Weights for toned arms/legs

[Qua Sae]

My OH bought us a weight set years ago & it's never been used.. The back isn't very stable on it, but I reckon with a bit of duct tape, that'd be ok. Lol.

I am going back to the gym at the beginning of Feb, mostly to use the cross trainer & treadmill as I figure the weights I can do at home.

The fitness instructor told me (Way back in March) that for the weights, I should do 2 reps of the highest weight I can manage.. Apparently I should struggle on the last 2 or so, & that means I have the correct weight.

Is this the right way to go about toning up? I really need to tone up my arms & legs.. I figure my tum will follow suit with a few sit-ups & aerobic exercise to lose the fat.

If I do tone up my arms, will the skin tone with the muscle? Will exercise help my chances of not having excess skin? It's my biggest fear about losing weight! I've been told that the slower the weight comes off, then the lower the chances of excess skin as it has a chance to adapt.. Is this true??

I hope to get the weights up & running soon.. I also have EA Active 1 for the Wii, which came with some elastic bands so I can use them too.

How long should I be aiming to spend on the weights? How many times a week? & What sort of intensity to see the results I want?

 

[judimac]

There's a gym instructor called Justin who posts on the fitness board here, you could ask him.
As for the EA sports active I would upgrade to a blue band as the red one is feeble.

STRETCH RESISTANCE EXERCISE BAND 1.5 metre *NEW* on eBay (end time 29-Jan-11 23:08:09 GMT)

 

[SlimmingKitchen]

The slower the weight comes off is much better for your body, you body then has time to adjust to the weight loss with the exercise you do. If you lose too much too soon it doesnt tone up quick enough.
It sounds like you have got it figured out well hun so go for it

Im also going to purchase one of those bands for ea sports as the one which comes with it is not intense enough.
xxxx

 

[Hannahkw1]

Hiya! See my gym routine below:

Monday - 20 mins crosstrainer, strength training - shoulders and triceps using 2kg dumbell do 3 sets of 15 reps, 20 mins crosstrainer
Wednesday - 20 mins crosstrainer, strength training - legs (i.e. lunges and squats etc) using 2kg dumbells do 3 sets of 15 reps, 20 mins crosstrainer

Friday - 20 mins cross trainer, strength training - back, chest and biceps using 2kg dumbells do 2 sets of 15 reps, 20 mins crosstrainer

Tuesday - pilates at home
Thursday - zumba

Will eventually do 30 mins on crosstrainer on tuesday and thursday too.

Each stength training session usually takes around 20 mins.

Basically I think its better to use a lighter weight and do it for longer i.e. 15 reps for 3 sets. That was a long winded way of saying that lol

If you need any help of specific exercises, just ask!