So…. You want to get toned? Before you start in on the practical advice offered here, you’ll want to read Part I of this series to understand what will get your toned and what will waste your time. In a nutshell, you need to do the following to get toned:
• Lose enough excess fat that your muscle tone can show
• Gain muscle in the areas you want to be more toned
• Feed your muscles by eating plenty of protein
If you are already very thin, you will want to focus your workouts on the specific areas you want to tone. If you are not thin or have excess fat in the areas you wish to tone, you will want to work out all of your major muscle groups.
Why Work Out All of My Major Muscle Groups? Muscle burns more calories than fat. If you need to lose excess fat, you need to burn more calories in order to lose it. Working out one specific area does not cause fat loss in that area. It causes fat loss all over your body. As you lose fat all over, you will also lose fat in the areas you want to tone.
Muscle Toning Stage One – For Those Who Need to Lose Fat As you get started on your toning program, you’ll want to work the largest muscles first. This way you’ll jumpstart your metabolism and get the biggest bang for your buck.
You can do this by performing the following large muscle group toning exercises:
Lunge-Swing Exercise Combo
This exercise works your gluteus maximums, your quadriceps, your calves and your hamstrings all at once. It also requires you to tighten your core muscles, providing mild toning to your lower back and abdominal muscles. It is an all-over toning beast of an exercise.
Start in a standing position, with your feet shoulder-width apart. Lung forward, bringing your right leg forward and then sinking down into the lunge until your right leg forms a 90-degree right angle at your knee. Hold this lung for a count of three.
Shifting your weight to that bent right leg, swing your left leg forward, pointing your toe as you extend the leg forward (straight ahead). As you swing that straight leg forward (forming a right degree angle with your straight leg and your trunk), you will straighten your right leg, effectively standing up. Hold your left leg straight for a count of three, and then deliberately and slowly lower your left leg so you have returned to a standing position with both feet on the ground.
Now perform this same exercise starting with your leg left, lunging forward, holding the lunge, and then extending the right leg as you stand up.
Repeat this exercise twenty times for beginners, more for those who are already quite fit.
Plank-Push Up-Plank Exercise
To tone your upper and lower back, biceps, triceps, shoulders and abdominal muscles all at once, complete this exercise.
Start on the floor in a push up position, with your hands under your shoulders. You can rise up onto your toes (if you are strong enough) or rest on your knees. Lift up into a push up, hold it for one second, and then return to the floor. Rest for two seconds before lifting into a plank position and holding it for a count of five. Return to the floor again and rest for five seconds.
Repeat until you cannot hold your back and abdomen tight, keeping a straight plank position through the push ups and planks. If you find your arms weaken before your core muscles do, spend more time in the plan positions and less time in the push ups. Over time, your entire upper body and core will grow in strength.
Muscle Toning Program Part III – Toning Exercises for Smaller Muscle Groups Once you’ve got these large muscle group toning exercises down, you’ll want to add in smaller muscle group toning exercises. You can read about these in part three of our muscle toning series. (Stay tuned for parts 3 and 4)
If these multi-purpose large muscle toning exercises are too challenging, you will want to read part of our muscle toning program series. This is an article devoted to building muscle slowly and surely through exercises that isolate the large muscles through safer exercises. As part of the over 40 fitness crowd, you’ll want to make sure you prioritize safety over quick results. Make sure you visit recommended resources page to help achieve your goals!
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