I need to know how to lift weights for toning. All i wanna do is put on lean muscle, i dont wanna be a bulky guy. i boxed for years, dont do it anymore but i know about running, which i do all the time (7 miles every morning) and about nutrition. I just need to know how to lift weights. Im 5'9 150 pounds. thanks for a routine if possible.
damn 7 miles a morning?? thats pretty tough u must be ripped. but anyway if you do already have pretty low bodyfat, which im assuming you do since you run alot, I would just start lightly with the basics while slowly decreasing cardio and slowly increasing calories as you progress with weight lifting. Dont worry you wont get "bulky" unless you lift super heavy, very consistently, eat like an animal for a very long time. You will prob get all your best gains in the first few months anyway, which will only be a few pounds of muscle which sound like it ok with you. I would start with full body routines for a month doing every body part every workout lightly just to build a base. Do major muscles first and save the smaller ones as a finishing touch when finishing. For Thighs do squats, leg presses, stiff legged Deadlifts and lunges. For Chest do Presses(flat bench, machine bench, incline) dips, etc For back do deadlifts, rows, pull ups and pulldowns for arms do barbell curls, machine curls and db curls for biceps and close dips, close grip bench presses for triceps I kno this seems like a "bodybuilder routine" and it actually is. the easiest way you are going to get "toned" is if you increase your muscle size while maintainiing low bodyfat. your not going to wake up one day and be arnold schwartzeneggar. as you slowly grow you can tell your self, "this is big enough" and then you can maintain calories and weight that you are lifting while you increase cardio again to get that ripped look. And i would definetly reduce cardio to about 3 days a week just to maintain fitness and metabolism while you put on some muscle.
There's no such thing as toning. You can lose body fat to make your muscle show more. You can lift moderate weights in high volume to get the bodybuilder's pumped look. But toning is just a tightness in an area that is used regularly, you shouldn't aim to get "toned". That's for women with fat asses.
