Trying to tone up..don't know where to start

Hi,

I am new to this site because I have hit a dead end when it comes to working out. I don't know where to start with my workouts really and I'm not sure what workout would be best for me. I currently am okay with the weight I'm at right now but would be willing to lose 5-10 pounds. I mostly want to tone up all parts of my body without losing my boobs..I have whey protein which could be helpful I'm just not positive on the workout I should be doing. Pilates, body weight training..?! Please help! Any workout routines would be extremely helpful as well as advice on the whey protein.
 
read this:
http://training.fitness.com/weight-training/basic-novice-program-strength-muscle-54545.html

you want to keep your boobs, dont lose much fat. eat healthy & enough.
 
Unfortunately, you cannot spot reduce. You can only lower overall body fat, so if you want to lose 5-10 lbs, your boobs may take a hit of that. I wouldn't bother with the whey if you are trying to lose weight. For those trying to get below 10% bf, you must adhere to a strict constant diet. Combine weights with cardio, not just cardio, because then your muscles will take a hit as well and you'll get the "skinny/fat" look. You need to keep the strength there. I'm starting a cut this week, actually, which is going to consist of an 8 day split where I'm lifting for a half hour and doing cardio for a half hour every other day. Cut back on carbs and eat a good breakfast. Burn more than you take in. That's the most important part. I've never been good at explaining macros and specifics on diet. CrazyOldMan or Goldfish would be better at that than myself.
 
Whether you keep your breasts will be largely down to genetics and a bit of luck but there are a number of women i have advised as below who have trimmed down most places and either kept or increased cup size. A few others have dropped a bit but not enough for them to worry about. Like it or not they are bags of fat and as such there is an element of chance, everything else is certain if you are sensible.

Disclaimer done here we go.

Step 1. Ditch the whey protein or other supplements unless you know there is a particular dietary issue that you need to treat, inability to absorb iron etc.
There is a key word there 'supplement' if your diet is right you don't need to supplement it. A simple truth hardly anyone relly believes until they have done it.

Step 2. Ignore the scales. If the first one challenged your belief this one is going to seem less a step too far and more a leap of a cliff, but I can justify it. You are happy at your current weight but would happily lose a little, actually meaning your body shape is roughly what you want but you would like to be a bit leaner and more muscular. Toned does mean more muscular as it means you want your body to be fimrer and the only general tissue that is firmer than fat is muscle.
Because you will end up putting on muscle, allbeit in small quantities, you are likely to gain weight from this. If you lose fat too the chances are you may stay the same weight or even still get heavier while toning up. An old colleague of mine did incredibly well via commitment to diet and training and got down to the same weight as I have recently gone up to. Side by side we were the same height but he was visibly bigger than me. He was in better shape than many but I have decades of training behind me meaning I may be ugly but I am still muscular and relatively lean. Weight is the least accurate measure please avoid obsessing over it, as much as you can if seeking aesthetic changes, use the mirror as your guide, this is not easy.

Step 3. Balanced diet. I don't do macro level nutrition because having studied down to it I realised it's mind-numbingly complex and absolutely impossible to guarantee getting right. Once you accept that diet will never be 100% correct you realise high level is the best place to manage it from. This is why I direct people to the food pyramid as a guide on proportion, not number of portions. If you try to do x servings of y etc. you get confused on what is a serving etc. Just look at the size of the section and have that for your diet. Mostly complex carb aka staple food like rice, pasta, potatoes and bread, sensible fruit and veg which due to their size will actually give little in calories compared to everything else but bulk out the meal, moderate meat, fish, dairy and very little in the way of treats, sauces, oils processed dairy (butter etc.) and sugars.
Eat what you need volume wise. If you want to lose weight and keep figure only reduce by very small amounts across the board. Fat loss will be very slow but there is no rush.

Step 4. Training. The link you were given by plugeye is a good one, I have used it many times. As Justin said you need to have variety regarding intensity to have cardio at the low end and other training at the high end. You like pilates which will compliment what I am going to suggest well as the stretches will reduce aching and risk of injury.
Toning reps I would normally put at around 12 to 20 per set, so the workout goldfish has set up in the artical from plugeye using a rep range like this would tone you up nicely. However in my experience women doing heavier weights tended to build a bigger bust over half the time, stay the same most of the rest and lose rarely. As such I would say sets of 10 or 12 reps would likely suit you best. This carries a risk because the lower rep range you are doing the higher weight you should be using to ensure overload, higher weight brings with it higher risk of inury through incorrect movement, so only do this once you are totally confident with every exercise. If you start doing 15 or 20 a set to get used to it then shift to doing 10 and 12 a set a few months later you will gain far more than if you damage yourself going too far now.
Make sure you do your cardio, the heart and lungs are rather more important than how round your butt is, so don't forget this bit. If you enjoy going on a run, or cycle several times a week great, do it and nice to know there are others as sad as me. If not use aerobic classes or circuits, anything that keeps your heart rate elevated constantly for a duration of at least 20 minutes is ideal, there are alternatives, many do work but this keeps things simple.
Keep the pilates and ideally do some of the stretch movements at the end of every workout. The benefits of flexibility are many covering injury avoidance etc. Besides which there is nothing more pathetic than someone who is picture perfect but can't move.

Step 5. Final and most important. Find stuff you enjoy. If you try what I have said and hate it, come back and complain. We will not only give you your money back but will suggest alternatives based on your feedback. If you hate it even after giving it a chance stop it. If you perservere you will be deferring the inevitable stop. Almost without fail, those who hate what they do stop, those who love it continue. It is better to do something you love that takes a year or more to get what you want now than something you hate that takes months. Because you will have new targets in a year or so and only by doing stuff you love will you want to continue toward them.
I will gaurantee you everyone here who has achieved what they want thoroughly enjoy what they do. We enjoy different stuff but none of us care about that.
 
You need to calculate the number of calories you use in a day! There are many online calculators that can give you a rough estimate. This is one that will be reasonable at estimating this number. After figuring that out, you just add or subtract calories based on your goal, and that's how much you should try to eat each day! Obviously, since it's an estimate, pay attention to the scale for the first couple weeks to make sure the calculator was close enough to give you good results.
 
First of all it is important to know your objective. What do you exactly mean by toning up? Do you want to loose weight, gain weight or just shape your body? Once you have the answer to this question, you can work out the right exercise plan. Your diet also should be planned accordingly.
 
You should look into HIIT training. You can do this with any home exercise routines and its a great way to gain lean muscle mass while burning a ton of calories.

Good Luck
 
Hey there! Would be happy to discuss further and talk about your goals; I lead fitness groups in which people have lost a bunch of weight and really toned up. It's tough in the beginning when you don't really know what to do but, trust me, it isn't hard when you have the right program in place. I was in the same place you are and I lost 20lbs and gained lots of definition in 90 days last year. Easier to chat, though, than post in the forum. Are you on Facebook? Find me at facebook.com/jfrofro and we'll chat more! Take care.

Jason
jasonfroehlich@gmail.com
View attachment 6271
 

Attachments

  • Before After Branded.jpg
    Before After Branded.jpg
    20.8 KB · Views: 38
Back
Top