Muscle Toning, any advice?

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Muscle Toning, any advice?
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flag XTC-FTW
Posted: Jun 15, 2011 at 22:30 Quote
freeriderGBR wrote:
Hi all,
Basically I’m looking into trying to tone up and have more definition in my muscles. Though I don’t want to Bulk up and look disproportionate to my body size as I don’t want it to affect my cardio side of working out. At the moment I do a lot of cardio, so physically I'm pretty fit, I try to aim at going to the gym 4 times per week, and my usual routine is
Treadmill - 5km in 25 minutes
Bike - 10 km in between 15 and 20 minutes
2 spinning classes per week - 45 minutes
As well as approximately 30 miles a week riding to work and back, mixture of road and off road
1 hour a half MMA with sparring and pad work at the gym as well
On top of this I do weights as well so certain muscles like my calves and quads are toned, however although my chest and arms feel like I’ve gained more muscle the definition is lacking.

Any advice on how I can achieve this? Without becoming overweight with muscle and putting on a belly from drinking fatty protein shakes like some people I’ve seen. Like I said I do plenty of cardio so just want to look as physically fit and strong as i feel. Are protein shakes the answer to it? And if so which aren’t full in calories and fats?
Any advice is appreciated

Wow you seem do be doing everything, go swimming
flag stumped
Posted: Aug 1, 2011 at 12:06 Quote
My brother is a diabetic and he loves biking a lot, but recently he has started to feel weak as hes biking and would just fall off his bike, due to not having enough strength. My question is are there any supplements he could take to help this as he's taking his insulin and always checking his blood sugar levels. If there are any, what are best protein supplements for a diabetic, or does even matter at all? Any suggestions on this would be amazing!!!
flag TyranT21
Posted: Aug 24, 2011 at 5:03 Quote
James-Carey wrote:
I was not joking when i said do some digging, it is productive, and works just like weights, as well as working pecs and forearms, and biceps and triceps all in the one process of laying a slab, or filling a barrow, also you have the chest and upper arm workout that is pushing a barrow up a hill or landing

I agree and you also make progress building a trail, I've done lots of hole digging for tree plantingand i honestly think its keeping my upper body strength up.
flag Excalibur-DH
Posted: Aug 24, 2011 at 5:36 Quote
Best advice I can give is do more reps of less weight.
Tones and tightens instead of building mass.
flag James-Carey
Posted: Aug 24, 2011 at 5:39 Quote
Excalibur-DH wrote:
Best advice I can give is do more reps of less weight.
Tones and tightens instead of building mass.

(in an under breath manner) Like digging Wink
flag Excalibur-DH
Posted: Aug 24, 2011 at 5:41 Quote
Depends how you dig Wink ahaha
You're right though, digging is a good example, also stuff like pumptrack riding will help
flag James-Carey
Posted: Aug 24, 2011 at 6:03 Quote
Excalibur-DH wrote:
Depends how you dig Wink ahaha
You're right though, digging is a good example, also stuff like pumptrack riding will help

like a machine :Cool :
flag Ironchefjon
FL
Posted: Sep 6, 2011 at 9:25 Quote
Just do a 3 day dumbbell split such as

http://www.muscleandstrength.com/workouts/dumbbell-only-home-or-gym-fullbody-workout.html

Eat more protein...cardio's gonna kill your gains. Ultimately, your goals should dictate your diet and exercise. You're gonna have a hard time getting big with all that cardio, but i suppose if your goal is to get toned, a simple dumbbell split with lots of compounds wouldn't hurt. Just adjust your diet to feed those muscles.
flag ambatt
Posted: Sep 9, 2011 at 10:25 Quote
freeriderGBR wrote:
Hi all,
Basically I’m looking into trying to tone up and have more definition in my muscles. Though I don’t want to Bulk up and look disproportionate to my body size as I don’t want it to affect my cardio side of working out. At the moment I do a lot of cardio, so physically I'm pretty fit, I try to aim at going to the gym 4 times per week, and my usual routine is
Treadmill - 5km in 25 minutes
Bike - 10 km in between 15 and 20 minutes
2 spinning classes per week - 45 minutes
As well as approximately 30 miles a week riding to work and back, mixture of road and off road
1 hour a half MMA with sparring and pad work at the gym as well
On top of this I do weights as well so certain muscles like my calves and quads are toned, however although my chest and arms feel like I’ve gained more muscle the definition is lacking.

Any advice on how I can achieve this? Without becoming overweight with muscle and putting on a belly from drinking fatty protein shakes like some people I’ve seen. Like I said I do plenty of cardio so just want to look as physically fit and strong as i feel. Are protein shakes the answer to it? And if so which aren’t full in calories and fats?
Any advice is appreciated

While cardio and weight training are important, 80% of definition and muscle tone is diet (i.e., the way you eat). As a personal trainer, nutritionist, athlete and fitness enthusiast, I tell my clients that training is useless if you're not eating right as the right combo of food can actually supplement your training AND riding. The cardio you're doing is awesome and will help keep you lean, but you need to take in at LEAST your body weight in grams of protein a day to add lean muscle to your frame. (I know it sounds scary, but it's not). A good rule of thumb is to eat anywhere from 4 to 6 small meals a day (depending on your size, goals, etc) and I'm stressing the word SMALL here. Not massive burger and fries combo meals but lean protein, complex carbs and healthy fats in every 'meal' to keep your energy up and your body building lean muscle and burning fat. Sample meal I'd give one of my clients: Turkey, chicken or beef (yes, red meat is fine), combined with broccoli, spinach or kale paired with 1/2 sweet potato and avocado, peanut butter or almonds.

Protein shakes are used by fitness professionals and regular people because it's an easy way to up your protein. Personally, I use AMP Amplified Wheybolic Extreme 60 (low fat, low carb, high protein) because of the great amino acid profiles that are in it. It's all about the different types of protein -- men who gain fat around their middles from protein shakes are probably drinking one with a) lots of sugar and b) soy protein instead of whey or casein. There are lots of different proteins out there and you'll have to find your personal preference, but just remember: it's all about what you're putting into your body, not what you're doing at the gym.
flag freeriderGBR
Posted: Sep 18, 2011 at 3:12 Quote
ambatt wrote:
freeriderGBR wrote:
Hi all,
Basically I’m looking into trying to tone up and have more definition in my muscles. Though I don’t want to Bulk up and look disproportionate to my body size as I don’t want it to affect my cardio side of working out. At the moment I do a lot of cardio, so physically I'm pretty fit, I try to aim at going to the gym 4 times per week, and my usual routine is
Treadmill - 5km in 25 minutes
Bike - 10 km in between 15 and 20 minutes
2 spinning classes per week - 45 minutes
As well as approximately 30 miles a week riding to work and back, mixture of road and off road
1 hour a half MMA with sparring and pad work at the gym as well
On top of this I do weights as well so certain muscles like my calves and quads are toned, however although my chest and arms feel like I’ve gained more muscle the definition is lacking.

Any advice on how I can achieve this? Without becoming overweight with muscle and putting on a belly from drinking fatty protein shakes like some people I’ve seen. Like I said I do plenty of cardio so just want to look as physically fit and strong as i feel. Are protein shakes the answer to it? And if so which aren’t full in calories and fats?
Any advice is appreciated

While cardio and weight training are important, 80% of definition and muscle tone is diet (i.e., the way you eat). As a personal trainer, nutritionist, athlete and fitness enthusiast, I tell my clients that training is useless if you're not eating right as the right combo of food can actually supplement your training AND riding. The cardio you're doing is awesome and will help keep you lean, but you need to take in at LEAST your body weight in grams of protein a day to add lean muscle to your frame. (I know it sounds scary, but it's not). A good rule of thumb is to eat anywhere from 4 to 6 small meals a day (depending on your size, goals, etc) and I'm stressing the word SMALL here. Not massive burger and fries combo meals but lean protein, complex carbs and healthy fats in every 'meal' to keep your energy up and your body building lean muscle and burning fat. Sample meal I'd give one of my clients: Turkey, chicken or beef (yes, red meat is fine), combined with broccoli, spinach or kale paired with 1/2 sweet potato and avocado, peanut butter or almonds.

Protein shakes are used by fitness professionals and regular people because it's an easy way to up your protein. Personally, I use AMP Amplified Wheybolic Extreme 60 (low fat, low carb, high protein) because of the great amino acid profiles that are in it. It's all about the different types of protein -- men who gain fat around their middles from protein shakes are probably drinking one with a) lots of sugar and b) soy protein instead of whey or casein. There are lots of different proteins out there and you'll have to find your personal preference, but just remember: it's all about what you're putting into your body, not what you're doing at the gym.

This is really helpful, thanks for the great advice! currently im using PhD pharma whey protein because of its low calorie and fatty content however ive not noticed much difference when using it and when not. However ill be sure to split my meals up as you have suggested. I have also heard that by doing so much cardio and my body will struggle to put weight on however my goal isnt to look like some juice head, I play of football (soccer) daily so cannot afford to cut back on my overall stamina by neglecting the cardio side just to gain a few extra pounds. My ideal physique is something along the lines of Ronaldo? by doing weight training mixed with high intensity cardio and your dieting suggestion will i hopefully become lean and toned in this way or do i need to alter my programme? again great advice and really appreciated Smile
flag johnfreeride
Posted: Sep 20, 2011 at 16:04 Quote
Toning is a mis used word IMO.

You cannot "tone" a muscle. A muscle cannot be shapped and toned per say, it can get bigger or smaller and stronger or weaker, the myth that you can tone a muscle is super false. The shape of a muscle is determined by one's genetics and the toning of a muscle is a myth, people just assume tone when really the muscle is achieving hypertrophy.

I just had a quick glance over the thread but in the original post the Op stated he does not want to get big and bulky but he wants to tone. What most people forget is getting big and bulky doesnt just happen. You will reach a stage where you appear "toned" long before you get big and bulky, it's not like a muscle can get massive without being normal sized first, understand?

I guess what was meant by tone is defined muscle and a low percent body fat, this is a tough thing to accomplish but not impossible. To build muscle a calorie surplus must be achieved in order for new tissue to be constructed. I would suggest hill sprinting and other interval work if you want to do cardio and try to limit long low intensity cardio unless its something like going for a walk.

Also, limiting fat retention while trying to build some muscle is about 75% diet 25% training
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