Muscle Toning – Not Just for Skinny Models

It is a common and sad misconception that fitness and exercising is just for stick thin catwalk divas who “starve themselves” – but whatever shape you are, you can look great with muscle toning and resistance bands.

It is a terrible misapprehension that looking after your body is something that only the slimmest of women and celebrities should be concerned with.  And it is sad situation when curvier women feel alienated from such regimes and avoid the gym, simply because it's "not their kind of place".

Although muscle toning can be accelerated by a calorie controlled diet, it's not "dieting" as we know it.  It is about taking care of our bodies and not filling your kitchen cupboards full of chocolate bars and multi-pack crisps.  A balanced approach during meal times is really all you need to get started on toning up those thighs! 

Not everyone was born to resemble a lollipop stick and many of us have battled with weight issues at some point in our lives.  The beautifully slender commercial girls we see prancing about on Herbal Essence adverts have left other women feeling somewhat estranged from a healthy lifestyle.   Instead of being an awakening encouragement, it's driven a wedge between 'real women' and exercise.  With Britain catching up with America in the obesity stakes, this mentality needs to stop.

Muscle toning isn't exclusive to a size 8/10 figure and we all need to realise this.  You could be a lovely 12 or a curvy 16.  Whatever your dress size, your body can still look gorgeously toned if you put in the time and effort.  Weight loss and body toning are related, but not the same thing, so nobody needs to ration themselves to two celery sticks per day.

Get Defined Without Starvation

Muscle toning is about getting rid of those niggly bits of fat that stop you having muscle definition.  It is important to maintain a daily routine of drinking and eating regularly.  Some experts even recommend that five small meals per day in replacement of the three square meals will work well with your metabolism.  But most importantly, you must stay hydrated! 

Calorie counters can help you eat a balanced amount, but you really don't have to go overboard with this.  With most of you, cutting out your daily tub of ice cream should suffice and common sense is the easiest food plan you could ever use.