chrisw77's Journal, 17 Jul 19

** TONING **


Let's clear something up here really quickly...


Muscle Mass 101:

FACT: Muscles require great amounts of stress to grow. They don't grow from fatigue, they grow from a lot of stress/tension. 

FACT: If you eat enough and lift heavy, you will repair damaged muscle tissue = muscle growth

FACT: If you lift heavy and DON'T EAT ENOUGH, the muscles won't repair = no growth (potential muscle loss) 

FACT: If you eat a lot and DON'T LIFT HEAVY, you won't damage the muscle fibers = no growth (potential fat gains) 


What does "toned" even mean then? 

You'll often hear "I don't wanna get big, I just wanna look TONED."

This is a normal term in our vocabulary, but in scientific terms, it's simply called "Fattus Reductus" (or maybe that's a Harry Potter spell). 

What you're really telling your trainer, BFF, BF, GF, DH, or whomever is "I need to lose some fat."

What I'm saying is, if you wanna stay slim and just lose fat, you do this 99% by lowering your caloric intake and sleep. Exercise will help improve your caloric deficit, but that's it as far as aesthetics. 

You have muscles already. They may be hidden, but they're there. Remove the fat and you'll look "toned"! 

Now, as the fat recedes and muscles are exposed, you may be disappointed with how small you need to become to reduce all that fat and that you have barely any muscle. 


How to change this? 

Add muscle mass by lifting heavy and increasing calories. 

"But Chris, you just said to lower my calories to reduce fat, but then you said to increase calories to gain muscle. I'm confused." 


The Quandary Resolution: 

Mother Nature programmed a cheat-code into your metabolism because she knew you'd eventually start exercising and she wanted you to have a head-start.

Some call them "Newbie Gains". It's this amazing time when your hormones and muscles are like "WTF are you doing?? This hurts!" 

The muscles start growing and require only a little bit of fuel, so you can eat in a caloric deficit and still gain muscles! 

For some, this period lasts 6 months. For others, maybe a year or so. Take advantage because this is your body's prime growth time! 

Don't worry. You're not gonna get jacked with all the veins and shredded muscles or anything... you'll just get "toned".

But eventually the body gets wise and stops giving you these training wheels. But when you first start lifting, you'll get nice results pretty quickly! 

Get in there and "tone up" lol!

---

3284 kcal

Fat: 112.71g | Prot: 169.90g | Carbs: 396.73g.   Breakfast: Nature's Best Isopure Original Creamy Vanilla Whey Protein Isolate, Valu Time 1% Low Fat Milk, IHOP Italian Cannoli Pancakes. Elevenses: General Mills Lucky Charms Cereal Bar (24g), Nature's Best Isopure Original Creamy Vanilla Whey Protein Isolate, Optimum Nutrition Micronized Creatine Powder, Winco Foods 1% Low-Fat Chocolate Milk, Valu Time 1% Low Fat Milk. Dinner: Kraft Shredded Parmesan Cheese, Olive Garden Pasta e Fagioli, Olive Garden Braised Beef Bolognese with Pappardelle, Olive Garden Bread Stick with Garlic Butter, Valu Time 1% Low Fat Milk. Supper: Extra Strength Melatonin Gummies, Dr. Tobias Triple Strength Omega 3 Fish Oil, Vitafusion MultiVites Gummy Vitamins. more...

2771 kcal

Exercise: Grocery Shopping - 30 minutes, Calisthenics (heavy, e.g. pushups) - 15 minutes, Weight Training (Bodybuilding) - 30 minutes, Watching TV/Computer - 3 hours, Resting - 10 hours and 30 minutes, Sleeping - 5 hours and 30 minutes, Cooking - 30 minutes, Housework - 45 minutes, Driving - 1 hour and 45 minutes, Showering - 45 minutes. more...