I am losing weight, have been for the last 6 months by ONLY changing what I eat. (25 down - 25 to go) I haven't stepped 1 foot in the gym until 1 month ago.

On my previous weight loss journeys I was always only about cardio, cardio, cardio. I felt 'in shape' but didn't see a change in my body the lack of seeing the results lead me to quit. So here I am again..

This time I am doing weights! I want to be strong and healthy not skinny and flabby!

I have no idea what I'm doing! Lol (broke girl budget = no Trainer) I google, pin and search a lot of stuff and I have had trainers, done class and other things in the past so I have a baseline understanding of moves/exersizes. And now I found this! I love it!

But do I focus on building muscle or toning???

Obvi I don't want to 'gain' per say but since I never focused on gaining muscles b4 do I need to now?

I am doing full body workouts 3x per week mostly machines but 1x per week I brave the free weights section and use the smith machine(squats), barbell(deadlifts) and Dumbbells(upper).

Usually 3 sets of 15 to max I think. I try to really push myself.

Cardio 1x per week lol! Sweet bliss bc cardio is mean! And takes a lot of head focus.

I've heard gain 8-10 reps and tone 10-15 reps.

Any thoughts??!!

There really isn't such a thing as "toning." You aren't going to pack on muscle unless you are eating an excess of food, have great genetics and/or take juice, so don't worry about that.

Most lifters agree that the smith machine shouldn't be used as you lose the full body aspect of the squat when you use the machine. If you want to do strength training, you really should pick a great beginner program and work with that. Trying to put together your own is going to be just about impossible. I personally use StrongLifts 5x5. But other recommended programs are Starting Strength and Fierce 5. All of these are full body strength workouts.

Hi. I know OP posted awhile ago but I thought I'd chime in. I got into decent shape by working out in my basement the first four years I worked with weights. Just a few dumbbells, and a couple of fitness books. Nothing special.

Cardio didn't deliver the results that weight training did. Good luck.

I'm all about resistance training as well. I like to circuit train, which has the advantage of having a cardio component as well by keeping my heart rate up. I did the gym thing for years but found out I do better working out at home to a program like P90X or Supreme 90. I was working out hard at the gym but just never saw the results I see from the dvd workouts. "Toning" IMO is just code for "losing the fat around the muscle so it shows". A good program plus a good diet will do wonders.

My friend got amazing result by doing strength exercise first for 15 minutes, then cardio exercise after. You will lose fat and and at the same time develop muscles.

I always gain weight when I start lifting again. Muscle weighs more than fat. The more muscle you have the more calories you will burn when your body is at rest. But I wouldn't worry too much about "bulking up" from lifting. It's not as easy as they make it look. lol. Congrats on your 25!!

Cardio Exercise For Muscle Tone
Equate muscle movement to muscle tone.
Work against time.
Start with a whole-body exercise.
Arrange for a body fitness test performed by a personal trainer.
Get minimum recommended activity levels.
Increase your workouts to four or five days per week.