What do the following 2 things have in common:
1) Lifting light weights for high reps will increase muscle tone
2) Taking penis enlargement pills will make your penis bigger
Well the answer is that they’re both flat out lies. We want to believe they work and only use them because we’re told so by so-called “experts.”
But in the end, lifting lights weights for high reps is not the answer for muscle tone. In fact, it’s quite the opposite as I’ll soon reveal.
And for all my female readers out there, I’m sorry I had to drag penises into the conversation. But lets face it, penises are funny. And no, I have never used penis enlargement pills (we all know those are a scam).
Lifting light weights for high reps only pumps up your muscles
If you’ve ever lifted light weights for high reps, then you know exactly what I’m talking about. Whenever you lift weights in this matter, the only thing that happens is that your muscles get a really good pump.
This is why guys love to do endless sets of dumbbell curls for 15-20 reps, because it gives them a pump and makes their arms look extremely tight and muscular. But this is only temporary, and only happens due to the build up of blood and lactic acid in your muscles.
This pump will make you look leaner and more muscular than you actually are. But after about 1-2 hours, that pump goes away and your back to looking like normal. Sound familiar?
So how do I get more toned?
The only way to increase muscle tone and definition is to lift heavy weights.
There’s really no other way around it.
But I don’t want to get bigger, I just want to get more toned
I hear you. But lifting light weights like a little pussy isn’t going to make that happen. So how do you increase muscle tone permanently without getting bigger? Just follow the strategy below:
- For any exercise, pick a weight that you can only lift for 6 reps. No more, no less.
- Lift that weight for only 4-5 reps. Stop 1-2 reps short of failure.
So for example, let’s choose an exercise like the bench press. If you can lift 135 pounds for 6 reps, then you would only do 135 pounds for 4-5 reps. This will allow the muscle to contract harder since you’re lifting a heavier weight, and the harder your muscle contracts, the more muscle tone it will display.
And by stopping short of failure, it will be very hard to induce any sort of muscle gain.
Will this work for women too?
Absolutely!
It doesn’t matter if you’re a man, woman, or dog.
Lifting weights in this manner will work either way. This is especially great for women if they are aiming to look slim and feminine and not overly bulky.
This is different than what you read in magazines
If you read magazines like Shape or if you watch shows like The Biggest Loser, then lifting weights in this manner is going to require a leap of faith.
But if you truly want to build an impressive looking physique, then you need to sculpt your body, and the only way to sculpt your body is by lifting heavy weights every now and then.
Do you lift light weights for high reps or do you go heavy? Let me know below.
Good tips. Heavy weight training is the way to go for increasing muscle tone.
I like this no nonsense way of weight loss. I have every diet book published. Wasting my money, worrying about when to eat, what to eat, how eat! I work out and get depressed when I do not see results, because I so confused on what to eat. Learning how to be hunger for awhile is not going to kill me! 40 pounds overweight, 60 years old, working twelve hour shifts, hypothyroid. Feel weak will work on lifting heavier weights. Thanks
Palm to face!
This article is quite terrible sorry, because you do not seem to know what miscle tone is, in fact its a made up word to describe low body fat so the skin is tight against the muscle so your body looks more “toned” you cannot exercise for muscle tone!
You can only exercise for:
1.Muscle Size
2.Muscle Strength
3. A mix of both.
Which ever one you choose you can still achieve “tone” by loosing body fat through diet, which will make your skin more toght against your muscles causing the “toned” look.
Now weather you do size strength or a mix of both you can get muscle tone either 3 ways.
Dude I’m totally aware that “muscle tone” isn’t an actual scientific term.
But it is a very commonly used phrase in the fitness community so when someone refers to muscle tone, it’s pretty obvious what they’re referring to.
Sorry that my comment was a little blunt, I know what you mean.
I think it would’ve been nice to correct the misconception about tone and then given advice of how to achieve the look, so I was a bit annoyed, maybe write an article about what tone really is and why people should not worry about it etc…
G
Do you have any studies or evidence to back this claim? I’ve read in numerous reputable places quite the opposite and I’ve also read reports from controlled test groups to support the findings. Logically it makes sense that additional muscle can develop even under light weight conditions if the muscle is overloaded or fatigued,.Try sitting in a chair and holding your legs and arms straight out for as long as possible, very quickly gravity will begin to pull them down. Do that often enough and your muscles will develop even with out weights.
Absolutely not. I don’t have the studies available right now, but do you really believe that it’s possible to build a respectable amount of muscle by “holding out your hands?” That just doesn’t even make sense.
In the end, pushing more weight will increase the amount of tension which is what makes the muscle grow.
You have NO clue what you are talking about. I am living proof of what light weigh high reps can achieve. In the first 2 weeks of training I gained 10+ pounds using only 10’s,20’s & 30’s. Also I would like to see you call me “pussy” to my face since I lift like a pussy and everything.
**Advice to everyone else, read this article and do the exact opposite of what this moron says!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Woah calm down, Tim 🙂
you’re a beginner, so LITERALLY any form of weight lifting is going to get you results since your body has never been exposed to that before. But sooner or later, you’re going to have to start lifting heavier if you want to progress.
Have a fantastic day filled with sunshine and happiness.
Question. I”m in my late 40’s. I’ve been skinny most of my life and I HATE it. 6 feet, 165lbs. Not exactly an impressive physique. Am I wasting my time in a gym. I’ve heard that once a guy passes his 30’s…muscles simply begin to wither and gaining new muscle is increasingly difficult. I’ve always managed to keep decent tone. But never could put on mass, even when I was younger and more athletic. At this stage of my life I just want to look in a mirror and not be repulsed by what I see.
In theory, is it possible to add say 20lbs of muscle in 5 months? And can this be done by hitting the gym consistently and eating normally. I don’t earn enough money to eat 7 meals a day and those protein shakes/powders…they’re expensive too.
Also…the most I can bench currently is 200lbs.. Maybe 3-4 reps TOPS…1 SET. i can leg press about 250. I can bicep curl about 100. Should I start out lifting, pressing as much as I can even if it”s just one or two reps or sets. Or should I go for the more traditional number of sets and reps by using lighter weights and increasing over time?
I wouldn’t say it’s more difficult but the your overall muscular potential at that age is definitely less than what it was when you were younger.
It would definitely be possible to put on 10-15 pounds within 5 months, I can’t guarantee 20, but if you’re a complete beginner it is possible.
The trainer at the gym made me start with light weights, when I first started. 3x sets of 12 reps each, and I progress from there. I admit that it’s not because I can’t lift more…I just do what they tell me.
Is this wrong, should I be lifting more, for lower reps? I’m roughly 5-6 months in the gym, by the way.
Jeff, you are being trained properly. Listen to your trainer because him/her has been trained/certified and schooled for this type of stuff. I am a trained, educated, experienced fitness professional who knows exactly what it takes to build muscle the proper way. Most human beings (3/4 of Americans) have never been properly trained. Most feel, ‘why do I need to be trained to be told how to lift a weight?’ 75% of these people who think this way have either once or even more often develop injuries. Once again “Most” people out there have severe muscle imbalances and this is the key reason why injuries occur other than lifting heavy weights with no training.
Here is some free advice and knowledge to all you out there that want proper guidance;
1.) Stop being cheap. If you want to impress yourself, your girlfriend, or whoever….get a personal trainer with the proper credentials. Someone who has a certification in ACE, NASM, or some other reputable fitness academy.
2.) The average person has muscle imbalances and to be able to lift without injury one must become balanced entirely. Start with stabilization exercises, then strength endurance exercises which leads to hypertrophy, and beyond—the sky is the limit.
3.) The “core” not just your abdominal is the key to stability and ability to build healthy muscle tissue throughout the body. Without proper core muscles one can never be able to gain the hypertrophy one seeks.
4.) GoRan is on to something. He is correct in the sense to develop tone muscles one must lose the fat underneath the skin to show the body’s nature musculature. That being said, it is simple math people; burn more calories than you consume. Without eating healthy on a daily basis one will never have tone muscle that people crave in this era (vs. the 90’s look for having a bigger neck than head.). Being tone is have a fat % between 10%-15% based on total body weight.
5.) Cardio, Cardio, Cardio…. Run your ass off my friends to lose the fat underneath—-nope not only the fat underneath your skin, but the fat underneath your muscles! There are two types and one needs to understand that for total fitness.
Follow those 5 proven facts and you will see results in 4-6 weeks. Only you will do it for yourself. Impressing a girl will never keep you working out and staying healthy. There are 5 stages of the change model one needs to recognize. Which one are you in? Haha
1.) Pre-Contemplation
2.) Contemplation
3.) Preparation
4.) Action
5.) Maintenance
To get into the maintenance stage of the change model it should be between 6-8 months of proper training and eating healthy. Remember, muscle adapt and to prevent complacency one needs to be smart, creative and/or listen your your fitness professional.
Good luck! Stay Fit!
Exactly right, it’s all about healthy eating, plenty of water, and understanding your body. To lose that fat requires tons of effort and i recommend cardio too. Weight lifting is great but it discourages you because yo dont see any change on the scale. The “tone” only comes from lowering your body fat, same goes for showing them abs. As for getting those tones 12 reps isn’t bad at all, 12-15 is a reputable range for toning the muscle. Anything higher is irrelevant in my opinion. Great response btw!
yeah 12 reps isn’t bad but for most people, you get a lot more “bang for your buck” if you use lower rep ranges.
I lifted heavy and messed up my shoulders and knees and never got any size gains. I lifted hard and consistant even tried increasing protein dramatically.but nothing now im doing 8 to 10 reps with higher intensity and keep stress on my muscles and they have grown about 1in in 2 weeks specifically in my arms.
MC, you’re a genius. You speak the truth buddy! You’re well educated from what I can tell from your writing. I learned more from your comments than from the actual webpage. LMAO!
I’ve been looking into ways to exercise because well I want to do it right this time, but I don’t want to gain muscle mass, as in I don’t want to get bigger. I already have a hard enough time finding clothes that fit (as I’m sure you can tell I’m a chick and well my butt and thighs are several sizes bigger than my waist is) from the exercise regimen I did in high school for track and cross country. I’ve had a couple of kids since then and working out got put on the back burner so while I still do it, my body isn’t in shape like it once was.
I’ve never had the lean toned look, I’ve always just gained muscle mass. Which meant going back to the store to find pants to fit my butt and thighs and shirts to fit my arms, both of which become baggy on my chest and stomach area.
Since nothing else has ever seemed to work, I guess I’ll give this a shot. Thanks for being one of the few sources who actually touch on strictly “muscle toning”.
Cool let me know how it goes, Ayla 🙂
thank you very much Sir, it is really very useful for me, now a days i was very confused about this thing. and i want to know one more thing. should i do abs workout everyday or on the alternate day.
Every other day.
3-4 sets hanging leg raises
Complete utter waste of time. Article has zero facts and zero studies to show it. So stupid.
Why?
Sir, I want to know that is it really true that one can get better and permanent muscle tone display by following this :
“But I don’t want to get bigger, I just want to get more toned
I hear you. But lifting light weights like a little pussy isn’t going to make that happen. So how do you increase muscle tone permanently without getting bigger? Just follow the strategy below:
For any exercise, pick a weight that you can only lift for 6 reps. No more, no less.
Lift that weight for only 4-5 reps. Stop 1-2 reps short of failure.
So for example, let’s choose an exercise like the bench press. If you can lift 135 pounds for 6 reps, then you would only do 135 pounds for 4-5 reps. This will allow the muscle to contract harder since you’re lifting a heavier weight, and the harder your muscle contracts, the more muscle tone it will display.
And by stopping short of failure, it will be very hard to induce any sort of muscle gain.”
Please also reply for this on my E-mail : [email protected]
Hi Sir,
As my trainer suggested me that , first set start with light weight and keep increasing the weight for every set, its increasing my size of muscle but i dont want the size. i want to be look lean.
So i started with going light weight with high reps like 50,40,30,20,10 , for every set i am adding little weight.but i couldnt see much result.
Can you please guide me how i will get lean muscle and how many sets and reps i have to do to get the muscular body.
I dont want to be look like bulky as my height is 165 cm.
Google reverse pyramid training, and do that.
Thanks Keith…
Can you guide me , how to cover the long gap between the chest plates.What type bench press will help to cover the gap between the chest plates.
Yet science proves conclusively that you’re wrong and spewing shit from your hole.
Countless clinical and university studies have shown not only will you build just as much muscle and strength as someone doing max weight, low reps but you burn more calories, have more durability and when you do lift your max, have a much lower risk of injury because your connective tissue has greater strength and durability.
I’m wrong?
Empirical evidence says completely otherwise as does my training regimen.
What they found was it’s just a matter of exercising the muscle to the point of FATIGUE.
As long as you reach fatigue, you will consistently build muscle and strength but with more added benefits.
I’ll do 30-50% of my max in sets of anywhere from 40 to 60 followed by 3 more high rep sets then every 60-90 seconds, 15-25 reps until I’ve hit easily 300 total for any given exercise.
In the world of ignorant broscience supported by high school drop outs or at best, graduates, you’re 110% correct.
In the world of science majors, such as myself, you’re just another narrow minded preacher claiming your god is the strongest and everyone else is just plain wrong.
3 years ago at peak mass I was able to strict curl 100lbs with 1 arm and I see countless guys doing things the old fashion, broligion way who are lucky if they can do 60.
ok
Way….
Johnie your a pussy….
The one thing I wonder is if you assume the high rep low weight is 20-25 reps at 10 pounds (for example) and it stay’s that way for a year or forever? That’s usually not how it works..you can build good strength, definition and all that jazz by going that route.. The thing is that 10 pounds eventually becomes 12 or 15 or 20 or more. But they’re still doing 20-25 reps. There are studies that agree with that and I’ve seen it..Are they going to have as much gains as the 6-8 rep higher weight, no, But you can still get awfully strong, have good muscles and definition by going to the high rep route. Thank you.
of course the terms “light” and “strong” are subjective. And yes, you can still make decent progress in the 20-25 rep range.
But no sound trainer or coach would ever tell someone to perform the majority of their lifts in the 20-25 rep range. It’s simply too light of a load to gain and maintain strength/muscle consistently.
I liked the article but, I’ve tried it many routines (heavy, light, bands, high reps)-with trainers and diets and my arms are not lean. I read Escape Your Shape and am an hourglass woman. My upper arms are heavy and never get lean. The heavier the weight, the more I weigh! They say the goal is the reduction of inches but, the heavier the weight–the bigger my “muscle” and arm becomes.
Never read that book.
What do you mean by upper arms? Do you mean your shoulders?
Lifting weights doesn’t automatically make you lean, that more of a body fat issue. Make sure you watch your diet and how much you’re eating. If you have too much body fat, then no amount of weights will give you defined arms.
Same here. The lift heavy advice is terrible for women! Focus on your diet and dump the weights.