Toning exercises are
physical exercises that are used with the aim of developing a
physique with a large emphasis on
musculature. In this context, the term toned implies leanness in the body (low levels of
body fat
Adipose tissue, body fat, or simply fat is a loose connective tissue composed mostly of adipocytes. In addition to adipocytes, adipose tissue contains the stromal vascular fraction (SVF) of cells including preadipocytes, fibroblasts, vascular e ...
), noticeable muscle definition and shape, but not significant muscle size ("bulk").
Research and basic anatomical knowledge imply that the notion of specific exercises to improve tone is unfounded. Exercises can aid fat loss or stimulate
muscle hypertrophy
Muscle hypertrophy or muscle building involves a hypertrophy or increase in size of skeletal muscle through a growth in size of its component cells. Two factors contribute to hypertrophy: sarcoplasmic hypertrophy, which focuses more on increased ...
, but cannot otherwise improve tone.
[Waehner, Paige]
Can You Really 'Tone' Your Body?
/ref> The size of the muscle can change, as can the amount of fat covering the muscle, but the 'shape' cannot.
The words "tone" and "toning" can be misleading as they suggest that spot reduction is possible, which it is not. More accurate descriptions are "muscle building" and "fat loss."
Exercises
Exercises popularly believed to improve tone are primarily weight lifting exercises performed with high repetitions and low resistance (low weight), with short rest periods.
This conventional wisdom
The conventional wisdom or received opinion is the body of ideas or explanations generally accepted by the public and/or by experts in a field. In religion, this is known as orthodoxy.
Etymology
The term is often credited to the economist John ...
is however criticized as poor-quality and inefficient.resistance training
Strength training or resistance training involves the performance of physical exercises that are designed to improve strength and endurance. It is often associated with the lifting of weights. It can also incorporate a variety of training te ...
- to stimulate muscle breakdown and repair (increasing muscle mass will raise metabolism, as muscle has a higher calorific usage than fatinterval training
Interval training is a type of training exercise that involves a series of high-intensity workouts interspersed with rest or relief periods. The high-intensity periods are typically at or close to anaerobic exercise, while the recovery periods invo ...
) to burn calories;
* optimal diet (nutrition)
In nutrition, diet is the sum of food consumed by a person or other organism.
The word diet often implies the use of specific intake of nutrition for health or weight-management reasons (with the two often being related). Although humans are ...
to manipulate calorie intake and provide sufficient nutrients
A nutrient is a substance used by an organism to survive, grow, and reproduce. The requirement for dietary nutrient intake applies to animals, plants, fungi, and protists. Nutrients can be incorporated into cells for metabolic purposes or excr ...
for muscle growth. The primary requirement for looking toned is obtaining low body fat, as it is fat that creates a 'soft' look.
See also
* Spot reduction, the fallacy that fat
In nutrition, biology, and chemistry, fat usually means any ester of fatty acids, or a mixture of such compounds, most commonly those that occur in living beings or in food.
The term often refers specifically to triglycerides (triple es ...
can be targeted for reduction from a specific area of the body
Notes
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Strength training
Physical exercise