work for my problem area.. i've noticed since i've started working out consistently that my arms and calves are starting to look great... now if only some of the tummy can go away!!

 

[Tatyana]

Some definitions:

In physiology, medicine, and anatomy, muscle tone (aka residual muscle tension or tonus) is the continuous and passive partial contraction of the muscles. It helps maintain posture, and it declines during REM sleep.

Toning exercises are physical exercises that aim to develop musculature that is hard, as opposed to flaccid.

Performing such exercises can be referred to as toning.

In this respect, the term toned implies leanness in the body, low levels of body fat, and noticeable muscle definition and shape.

The concept of muscle building may refer to the expected effects of such exercises.

Many bodybuilders and experts argue that there is no such thing as a toning exercise.

What is referred to as toning actually consists of two effects: increased muscle size through hypertrophy and lower bodyfat percent.

Combined, these create the effect mistakenly called toning.




Why I am so opposed to the use of the word toning, is that the majority of women who use the word 'tone' do not consider that it has anything to due with building muscle.

If they do think that muscle tone is involved, then the weight training involved is often the 'pink dumbell' type, often one set of really high reps.

I would say that eight times out of ten when I see women doing this in the gym, they could have gotten a better workout by either carrying their groceries home from the shops or lifting and carrying a baby or small child for the day.

Really, they are wasting their time on pec dec machines, butt blasters, abdominal machines, jumping from machine to machine for an hour, or doing endless amounts of cardio in an attempt to get the body they will be happy with.

I would just like to put an end to this waste of time, most women don't have time to waste, and they don't need to spend needless hours in the gym if they learn how to train with the full on intensity required to build muscle aka=tone.

Yes, some may have to start with pink dumbells as a lot of women don't have upper body strength, but to carry on this way for months and months and then be disappointed with the results and give up on it.

Honestly ladies, it is SO DIFFICULT for women to build any decent amount of muscle, and you start to lose it at a much more rapid rate at about 30.

All of this leads to the dreaded 'middle age spread', which doesn't have to happen with a bit of diligence and consistency in your approach to training and fitness.

 

[Tatyana]

Hey Tat ,

I hear this world slung around. It really is very open and loose to definition.

It is eazier to say " I am wanting to tone up "
Then to say " I am trying to drop overall body fat ,condition and show some definition in my muscles "

As far as people trying to tone up certian areas of the body . Spot reduction is possible.I have read of a study that showed heat readings of a area being worked. I remember The test subjects were hooked up to medical equipment and made to run 2 miles a day for 30 days.The group that ran lowered bodyfat in the upper thighs ,glutes and calves. The only explination was circulation in the lower limbs was increased and blood flow was able to get into the muscles and fat cells and do its job. ( Alot of fat had poor circulation) as well as the heat produced by the muscles warms the entire area helps the areas improve circulation to the fat cells.

So some proof dos exist of spot reduction (toning some call it ) BUT it is only at very high rep training session such as doing 100 leg extentions, running miles, doing endless tricep extentions literally for 15-30 minutes straight and so on.

American Journal of Physiology Endocrinology and Metabolism 2007 292: 394-399

Danish researchers have shown that spot reduction is effective.

In a study led by Dr. Bentel Stallknecht from the Panum Institute in Copenhagen used radioactive tracers to measure changes in fat mass during high-rep knee extensions.

They also studied blood flow and fat breakdown in fat tissue adjacent to working muscle and in fat tissue around the inactive muscle in the other leg.

After 30 min of doing leg extensions with one leg, subjects switched legs and did knee extensions with the other leg at a higher weight for 120 min.

Blood flow and fat breakdown were greatest around the working muscle.

Spot reducing was more effective at a higher intensity because it generated more heat in the muscle and triggered a higher release of catecholamines.

High-rep, high-weight exercises reduce local fat stores.

Yes, there was this study.

However, if you have a lot of fat, it is better to burn the fat off with cardio and a reduced calorie diet (if you have been eating too much), and then build muscle.

I would think you would have to be fairly low bodyfat for this to be effective in the first place, and from subsequent research, it only works on arms and legs, not your abs.