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Toning versus strength?(r/xxfitness)

Yeah. That’s a pretty fine point to put on it, but CriminalFlatulence is right.

Here’s what The New Rules of Lifting for Women (buy it!) has to say about “toning”:

>The way “toning” is used in books and magazines catering to women, and then by women themselves, it means “make your muscles look better without making them bigger.” The idea is that there are specific types of workouts–usually involving lots of repetitions with light weights–that will help you achieve this.

>But that’s not a realistic or healthy way to look at your muscles. If the weights are unchallenging, your muscles won’t grow. If your muscles don’t grow, they won’t look any better than they do now, even if you could somehow strip whatever fat sits on top of them.

>This is such an important point that I’ll repeat it: With or without excess fat, your body simply will not look healthy and fit without well-trained muscle tissue.

TL;DR: Ignore mansplanations, lift heavy, get goddess-y.

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