What type of workout is best for getting toned?

On Ep. 10, Nikkiey explains the mechanics. Resistance from weights, bands or bodyweight causes micro tears in the muscle fibers, which repair and grow back stronger and bigger. That growth is what toned means. Cardio is good for burning calories and for your heart, and she is clear it isn't bad. But too much cardio without strength training can lead to muscle loss and leave you looking skinny fat rather than lean and toned. In a separate video, she adds that Pilates and yoga are exercise, but they won't build muscle the way weight training does.

On Ep. 16, Nikkiey names bodybuilding-style training as her pick. It's the style she has used for most of her career. It splits your training by muscle group and uses isolation exercises such as bicep curls, leg extensions, lat pulldowns and hamstring curls to shape each muscle. She enjoys CrossFit too, but she describes it as more sport than muscle building, so she keeps it to about once a week. On Ep. 201, she sets the split: 80% strength training, whether that's push, pull and leg days, split body or full body, with progressive overload and varied reps and sets. The other 20% can be dancing, Pilates, running or anything you love.

You don't need to lift heavy. In the video on making strength workouts more effective, Nikkiey says weight you can't control isn't necessary. The goal is a weight just outside your comfort zone that still lets you hit your planned reps with good form and full contractions. Some of her isolation lifts still use the same weights she started with five years ago.

Training is only half of it. On Ep. 201, Nikkiey explains that getting toned means building muscle and then reducing the body fat around it. If you don't have much muscle yet, a building phase may come before a fat loss phase. If you haven't looked toned before, that's no reflection on you. The plan just needs both pieces.