How long does it really take?

[ImPeckish]

In real life, not ''it-took-two-minutes'' YouTube or Insta success stories, how long did it take you to get more toned, and increase your strength?

I run about 20-30 km a week, I do 20 mins of yoga every other day and HIIT (with weights) 3x a week. I've been doing this for 3 months (the running I've done for 4 years though).

I'd say I'm average fitness, but definitely not 'seeing' any changes and (maybe vainly) I'd really like to see some improvements! I don't feel stronger and I still look really flabby and not toned at all, my BMI is 22 and I'm a size 10-12.

Did it take you months, years? Thanks!

It probably took me a year with heavy weights once a week and HIIT three, sometimes four, times a week. No yoga and rarely running because I don't like it.

If you want to look "toned" you may have to significantly reduce your body fat too. Diet is probably the most effective way to do that.

Thanks for your reply! A year sounds realistic, that's really motivating.

My diet is very good, my scales say my body fat is 21% but of course I'm not sure how accurate they are.

I'll focus on dropping half a stone while I continue, hopefully in another 9-10 months I'll see some strength :)

It took me half a year of much squatting and I suddenly had muscles. I wouldn’t say I did a huge amount of exercise but I worked with a PT so I probably worked harder than could have on my own.

This is from a male perspective, so I don’t know how different it is for women.

Men need to be around 12% body fat for muscle definition on the torso to be visible, it also takes 3-4 months of hard weights etc for muscle growth to be visibly increased.

I have done weight lifting for years and it's only through doing a body building style programme for the last two that I built up significant muscle.

I had an accident two months ago and fractured my tibial plateau. My leg has atrophied completely! I'm just wondering whether it'll take years to come back or whether there will be some degree of muscle memory!

It takes some time, you know your body type and metabolic rate than anybody else

Thanks so much for the replies! Feeling so positive that I just need to keep at it :)

Langkaw that sounds so frustrating for you! I do hope you can get back to where you were once you're all healed up.

21% isn't flabby, are you sure it's not your perception? It's right at the lower end of what's considered "fit". Less than 16% is considered too low for women to be healthy.

21% isn't flabby, are you sure it's not your perception

It's more than likely the scales although it's difficult to comment without knowing the OP's height and build etc. I don't trust mine at all, not even for comparative purposes.

15 % is low body fat for women, but I wouldn't say it's healthy you probably want to be about 18% to see definition, too low and periods stop etc or can affect fertility.

Mixing up exercises and trying new one helps, plus as it gets easy you need to add more weight/ less rest/ more reps or just change the routine. More reps is the least effective.

I'm so overweight and just had a baby, but I need to follow my own advice !

Excuse the mess in the background.
I certainly think yoga has a place in ‘toning’ but it has to be strength based and frequent. Sun salutations with full chaturangas changed my arms dramatically (see pic) and I built the shoulders that I’d always wanted. Plank pose, side plank and other balances will build muscle better than ‘pigeon’, although that certainly has its place in my practice. You could also build your strength for chaturangas with drills of plank, burpees, bear crawl and mountain climbers - I set a 15 min timer when watching TV and cycle through these moves for the duration.

As posters have written above, body fat also needs to be reduced for muscle to show through, but my guidance on nutrition is sketchy. Bodybuilding.com has some usual articles though, and you can learn lots of body weight moves to try at home.

I've been doing weights for nearly 4 months 3 times a week. I have lost about 10lbs, down to 9st 7 now and I am 5ft 3, size 10-12. I look a bit slimmer but I don't feel I look any more toned. However, I can feel my lower body is so much firmer and stronger, my upper body not so much! I just think I need to lose another half a stone so I will be able to see my muscle definition, at the moment it is hiding under a layer of flab!😂

I think as women sometimes we can focus too much on cardio and less on strength building. I'm focusing more on pilates style exercises rather than stretchy yoga at the moment. I've been doing 15 mins a day for 2 weeks (I have injuries so I need to limit what I do) and I can see a difference already. But I'm carrying an extra half stone still from pregnancy whereas you are a lot slimmer.

I also think just naturally some people are more muscular and toned. It takes DH a month to get in shape, he has very low body fat but he istotally not representative!!

I'm really grateful for the replies, I'll take up all the advice and will report back as I hopefully successfully tone up and build strength!

At least lockdown is giving me plenty of time to focus on it, one positive :)

I need to lose another half a stone so I will be able to see my muscle definition, at the moment it is hiding under a layer of flab!

I'm three inches taller than you and had to drop below 8st 7 before I started to see any real muscle definition.

Phonelock
Oh dear well I won't be seeing any muscle definition then!! I'm aiming for a weight of 9st, can't see me being able to get to or maintain a lower weight.

Very interesting thread. I was running a similar amount plus daily yoga and weights a couple of times a week pre-pregnancy. I didn't really notice any changes in terms of how my body looked/muscle etc although I was definitely more flexible and fitter. Post-pregnancy, I was swimming (before lockdown) a couple of times of week and have really got into post-natal Pilates and I think the latter has had the biggest impact by far. Since we went on lockdown, I've probably done it 5 days a week via online classes and I can really tell a difference particularly in my legs and arms. There's less focus on core so unlikely to have a 6 pack anytime soon but it's definitely helped get rid of my c section overhang. I've been pleasantly surprised at the impact it's had.

@PhoneLock ah I weigh less than that so hopefully lots more hard work will pay off! I'll aim to lose more just in case that helps too :) thanks so much!

Oh dear well I won't be seeing any muscle definition then!!

Sorry! I didn't mean to dishearten you. It depends on your build, so you might not need to go as low as me. I have quite a small frame so a stone of fat pads me out quite a lot. For reference, the pic shows me at about 8st 7.

You look amazing @PhoneLock! I'm a tiny bit taller and a couple of pounds heavier and I don't look anywhere near as good. I think I need to add some HIIT back into my regime!

To be perfectly blunt you are most likely aiming for an unrealistic goal.

People who train or exercise for aesthetic reasons are almost never satisfied. Even if you get to your desired goal, you will almost certainly never be able to sustain it.

‘Tone’ (or muscle definition) can only really be achieved by being a certain body fat percentage or lower. The sacrifice it takes to get there is hardly ever worth it and usually makes you the opposite of healthy.

People who train or exercise for aesthetic reasons are almost never satisfied.

I agree. Although I must add that I don't train and exercise purely for aesthetic reasons. Improved fitness and mental health are also strong drivers.

There's also the social side too.

Phonelock dont worry you didnt dishearten me! I obviously would like to look better but I am doing weights more for health benefits. Having seen my grandparents decline and lose strength so quickly I am starting early with the hope that I will keep some strength as long as possible. Although I can't see muscle definition I can feel I am much stronger and feel better for doing this exercise. You look fab by the way! I would love to be 8st 7 but for me that would be unrealistic to maintain and I am just not prepared to sacrifice chocolate to get there! 😂

Even if you get to your desired goal, you will almost certainly never be able to sustain it.

I have a confession to make. The picture above was taken Christmas 2014

This picture was taken Christmas 2019.

@Phonelock you look absolutely fantastic.

@ImPeckish I have been working out several times a week since January, a mix of HITT, Cardio and Bootcamp. I can certainly start to see a difference but as said above I need to drop a lot more weight to see much definition and I am already under 9 stone.