5 TIPS TO HELP YOU GET TONED

If you’ve been going to gym regularly and don’t see the results you want, to be more toned, this blog is for you.

But, before I dive in, let’s dispel a massive myth about women lifting weights and building muscle.

You will NOT, I repeat, you will NOT get bulky.

It’s one of the most common fears women have when it comes to gym and lifting weights.

To get toned, you need to build muscle and lower body fat. And if you want to be more toned, you need to lower more body fat and build more muscle.

I hope that didn’t confuse you.

Let’s break it down and let me give you 5 Tips to follow

  1. Eat more protein

To build muscle and support your workouts you need to eat more protein. You should eat 2gram of protein per pound of lean body weight.

This is very general number and will differ depending on other data.  But, eat more protein.

Protein will help you with recovery after the workouts, it will help you build lean muscle tissue and will keep you fuller for longer. Rest of your calories is a mixture of carbs and fats and it’s up to you how you split this as long as you hit your daily calories.

2. To lower body fat you need to be in calorie deficit

To create calorie deficit, you need to make sure you burn more calories (your exercise and non-exercise activity) than you consume.

                Energy out needs to be greater than energy in.

I recommend moderate calorie deficit, not too drastic and monitor how the body responds. Adapt as and when needed depending on your progress.

I know a lot of people will tell you not to track, but here is why I think tracking will help you. It’ll create awareness around your food and around your portions. You’ll get a good understanding about your plate. After several months you will be able to carry on without tracking because you will have a good idea of what should be on your plate.

3. Strength Training

Everyone should strength train.

Literally everyone.

And if you want build muscle, I recommend strength training 3-4 times per week.

There are plenty of body weight exercises you can start doing at home without equipment. As you get stronger you’ll naturally progress, and you’ll either join the gym or buy some equipment for home.

I personally love working out from home as it saves me time, money and I don’t have to wait for any equipment.

Most of my clients train at home.

They have a training plans that are easy to follow, and they do it in their own time.

4. Train smart not hard

You don’t need to finish your workout dying on the floor. You need to make sure your trainings are making you stronger every single week.

Focus on the basic body movements – squat, deadlift, lunge, push and pull. Get better and stronger at them. These should be the main movements of your workouts.

Your plan should challenge you every time, but you don’t need to feel like you just finished marathon.

If you like cardio, then go for it. However, to get toned, prioritise your strength training and do cardio after.

If you don’t like doing too much cardio, then moderate light cardio regularly is perfect for the benefits of heart health.

5. Sleep & Stress management

This is one of the hardest and not much talked about. My daughter has never slept well up until last year. So waking up every 2 hours was a norm.

Saying that, your body needs to rest. Sleep well to function well.

Min 7 hours of sleep is recommended, and you get the best sleep quality before midnight. You can see where I’m going with this…

You should go to bed at least before 10.30pm-11pm.

Along with the sleep, the stress management is very important. If you find that you are in stressful situations and you are being affected by them, then you should look into techniques to help you with that.

It would be very difficult to make progress if your body is stressed and doesn’t get enough rest.

So next time you’re about to start training, make sure you have a plan to follow.

And don’t forget to look after yourself outside the workout too. Your session probably last 60 min and then you have another 23hours in the day that have a huge impact on your progress.

Have a great week and don’t forget to plan for it

Petra