HELP! Dont want to become buff!

Hello All!

I have been working out for sometime now, cardio/weights.  However recently I have been noticing my arm muscles getting bigger, as in more muscular.

However I want to tone my muscles & get RID OF FAT, but I do not want to become a BUFF WOMAN!!! HELP!!!! By continuing my workout plan, I do want to tone the Abs & Legs, but I don't want my legs expanding (in the form of muscles, etc) and looking buff! I just want to be lean .. how do I avoid looking buff/muscle gain.

I do cardio 6 days a week and strengthening stuff every other day!

PLEASE HELP! How do we stay lean, fight fat, but not become man-ish!

When you do your strenghening do less weight and more reps for a toner less muscular shape.  For example maybe 3 sets of 20 reps.  If you can not do this many reps then you are working with to much weight in order to gain the toner, less muscular shape.  Best of Luck

I agree with loritacush.

I remember when I first learned to exercise; I ended up looking like a human cinderblock with chimneys for legs! *Shudder* I'm only 5'2", so I looked kinda ... scary.

Less weight and more reps solved the problem.

Yoga builds long, lean muscles.  Supporting your own body weight doing yoga with breathing techniques will definitely  make you stronger and improve balance.  Over time your walk will look more gracefull.  I love power yoga. 

does pilates do the same?

Toning is just another word for muscle building, women like to use the word because it tends to not be associated with male bodybuilders.

doing 2 resp of some light weight will do nothing for you and will be a waist of time. if you gain muscle fast then don't lift weights, take Pilate's and yoga and do cardio consistently. the stretching and the use of body weight will hopefully keep you looking good and the cardio will help you to lean out and to stay lean.

if you find yourself getting soft or mushy from a lack of weights add a total body workout once a week, if that doesn't help add another and that should work.

you know you might just try and tweak the current workout you are doing know, you are doing cardio 6 times a week that should be enough to keep you from gaining too much muscle as long as you are doing enough cardio. why don't you try the total body work out twice a week and see how it goes, you can always drop down to just once a week if you don't like the results.

try toning bands instead of wts. (just another option if you get bored of pilates)

for some reason (some fitness guru spread the know here please)
it doesnt bulge me out. even though there is a 5 pound resistance.

for most people, becoming BUFF WOMAN / MAN is very very hard to do.  You need hours upon hours of weight dedictation, very strict weight building eating plans, and in some cases, drugs, to get you to the ultra buff level.

Do not worry about being buff woman.

If you are working out with weights2-3 times per week, you should be fine.  While your muscles may appear to be bigger (and they probably are), the loss of fat is probably making the issue seem more than it is.

As suggested, if you are truly freaked (which you shouldn't be) then stop the weights and do some resistance cardio

bodyscience... whats the total body workout you keep referring to ?

is it a class like tabaeo or kickboxing (iv done those this week) or just an over all workout session?

it's just an overall workout, start with the larger muscles and work down to the smaller one's

from what I know, regular swimming also results in long, lean muscles without too much bulk.  but this is not from personal experience haha!

So what's wrong with being BUFF?  Guess I did not get in on that one.  I am 52 yofemale and know as arms or guns, etc at the gym.. I would much rather be toned and fit than flaby-maybe I am wrong.  I want to be able to carry my own groceries when I am in my 80's so BUFF is o.k. by me!

I've been running on the treadmill everyday for the past week and a half. I spend a good 20-30 minutes on there at a moderately intense jogging rate. Being a dancer, I'm very sensitive towards the way my legs look and I've noticed that running has given me bulkier calves and thighs! What am I doing wrong??

I am curious as to how buff up you are referring yourself to. May I suggest, perhaps it is due to the presumption that "toned" look mean "skinnier" per se? If you are not there yet in your goal weight, you will see "definition" in your body. That is small 'bulges' or curves that define muscles underneath the skin. What I am trying to decribe is: Your silhouette of your upper arms for example, will not be a one smooth curving line. Instead, you will see small small curvatures defining the muscles of your shoulder and biceps to the very least.

if you measure the circumference and indeed it is getting larger, it happens because the fat layers above the muscle still exist. With more cardio fat burning session it ill go away eventually. I was freaking out about my thighs before because in the first month or so after working out, they felt bigger. Measurement wise was the same, but I could not fit into the same jeans -- realized later that muscle is not yielding like the softer fat tissues, hence you can't just 'squeeze' into that jeans :p

One thing that now I always do after workout if stretching... yup, as basic as it sounds, I used to skip that part. May be it is psychological, because I don't believe stretching will shape the way your muscle grow, but it does help with flexibility. And with flexibility you will feel less 'bulky'. Does that make sense? ^_^';;

I am going through the same thing, and I'm holding out like sweet_tart said for the cardio to burn off that layer of fat.  I am hoping that will do the trick.  I used to do (or not do) the same thing about the stretch when I was a teenager.  I was very involved in tennis, and in addition work out.  I didn't believe stretching was benefical (duh) at the time.  I think thats what contributed to my bulkiness.  I always stretch a little before and alot after a work out. 

On a different note, does anyone have that chunk of fat right above the knee?  I think my quads have kinda pushed that fat foward, but does anybody know what can get rid of that fat around your knee?

You mean the one that when you flex your thigh muscle/quad you see it move and creates a crease line above your round of the knee? :)
Well I still got mine. Although happy to say it is much less than before. That area of mine is quite sensitive to my workout, in a sense that it will become more visible again if I slack-off, and it got tightened up again once I pick up my workout @.@ ... so high maintenance ... ; ;
Anyway, It is as any fat in your body. It will go away when it decides to go. Just keep up the workout and aim for lowering BF instead of weight.

just lower your weight amount and raise your reps when you lift..

i dont think you should worry about them to contiue growing since you said you do 6 days of cardio..because cardio breaks up weight lifting. say if you really wanted to bulk up or gain muscle mass then you would do weight lifting and carido seperately.. so if you just want to tone do cardio and weight lifting afterwards to get the results you are looking for.

and make sure you have a proper diet. eating alot of complex carbs and protein is a big help in gaining muscle mass..so if you eat alot of those try to cut back.