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"I really need to get toned up." I wish I had a dollar for every time I heard that. Many have said it a million times...heck, I've said and I even know better. What I'm talking about is the idea of 'toning' your body. Most people think that toning means getting more definition and firmer muscles. And how do you get more definition? By doing more reps with lighter weight, of course! But what you may not know is that this idea of toning the muscles is only a myth.

What 'Toning' Really Means

So what is toning? The word tone simply describes the state of your muscles. When at rest, your muscles are in a constant state of partial contraction in order to be ready for action. The 'tone' of your muscles is involuntary, so you can't change it by lifting weights a certain way.

Over the years, people have taken the word 'tone' and redefined it to mean how lean we are--how defined our muscles appear. In fact, it's even a gender specific word sometimes--women go to the gym to 'tone up' while men go to the gym to lift weights. Know what? Those are the exact same things!

The truth is, you're limited as to what you can really change about your muscles. In a nutshell, this is what your muscles can do:

2. Shrink smaller and/or get weaker