Pushups everyday for toning?

[Arkitech]

I was curious if doing pushups everyday would be a good way to quickly build muscle tone. I don't want to actually build much mass at this point, so I was thinking maybe pushups a couple of times a day on a daily basis would burn fat and build muscle tone. Any truth to this?

 

[KoolDrew]

No. Lift heavy and pay close attention to your diet.

 

[Red Dawn]

Originally posted by: KoolDrew
No. Lift heavy and pay close attention to your diet.

True, you get out of it what you put into it.

 

[Deeko]

Cutting fat is more important for tone than the muscle itself. Pushups generally are too easy to be useful, unless you're doing something wacky (like pushups while holding dumbbells or something)

 

[skace]

"muscle tone" is "muscle". "Getting ripped" or visible muscle definition is the result of a very low body fat % combined with considerable muscle mass. So I wouldn't say cutting fat is more important than muscle mass, since both are required, if you cut fat and you don't have decent muscles underneath, congrats you now look weak.

Do yourself a favor, take the phrase "muscle tone" and throw it away.

 

[brikis98]

KoolDrew's answer is dead on and to the point, but some explanation may be useful: doing high rep, low weight (or bodyweight) exercises will NOT make your muscles look any more "toned". You could do 100 push-ups per day and your muscle "tone" will not change in any noticeable way. You will build muscular endurance and it's still a healthy thing to do, but your overall appearance will not change.

You get "cut", "ripped" or "toned" not by doing anything to your muscles, but by losing fat. Let me repeat that: to get "toned", the only thing that matters is lowering body fat percentage. This is done through a good diet with a moderate calorie deficit. Unfortunately, from diet alone, your body will burn not only fat, but also muscle. This is not only unhealthy, but even though you'll lose weight, you'll still look flabby, as your body fat percentage (due to the loss in lean body mass) would still be too high. To counteract the muscle loss, you need to keep protein intake high (~1g per pound of bodyweight) and you need to lift heavy. No, you won't suddenly bulk up from lifting heavy, especially on a calorie deficit.

Edit: as a side note, once the fat clears, you will look better if you have a solid base of muscle underneath. If you don't already have that, lifting heavy is the way to do it.

 

[TallBill]

Originally posted by: skace

Do yourself a favor, take the phrase "muscle tone" and throw it away.

 

[BlackTigers]

Originally posted by: brikis98
KoolDrew's answer is dead on and to the point, but some explanation may be useful: doing high rep, low weight (or bodyweight) exercises will NOT make your muscles look any more "toned". You could do 100 push-ups per day and your muscle "tone" will not change in any noticeable way. You will build muscular endurance and it's still a healthy thing to do, but your overall appearance will not change.

You get "cut", "ripped" or "toned" not by doing anything to your muscles, but by losing fat. Let me repeat that: to get "toned", the only thing that matters is lowering body fat percentage. This is done through a good diet with a moderate calorie deficit. Unfortunately, from diet alone, your body will burn not only fat, but also muscle. This is not only unhealthy, but even though you'll lose weight, you'll still look flabby, as your body fat percentage (due to the loss in lean body mass) would still be too high. To counteract the muscle loss, you need to keep protein intake high (~1g per pound of bodyweight) and you need to lift heavy. No, you won't suddenly bulk up from lifting heavy, especially on a calorie deficit.

Edit: as a side note, once the fat clears, you will look better if you have a solid base of muscle underneath. If you don't already have that, lifting heavy is the way to do it.

This post should be stickied.

 

[paulxcook]

Originally posted by: TallBill

Originally posted by: skace

Do yourself a favor, take the phrase "muscle tone" and throw it away.