Muscle building vs toning: What's the difference?
By Martin Ebner
I was recently asked to explain the difference between muscle gain and muscle toning. The short honest answer is, there isn't really a definitive one. While muscle gain is a pretty straightforward concept (building muscle mass), muscle toning is an elusive concept that most people can’t give you a proper definition for. All you have to do is google the term “toning” to see the 100s of contradictory definitions and opinions.
For the sake of this article, let's say the most popular definition amongst most men and women is that muscle gain is the enlargement of the muscle or to increase muscle mass, whereas toning is to increase muscle definition in order to create a leaner looking physique.
While I tend to agree in theory, the two “goals” are actually quite similar. The main difference is in the marketing and the audience.
Now, I don't want to overgeneralize but as a personal trainer, in 99% of cases, the very mention of muscle gain to women tends to promote a panicked response, “But I don't want to get bulky!”. Toning, on the other hand, seems to be a very desirable and popular goal among women. Am I right ladies? On the other hand, I don’t think I’ve ever met a man that didn’t deep down want to get bigger!
To really understand what it means and the differences between the 2 goals, we need to look back a little to see why and when the expression became popular.
Marketing, love it or hate it?
Just a few decades ago, women were a tough but potentially very lucrative market when it came to the fitness industry. Think about it, was your mom hitting the gym in her 20’s or 30’s? Men on the other hand piled into gyms to lift weights but women in gyms were a rarity. This meant that the fitness industry was missing out on half the population and from a strictly business standpoint, potentially doubling its revenue.
One of the main reasons that women didn't go to the gym in the past wasn’t as simple as it is today because they were likely the ones constrained at home minding children, with much less autonomy than what they have today. But also it was because they were and still are (in many cases) terrified of the idea of building too much muscle. They thought that if they did any form of resistance training, they would instantly bulk up losing this “ you can only be slender” definition of femininity in the process. This perception certainly wasn't improved by female bodybuilders either, that, let's be honest, were pumped full of male hormones.
To counter this perception that weights would make women bulky, a marketing campaign rebranding “muscle gain” or “muscle building” to “toning” became a hit with the female audience. They blamed the use of heavy weights for women with masculine physiques and instead insisted that high repetitions with low weight was the best way for women to train and “tone.” A myth that is still around today.
The hormonal factor
The truth is, gaining muscle is extremely difficult for most people. Harder still for women due to a lack of testosterone – the key muscle-building hormone. Only a very small percentage of females can build muscle like men, and believe me, that would be very apparent before it came time to stepping foot in a gym.
While I can certainly understand the appeal of a lean and toned physique, the manner in which muscle-building and toning is achieved is quite similar with a few exceptions.
How to get a “toned” look
Exercise:
If you're looking to achieve a lean and toned physique, it's important to train in a manner in which you build lean muscle most effectively for your body type without gaining excess fat, no matter what your gender. As muscle fibers grow and get stronger, they become thicker and feel tighter. A larger and conditioned muscle will always feel more “toned” than a smaller unconditioned muscle. To achieve this you should do a combination of regular resistance training using a variety of different weights and rep ranges to keep your muscles feeling tight and conditioned and a mix of cardiovascular exercise (high, moderate and low intensity) to prevent any unwanted fat gain.
If you feel that you are gaining too much muscle or getting “bulky”, don't stress. Just slowly reduce the frequency and intensity of your strength training workouts and resist pushing your muscles to failure too frequently (the point at which you can no longer maintain perfect form).
Related article: 10 Reasons women should lift weights
Diet:
Diet is extremely important at the best of times but never more so than when trying to achieve a toned figure. Eat too much of the wrong things at the wrong time and you'll likely gain too much fat. Eat too little and you risk forging a toned physique as your body breaks down both fat and muscle as its primary energy sources.
To work out how many calories you need, take your current weight in kilos and multiply it by 27 (don't ask). For every decade over the age of 20, reduce that figure by 100 calories. This is the number of calories it takes for you to simply maintain your current body weight. To lose 1 pound of fat per week, you need to create a 3500 calorie deficit (500 calories a day) from either diet, exercise, or by far the best option, a combination of the two.
Fat burning:
Fat burning is when your body utilises fat as an energy source. Hence the term fat burning. To improve your body's fat-burning potential, there are a few things that you can do.
1. Reduce your intake of carbohydrates. God damn it!!
Carbohydrates certainly aren't bad for you but unfortunately, they can prevent you from achieving a toned figure if eaten in abundance. Carbohydrates are your body's preferred and primary source of energy. Any carbohydrates that your body can't immediately use for energy are then stored as glycogen in the muscles for later. Only once all of these energy stores are depleted does your body begin to break down and shift its energy supply to fat.
2. Fasted cardio
Check out our article: Fasted cardio: What is it? Is it best for fat-burning? and is it right for you?
3. Fat burners
While fat burners are not an excuse to sit on your couch and eat potato chips, the good ones can help facilitate fat loss by allowing your body to more-easily utilize fat as energy when exercising. Our favorite all-natural fat-burners are Hourglass and Burn Lab Pro and Hunter Burn (for men)
Related: The best Stimulant-free Fat-burners for men and women 2021
How to build muscle (Bulking)
As I mentioned at the start of the article, gaining muscle is extremely difficult for most people. It takes a lot of time, dedication, consistency and hard work.
Exercise:
If your main focus is to maximize muscle growth (Bulking), make sure to train in a manner in which you build muscle most effectively for your body type. For most people that means prioritizing regular resistance training and consistently challenging your muscles to failure. This is called progressive overload.
When your main goal is to bulk up, limit your cardio. While it's undeniably good for your health, if you do too much for too long too frequently it can affect your body's ability to build muscle. If you simply can't live without your early morning runs, make sure to fuel up properly beforehand and consider taking a BCAA supplement to prevent excessive muscle breakdown.
Diet:
In order to build muscle, you need a calorie excess! Yassssssss. How much exactly will depend on a few factors; body types, current weight, expectations, training program etc but as a general rule aim for anywhere between a 500-1000 calorie excess per day.
Consume a diet that's rich in protein, carbohydrates and healthy fats.
Related: The Skinny guy’s bulk up guide: diet and exercise
The bottom line
There isn't a great deal in the physiological effects of building muscle and toning muscle. It’s basically just genetics, terminology, overall look and marketing to the different sexes. In order to have a strong and toned physique, regardless of your sex, you need to affect your body composition (ratio of fat to muscle) and that means building muscle whilst minimizing fat gain to allow for better definition. When muscle gain is the utmost priority, much less emphasis should be given on maintaining a lean body composition. Regardless of which is your preference, consistency and hard work will be required!
