Do You Know How You Can Be More "Toned"?

By Caleb Lee

If you want to look more "toned" more muscular and more "ripped" every day then 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"

Nearly everyone absolutely screw this up. They make an attempt to firm up by "going for the burn" when exercising. They do this since

1. Somebody told them heavy weights make you hulking...

2. Their muscles feel and look toned after they "Feel the burn" when working out with high reps.

Here's why you shouldn't "go for the burn" when exercising if you want to get in shape

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 exercise your nervous system to keep your muscles half flexed when you are calm. This is what muscle tone is-residual tension in a relaxed muscle! The kind of tension that comes from neurological activity, and not energy fatigue.

Increased muscle tone is not a physical change of your muscle. It is the result of the nervous system being more on the ball. It keeps the muscles somewhat contracted the whole time.

Strength = Tension = Tone

Strength and tone training is the same thing. If you learn to generate tension to gain strength, instead of building more muscle, then the stronger you are, the harder you will be. This means you need to focus on strength training to get that hard bod you want. Max tension = max strength.

For Ladies

* Want buns of steel? Heavy, 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 toned, sleek, sexy hips and thighs? Deadlifts, squats, and other full body movements done with high tension, heavy weights are the ticket.

For males:

* Want a Thick Chest and Broad Shoulders? Extreme, High Tension Overhead Presses and Bench Presses will get you there

* Want a barnyard back? Weight Pullups and Bent over Rows to build those lats

* Sculpt a killer six-pack? Squats, Deads, Overhead Squats, Overhead presses, Ab Wheels and planks like the ladies

* Want big 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 get big, and build muscle: Lift more volume during your workout. Keep the reps low though so you're still able to lift with maximal tension and build more strength. 5 sets x 5 reps as an example for each 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. - 17274

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