Toned and strong people…how?

For me, it's parkour, adult gymnastics, bouldering and calisthenics. Muck around and find out what doesn't bore you senseless.

Failing that, just admit it's boring but do the basics anyway. If you wouldn't leave the house without brushing your teeth then don't get old without getting strong!

I've been doing a weekly strength class for around a year and have noticed huge gains in stamina, muscle tone and strength. I do a class because the group energy motivates me through the full 45mins and encourages me to push myself when I need to. Would recommend a class for embedding the habit. There's no way I would've progressed this much doing videos at home.

Exactly this. I do circuits classes and spinning so a mix of cardio and strength based workouts and if I wasn’t overweight I’d be “toned” as I have a decent level of muscle. However, I have some fat to lose so I don’t look obviously “toned”.

Some people are incredibly slim but with limited muscle mass. I think the only way to build that up is do strength and conditioning and as others say, be generally active in daily life

Strength and conditioning

What’s S&C please -strength and cardio?

OP maybe you can elaborate what you mean by toned and strong? People have different goals, which is of course perfectly fine. The physique I have in mind when I say strong, that can not be achieved my housework or 15 min of yoga. But maybe that's not what you're looking for.

I follow YouTube classes - mainly search for specific targets, eg core/leg strength, or balance. I like the flexibility of being able to fit in a short session on tired or busy days, and letting my body decide when to choose intense, longer sessions when it feels good.
Mostly vinyasa yoga, with yin for rest/fatigued days.
My personal favourites are Kassandra and older Sarah Beth for intermediate and advanced yoga, but they both do good beginner level for more tired and wobbly days, or if you’re starting out. Adrienne is pretty good too, definitely good for a beginner.
I’m actually a yoga teacher, so can plan out my own practice as I go along, but I find when it comes to strength work I get more from having a teacher on the screen.

I do daily because it works best for me to have that routine when I get up in the morning, but if you practiced regularly for just 2-3 times a week you’d soon see and feel a difference. The improvement in my walk and balance is visibly improved since starting a daily practice (I have foot drop due to MS) so I’d recommend it to anyone who wants to improve muscle strength and flexibility, whether they are athletes, gym bunnies or more plodding types like me.

strength training is so important for women, especially when we age. And no, you won't get the same benefits from walking or dusting your lampshades, you need proper resistance. Personally I really love weights, ask ChatGPT to do you a program and work your way through it. Try to work to failure, until you actually cannot lift that weight any more. It will become very motivating when you see your muscles growing.
If you like group fitness then why not start with Bodypump, the best exercise is always the one you actually do. But as pp said, don't coast, it should not feel comfortable. And you can build muscle with lower weights and high reps as well, it just takes a bit longer to get fatigued.

Do you do this online/app/ live classes? What yoga do you do please?

Don't do exercises you really don't enjoy, it just drains your willpower pointlessly. I have certain exercises I absolutely refuse to do because I would dread them too much if I even countenenced doing them.

Eat enough protein (1.5-2g per day, per kg of bodyweight is ideal). Creatine is great too.

For weights, do 2 or 3 sets of 8 reps, with a couple of minutes' rest in between each set. You should be really struggling to complete the last few reps of each set, otherwise the weight is too light.

Don't over- or under- do it. Once a week is better than nothing, but you probably won't notice enough results to make it feel worthwhile. 6 times a week will burn you out.

I think I am pretty ripped from Body Pump! I do notice though that I use a lot heavier weights than a lot of others in the class, I think it's too easy to "coast" in a BP class. I constantly try and challenge myself and up the weight where I can.

Hoping our gym starts BP Heavy as would like to see how high I can go!

Honestly just from pilates? I have been to a few yoga and pilates classes and have never been able to see how you can get that ripped from it. However I guess a class a week is the reason, 5 times a week is key I guess 😂

Well that’s great @Thecows. You’re exercising even with joint issues which is far more than many people are doing. And yay for loving lunges! My classes hate them! 😂

You need to build some muscle, and you won't do much of that with running or typical Yoga and Pilates classes (although they are all great).

You need either weights or some fairly intense bodyweight exercise. The advice to join a class or have some sessions with a PT is good. Nothing worthwhile is easy, so you must be prepared to work at it.

Eat plenty of protein and don't worry about building too much muscle - that simply isn't going to happen.

Thank you, I'd love to be able to lift heavier but it's just impossible for me unfortunately. I've got really weak elbow and shoulder joints so I've been stuck for over a decade on the lightest of weights. I feel a bit pathetic but that's just the way it is, I can last the lunge track longer than pretty much anyone in the class though which cheers me up a lot at the end!

Hailey Happens Fitness app here. It’s not cheap but has a lot of programs including some for runners/cyclists etc. There are very good videos for a huge number of different exercises which is really useful for exercising at home. There is also a great facebook community so I feel more supported doing my home exercises than when I used to train in the gym

I hate it but do it 3 times a week. I have to do a class though, as I hate it so much I couldn't motivate myself.

Have you tried barre workouts? They can be great for toning and no heavy weights.

Before my current job (maths tutor) I always had physically intense jobs. Doing stock for the pub, running around tending the bar, wrangling children. I know people don’t think they sound physical and it’s not like working in a warehouse but trust me it’s hard work and long hours. When I transitioned to a more sedentary job I found myself twitching at the end of the day and noticed I was losing muscle fast so I started going to the gym most days and doing callisthenics on my off days. I think because I’ve always been pretty strong and active it’s much easier to maintain than to get fit from unfit.

I find the gym really boring so instead I do Pilates classes, swim, walk a lot and do runs ( I started with the couch to 5k app). I am thinking of adding some exercises for my arms using small weights and will just use YouTube videos for that.

You need a PT. Just short term (I sometimes think long term for motivation) I have a female PT who is strong AF without being OTT in her 50s. Extremely knowledgable and taught me so much with weight training. Drop sets, train to failure, etc etc. it changes each week and I’ve noticed a difference. If I try and repeat the sessions on my own I can’t get the motivation to go as heavy. I do it with a friend so I only pay £20-30 for the hour. Worth it for me

Pilates 5 times a week. My abs are steel.

I did some Caroline Girvan last year but I was so sore afterwards it took me ages to recover. Any suggestions on what I could watch for a gentle introduction to strength training? I'm 54yo but can't afford a PT unfortunately so will need to navigate my aches and niggles myself!

in my opinion, Caroline Girvan, circuit training, body pump and other workouts with lots of reps don't work so well with running because they aren't different enough to running to count as a rest day, and your running will suffer as a result. Pilates has really improved my general strength which has improved my running as well but that isn't really going to fit into your 20 mins 3x per week. Lifting heavier weights for fewer reps will do the job in a shorter time.

Like you, I enjoy running and don't love S&C but I do try to fit in at least the 4 core movement types - so a push eg push up, chest press or shoulder press, a pull, so pullups or rows, lower posterior chain which can be deadlifts, rdls, squats, and anterior chain which could be lunges, step ups or rollouts.

Hill sprints also build muscle, maybe add some of those in the mix if you arent already?