How to Tone Up in a Week

A dramatic body makeover in one week is a bit unrealistic, but you can make a good start toward a toned up body and see some results in just seven days. Whether you need to loose actual pounds or not, the key to a more toned body is developing lean muscle mass while decreasing body fat. Extreme diets and exercise regimens however, can actually deplete your body of energy and nutrients it needs to build muscle and you won't end up being more toned. To achieve attractive and lasting results, approach your goal of having a more toned body sensibly.As always, before starting any new exercise routine or diet, consult your doctor to be sure the plan you choose is right for you.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

How to Start Toning Up Your Body in One Week

1. For a more toned body, make sure you are not consuming more calories than you need and that the nutritional content of your food is high. The idea is to provide your body with all the building blocks it needs to build more muscle tissue, which means greater muscle tone, and to also encourage your body to shed fat, so that your toned muscles will show. Make sure you get enough protein, plenty of vegetables and fruits and whole grains for energy.
2. The greatest and fastest increase in muscle mass that you'll achieve will come from strength training your large muscle groups, meaning legs, arms and core (torso). If you have a gym membership, take advantage of the trainers who work there. Explain your goals and ask for help planning a program that will give you maximum results, but also help you avoid injury. Many trainers will have you work your different muscle groups on alternate days, making certain you don't work the same muscle group two days in a row. During your first week, be sure to allow one full rest day.
3. If you cannot go to the gym, you can strength train at home. Dumbbells, an elastic band, a balance ball and a medicine ball are sufficient equipment for most people to do adequate muscle toning exercises at home. These are not expensive and are available at most sporting goods stores. Basic curls and push ups will tone your arms. Squats and calf raises are excellent for toning your legs. Use the Internet to find a variety of exercises to isolate various muscles.
4. Work your core, even if you don't feel like it. Legs and arms are more fun to work because they tone up quickly. However, while your eyes may not see dramatically toned up abs in just one week, you'll be able to feel that your core muscles are more toned, and you will see results in your posture. Besides, in a couple more weeks when you start to become more lean, your hard work toning up your core muscles will be much more visible. For toning your core, tummy crunches and variations on crunches are effective and easy for most people to do.
5. Be sure to include aerobic exercise (cardio) in your daily routine. Walking, running, swimming, biking or exercise classes will all develop your muscles in different ways than strength training. All these exercises will also strengthen your cardiovascular system, burn calories and boost your metabolism. Aerobic exercise is essential to the lean look you want to achieve.
6. Keep in mind that you'll start to notice a trend toward a dramatically more toned body in about three weeks, but even after one week you will feel more toned and it will show in how you carry yourself.

Tips & Warnings

• If you want to shed pounds while you tone up, your caloric intake should be only slightly less than your daily needs. Reducing calories too sharply may cause your body to actually metabolize its own muscle tissue, which is exactly what you don't want.
• Excess water weight on your body can hide your nicely toned muscles. To help keep extra water weight off, avoid excessive salt in your diet.
• Don't over train. You are anxious to get toned up, but a week is a very short period of time. If you over do it, you may only end up injured, which hurts your long term fitness goal.
• Don't consume too much protein. While athletic activity does slightly increase your daily protein requirements, consuming excessive amounts of protein will not result in more muscle mass, and can possibly harm your kidneys and liver. The rate at which you build muscle is a function of several factors including not only by how much protein you eat, but also by the amount of stress you place on your muscles, the time your muscles need to recover and your own individual metabolic rate. Increasing protein alone cannot make more muscle.
• Don't use diuretics or extreme sweating to reduce water weight. These can be dangerous practices, and they do not result in any additional fat loss.