[PatLib]

So, I needed to loose about 80 pounds and I have lost 40 over the last 3 years.

I kind want to loose the next 40 in a year which I don't think is very extreme but I want to add some toning exercises but I really don't want to get muscular.

Does anyone have a good video? I started the Jillian Michaels one but I feel like I am getting too muscular.

And I cannot do yoga or Pilates I just don't have the coordination! lol

[JohnP]

There is no such thing as tone.

Muscles can be bigger or smaller. From there it is a matter of body fat percentage. If you can post a picture of someone who looks like you want to look like than it would be helpful. My guess is the way you want to look is not going to be possible because you don't have the right genetics but go ahead and post a picture.

In my experience, women who want to look toned but not musclar are actually describing a woman with very little muscle and very low body fat.

I don't know how you currently look but my guess is that if you lost more fat you would appear to be less muscular. A lot of guys I know think they're big but really they're just fat. Obviously I could be wrong.

At the end of the day - lifting weights is good for you in a number of ways. gwyneth paltrow is a good example of looking toned. She follows some goofy fitness guru who says women shouldn't lift more than 5 lbs when exercising to acheive a toned look. Gwyneth Paltrow also has osteoporosis. Now I'm sure there is a genetic component but I'm also sure if she had been lifting heavy she would have built up more bone density.

[belovedspirit]

To be honest, I'm not sure and I don't want to give you incorrect advice. What might help is having this post moved to the Weight Training sub-forum under "Fitness". They have sticky posts that may also be informative.

I do have a question for you. When you say you don't want to look muscular, how muscular is too muscular for you? Any chance you can share some pictures so we have a shared understanding of the look you'd like to achieve?

[belovedspirit]

Also, congratulations on the weight loss so far! :congrats:
I also think your goal is entirely reasonable.

[PatLib]

I prefer a J.Lo body to a Madonna body if that helps explain it. This is just personal but I want a curvier womanly body, everything tight but not skinny. I get that genetics are a huge part of it but I have always had a very proportional body even at my heaviest. I am one of those people who is always told I just have big bones that I am not fat. (But a doctor weighing me in a water tank told me I wasn't just fat but obese so so much for big bones).

My biggest problem is my stomach and what I would like is to find a good stomach exercise that will make my stomach look smoother but not have a six pack.

Thanks you guys!

[PatLib]

The J.Lo pic isn't working here is what I mean.

[seagirl]

The less fat you have on you, the less muscular you will look. And your genetics and body shape will play a part. JLo couldn't look like Madonna if she tried, and vice versa. Kim Kardashian will never look like Gwynth Paltrow.

Lift weights, they will make you look better. Just don't lift too heavy. You can bulk up, look at some of the cross-fit facebook pages and you'll girls that are quite bulky.

I have 15 pound dumbbells that are giving my arms great shape and definition.

[PatLib]

I realize I will never look like J.Lo, I am not delusional or anything. But I have noticed from friends who have lost a lot of weight they end up being depressed about how "mushy" they look. They focused so much on cardio and weightloss and they don't think about muscle build up.

I want muscle just not bumpy muscle like Madonna.

[PatLib]

Originally Posted by seagirl

The less fat you have on you, the less muscular you will look. And your genetics and body shape will play a part. JLo couldn't look like Madonna if she tried, and vice versa. Kim Kardashian will never look like Gwynth Paltrow.

Lift weights, they will make you look better. Just don't lift too heavy. You can bulk up, look at some of the cross-fit facebook pages and you'll girls that are quite bulky.

I have 15 pound dumbbells that are giving my arms great shape and definition.

I disagree to a certain extent, probably a better comparison is Paltrow and Madonna. They have a similar body type but Paltrow isn't bumpy with her muscles. Paltrow is smoother and more womanly in my opinion and that is what I like.

[seagirl]

you won't have "bumpy" muscles unless your body fat gets way too low, and you've got 50 pounds to worry about that. It's really something you would have to work quite hard at, you won't accidentally get madonna arms.

Don't stress about it. Find a weight routine you like, even if its just push ups and sit ups, and keep going.

[JohnP]

Originally Posted by PatLib

I realize I will never look like J.Lo, I am not delusional or anything. But I have noticed from friends who have lost a lot of weight they end up being depressed about how "mushy" they look. They focused so much on cardio and weightloss and they don't think about muscle build up.

I want muscle just not bumpy muscle like Madonna.

Ok - this is very simple. Lift heavy weights. stay out of the hypertrophy range. Do 12+ reps and circuit training. Do compound exercises and don't do any isolation exercises for your upper body.

I'm not familiar with any workout videos but if it is having you do any isolation exercises you should find another video.

You will never look like Madonna without a very focused effort to get lean. She is sub 20% in that picture. Not easy to get to.

If you don't lift weights and retain muscle you're going to end up like your friends. Skinny fat - aka "mushy"

[sacha]

I've been powerlifting for almost 10 years now and lift more weight than the vast majority of women ever will.

Here's what I look like after 10 years....
http://www.3fatchicks.com/forum/goal...50-130lbs.html

in other words, it's not even an issue. It's not even an issue with performance enhancing drugs unless again, years of hard work. Notice how all these 'musclebound' girls are at least 35,40,45+ years old? Because that's how long it takes, even with drugs.

Madonna has a very rigid diet and trains for hours daily for about 30 years now, remember that

[berryblondeboys]

Of all the women I see at the gym there have only been TWO that have been noticeably muscular and they were also incredibly SKINNY. Their body fat percentage had to be under 20% or lower. Women just have thicker fat layers with their skin unlike men, so you have to be extremely lean to look muscly. And I see a lot of very strong women at the gym... they just don't LOOK it.

[Amarantha2]

Re osteoporosis, I have lifted weights since my 20s & I have osteoporosis, honestly it helps with building bone but not for everyone. I still lift but lighter because in this phase of life it is like running, it exacerbates the joint pain. I replaced jogging with walking & heavy weights with lighter weight & more circuit & body weight stuff. I am less muscular in the sense of being cut but I like the smaller, leaner look I am getting.

Paltrow, whose look I don't really aspire to, uses Tracy Anderson as a trainer, I believe. I am not a TA fan but you can find her videos online & in stores.

[novangel]

I would keep going with Jillian Michaels, 30 Day Shred and then Ripped in 30 with 5-10p weights. As you lose and get within your last 10p you will get definition (tightness) with her but not anything like Madonna. If you don't do anything with weights you will be mushy thin. You may feel you're getting too "bulky" from her because you still have a lot to lose but in the end you will get much smaller and tigher.

Matter of fact now that I am at goal (close enough) I'm going to start using her DVD's again because I am getting soft from doing mainly cardio. I was bored with her after about 7 months and started jogging. I can't say enough good things about Jillian. I will post pics of my progress from her if you like.