Training plans for women are a funny topic. When it comes to cycling and other endurance sports, training plans follow the same principles, no matter if you’re a man or woman, young or old.

You probably won’t find a book called “The Female Cyclist’s Training Bible” anytime soon.

And no one really questions this.

But when it comes to getting in shape, losing weight, strength training, lifting weights, or whatever you want to call your off-season training, it’s a completely different story! 90% of what you find when it comes to women’s training is going to say either “women should never train like men” or “don’t train like a man or you’ll get big and bulky and ugly.”

This type of advice is so prevalent that most women are scared to lift anything heavier than a 5lb dumbbell (or worse, a can of soup.)

It makes no sense. Men and women are looking for the same results, but for some reason, their training is not based on the same principles. My only explanation for this is that the general fitness enthusiast is not as smart or determined as you, the endurance athlete.

This is why I was pleased to read the book Visual Impact for Women by Rusty Moore. This training program provides “a workout for the slim, feminine physique.” In other words, it’s about getting hot and toned, not bulky. (I’m pretty that’s what all women outside of bodybuilding competitions are aiming for!)

If you’re not familiar with Rusty, take a look at his website FitnessBlackBook.com, which is great for men and women who want to get a slim and toned physique. (In other words, it covers the stuff you don’t often see here on CoachLevi.com.)

You may remember the name Visual Impact – I reviewed the original Visual Impact course (for men) a few weeks ago. I really liked the program because it was well-written, easy to follow, and most importantly, was based on sound training principles. Naturally, I wanted to take a look at the women’s specific course to see what it was all about.

What Rusty did with the course was genius. The book is based on the same principles and theories behind the men’s version (which is how it should be since we’re all human,) but the actual training program is changed to better suit the specifics of a woman’s training goals.

This book also contains useful chapters addressing unique diet needs of women and other details not covered in the men’s program. I’d say the most important chapter is the first one, which dispels popular myths aimed at women, such as “women can’t get bulky from training.” There is A LOT of misinformation aimed at women going around and this book debunks it.

Let’s go ahead and take a closer look inside the book…

Visual Impact for Women

I can’t possibly talk about all 20 chapters right here, but I’ll review what I feel are the most important parts in the book.

Clueless Personal Trainers

The introduction is pretty funny – it is what Rusty has observed in public gyms with clueless personal trainers working with women, getting it all wrong. You’ve probably seen this yourself!

Myth Busting

Chapter 1 is all about myth busting. Rusty dispels myths like “women can’t get bulky from training” which is common, yet misguided thinking. That might be relatively correct if the women are being compared to guys gaining lots more muscle, but girls do put on muscle, especially in certain areas they might not want it.

Other myths cover topics like meal frequency, cardio workouts, and more. It’s good info, unlike most garbage you find in the mainstream media, and quite possibly the most useful chapter in the book because it will change your way of thinking.

Cardio

I have high standards when it comes to anything “cardio” related, considering that’s very similar to our endurance training, but Rusty has some cool insights on this topic. It’s nice to see a different perspective sometimes.

Rusty talks about how cardio has fallen out of favor to the more intense circuit training which doesn’t take as much time, but any endurance athlete will understand the value of cardio. It’s very important when used strategically, as Rusty points out.

There’s even a 12-week cardio plan included as a bonus. Experienced endurance athletes won’t need this, and would be better served by a sport-specific plan, but those are a lot more complex and can be intimidating if you’re new to the sport.

The Truth About High-Rep and Low-Rep Training

Chapters 3 and 4 cover everything you need to know about high vs low reps, and yes, this all goes against what you’ve heard in the maintream media.

For example, a lot of people equate low reps with getting bulky. But that’s not the whole story, as Rusty points out. He gives you the key to using low rep training to get toned, with virtually no chance of getting bulky. It’s simple and easy to follow advice.

The Importance of Exercise Equipment

Rusty covers your exercise equipment options and explains what you should actually be focusing on. Hint: the type of equipment you use isn’t a big deal.

Similarly, Rusty covers yoga, which he says is not the best way to get slim and lean, but it has other benefits. (And some of these benefits are very helpful to cyclists.)

Proper Diet for Women

The basics of dieting will be the same for men and women, but women do have some unique challenges that are discussed in here. Rusty lays out a formula for a base daily calorie intake and then goes into greater detail on the strategies.

It doesn’t get too detailed, but Rusty does throw in some more advanced concepts. It’s pretty easy to follow the advice, but you might not understand “why” if you aren’t already well-versed in diet and nutrition.

That said, the important concepts that you need to know and understand are well explained.

Determining Your Workout Plan

There are chapters dedicated to each part of your workout plan, including:

• Combining high and low-intensity cardio.
• “Fat-Burning Cardio”
• The Recommended “2 Day Split” Workout Routine
• Gym Routine for Time-Crunched Athletes
• How to Workout in a Home Gym
• Customizing Your Own Plan

By the way, a 229 page “how-to” exercise manual with photos is included to explain the exercises.

How to Lose Muscle Mass on Purpose

What?! I’ve never heard of a book about this before! But it does apply to endurance sports!

It’s not uncommon for men to come into cycling after spending years bulking up for sports like football, and then they want to lose some unneeded muscle mass from their upper body.

Women may have built up extra muscle on their butt, hips, and thighs (all common for some women,) so this strategy could be very useful info. It’s a better strategy than giving up training all together!

Then the book ends with a little summary, and it’s time for you to get started on your workouts. (Printable workout charts are included.)

My final verdict is…

If you’re an endurance athlete, you can pretty much ignore the cardio sections of this book, as you probably have that under control. But the other training advice could be very helpful with your off-season training.

Overall, Visual Impact for Women is filled with great info – stuff you rarely, if ever, see in print. If you are a woman looking to get in shape, do yourself a favor and quit reading Fitness magazine and get this book instead!

Official website: www.VisualImpactForWomen.com

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have some extra muscle on your body? Not a lot, but enough to look like a real athlete instead of a scrawny cyclist?

If your goal is to win the Tour de France, probably not. But if you’re just riding and racing for fun, you may have thought about packing on some muscle. I know I have.

As I started to wind down my racing career, I realized there was no longer a need for me to have a super high power-to-weight ratio and super low body weight. My best racing weight was around 152lb anyway, so it’s not like I was ever going to be a 120lb climbing specialist.

Then I found a website called FitnessBlackBook.com, written by Rusty Moore, and it was all about getting a fit, toned physique (or “the Hollywood look” as Rusty would say) rather than focusing on sheer size like so many other muscle building websites.

What really peaked my interest was the actual weights of some people with ripped physiques. The most notorious is probably Brad Pitt in Fight Club – he was totally ripped at a rumored 165lb.

That got me thinking – if you train properly, you could keep your weight low (155-170lb,) look great, and still perform well on your bike.

With that in mind, I purchased of a copy of Rusty’s training program, Visual Impact.

(I had been reading his blog for a couple years and purchased a book from him before, so I didn’t hesitate on this.)

The tag line is: “Strategic muscle gains for a visually stunning body.”

See, it’s not just a generalized plan for muscle building and fat loss. You can find that advice anywhere. What sets Visual Impact apart is the “strategic” part. Everything is carefully planned out so that you gain the least amount of muscle possible yet still achieve that stunning physique.

Basically, you are building size in certain areas of your body while minimizing size in others, and that makes you look big without you actually being big!

In my eyes, this is the perfect program for cyclists and endurance athletes who want to look good without gaining much weight.

Maybe you want an off-season weight lifting plan for November through April – this one would be a good compromise between good looks and performance.

So let’s look at the book itself…

The Visual Impact Muscle Building Course

Visual Impact comes in three parts.

First, the main ebook. This is where the whole philosophy behind the training is explained. If you’re not familiar with training methods outside the cycling world, or you’ve tried training plans from bodybuilding magazines with poor results, you’ll love this approach to training.

There are 15 chapters in the book followed by a Q&A section, so there’s a lot of information in there, but it is all easy to read and understand. There are quite a few images used for examples, and that is a big help. As a coach myself, I can usually pick out other people who would make a good coach or teacher, and Rusty Moore definitely fits the description.

The next part is the exercise demonstrations.

This is a 227 page PDF file with photo demonstrations and explanations of every exercise in the program. It would be great if this was an instructional DVD, but the photos should suffice for most people.

Lastly, Visual Impact includes printable workout charts.

These are all PDF files for each phase of the program. You can easily print these out and take them to the gym with you. They will guide your workouts and give you space to fill in your results. (You are going to keep a training log, aren’t you?!)

Complaints on Visual Impact

I only have one complaint about this program, and that has to do with the suggested exercises.

Quite a few of the exercises either require a specific machine only found at the gym, or a great variety of barbells, dumbbells, resistance bands, etc. at home. It’s not a big deal for me because I have plenty of equipment at home, and I’ve made plenty of exercise substitutions in the past, but if you don’t already have a home gym, you’ll either need to invest in some equipment or join the local gym.

The real problem is that there isn’t an “exercise substitution” section showing you home/garage variations for the machine-based exercises. Nate Green’s book has a great section on exercises and their “garage variation” for home gym users, so I wish Rusty would have done something along those lines.

Of course, if you don’t mind joining the local gym or YMCA, there’s no problem here. It’s just me being picky about where I workout!

My Visual Impact Workouts

To be completely honest here, I have a hard time sticking with weight training programs of any kind. I love sports, so if I have a chance to ride, run, ski, swim, or skate, 95% of the time I’m going to do that instead of lift weights.

But I have spent a few months over the past year testing out the Visual Impact workouts so I could write about them.

The first phase of the program was a shock to me. Since my workouts for as long as I can remember were all sports oriented, I’ve always shied away from bodybuilding stuff, which is really what this is – totally annihilating a muscle group, cumulative fatigue, etc. It’s way different from strength training.

But it was fun! The workout will probably take 45 minutes, and you are constantly moving. The rest breaks barely give you enough time to change the weights!

Each week ends up being a slightly different workout, too, so it’s not boring like doing the same thing every day.

Once you get into phases two and three, the workouts are more like strength training, so they more closely resemble sport-specific training. That’s why I recommend starting this program in the off-season – you can get the higher volume training out of the way before racing season is in full swing.

Isn’t is great how racing season corresponds with beach season? Whether you want peak race performance or a toned body for the beach, you can structure your training similarly.

My final verdict is…

The book is full of good info and laid out very well. Beginners and intermediate lifters should get a lot out of it. Even some “advanced” guys could learn a thing or two in here.

For endurance athletes looking to put on a little muscle for a better physique, I really like this program. I don’t know if Rusty has any idea that Visual Impact’s philosophy resonates so well with cyclists, but it does.

Let’s just say I like this program enough, that out of all the programs I have, this is one I am actually putting into practice myself!

Official website: www.VisualImpactMuscleBuilding.com

Many people who take up running and cycling are looking for some good exercise that will help them lose weight and tone their muscles. Hard-core racers might not care about their looks, but I would bet that most recreational cyclists and amateur racers want a nice physique as one of the benefits of their training.

And chances are, no matter what your racing level, you are doing some sort of strength training to improve your performance. (If not, then you should be!)

So you’re probably lifting weights, and as far as physical appearance goes, you’re looking for results that equate to a “toned” physique, rather than getting big and bulky. (You need to maintain that power to weight ratio!)

I’m going to explain how to tone your muscles, rather than get big and bulky, but first, we have to look at what toning even is…

What is Toning?

What is toning anyway? How do you describe it?

The common perception of a toned body is one where you can see dense, defined muscles. In other words, a lean, muscular body.

Think Brad Pitt as Tyler Durden in Fight Club. He is lean and muscular and looks great, but definitely wouldn’t get confused for a bodybuilder with his shirt on.

Muscle Tone: The Basics

So let’s look at how to get toned. In reality, toning is nothing more than losing body fat. As you lose body fat, your muscles stand out much more, which gives you that toned look. It’s as simple as that.

You could also go one step further. By both increasing the size of your muscles and decreasing the amount of fat hiding them, you really get the toned look.

So you don’t actually “tone” the muscle. You just change your muscle to fat ratio, which allows you to see your muscles more easily.

I like to sum it up with this quote from Nate Green in his book, Built for Show: “You can make a muscle bigger or smaller, but you can’t ‘tone’ it.”

There is a more advanced definition of muscle tone (best described in Visual Impact by Rusty Moore, or in Pavel Tsatsouline’s books,) but that doesn’t really matter unless you need extreme toning for a physique contest, so we can skip that today.

Understanding Muscle Growth

What we should discuss though, is muscle growth. There are two main types of muscle growth to become familiar with before trying to tone your muscles. They are:

• Sarcoplasmic hypertrophy – The growth of the fluid in the muscle cells.
• Myofibrillar hypertrophy – The growth of muscle fibers themselves.

The best way to look at it is this – muscle fiber growth (myofibrillar hypertrophy) creates smaller, dense muscles and increases sports performance with minimal, if any, weight gain.

Sarcoplasmic hypertrophy just makes your muscles look bigger. They might be a bit soft, and there is really no benefit when it comes to sports performance.

Obviously we are going to concern ourselves with the actual muscle fiber growth.

How to Tone Your Muscles

Now it’s time to talk about how to actually tone your muscles. There will be two components here: fat loss as discussed at the beginning of this article, and muscle fiber growth, just discussed in the previous section.

Fat Loss

There are two main sub-components to fat loss: diet and conditioning.

Changing your diet is the fastest way to fat loss. For beginners, look at this fat loss article for the basics. For more advanced techniques, you might want to consider some of the Paleo Diet principles as well as carb cycling and nutrient timing.

Basically, changing up your diet can easily lead to a 500-700 calorie deficit each day, plus allow your body to operate properly.

Your conditioning will come from your running and/or cycling training, which should consist of various sprints and interval workouts.

Muscle fiber growth

Muscle fiber growth is a slow process, so it’s not your #1 priority when toning your muscles, but it should be in your long term strategy.

It’s not that complicated to train for, but the mainstream media get it completely wrong, so pay attention!

Your weight lifting workouts in the gym should use moderately heavy weights and a fairly low number of reps. Each exercise might only be 3-5 sets of 2-5 reps each.

That simple strength training strategy will help you tone your muscles without leaving you too sore to do your sport-specific (i.e. on the bike) workouts!

If you follow the advice in mainstream fitness magazines about doing light weights and high reps, you’re either going to get no results (at best) or make negative progress since those workouts will fatigue you, leaving you too tired for your other important training!

Toning Summary

When it comes to getting a toned physique, remember these key points:

• Losing body fat by eating a clean, healthy diet will help you look more toned.
• Losing body fat by doing interval training on your bike will help you look more toned.
• Strengthening muscle fibers by lifting heavy weights for low reps will help you look more toned.

Are you dropping body fat with bodyweight exercises, but still trying to get rid of that little bit of belly fat? You are not alone…

Levi, I’ve been doing the standard plank every day for a few weeks and I think I’ve lost some belly fat, but I’m wondering if I’m imagining things. Do these plank exercises burn fat in the process of strengthening my body?

I’ve read all over the Internet that the exercise tones your body but haven’t seen any information that it actually burns fat. A friend told me that it did. I want to get a second opinion. I’ve lost over 50 pounds in the last year on the stationary bike! I’m around 5’10″ and now 164 pounds. Everyone in my life has noticed the loss and I’ve felt much more confident. One thing still bothers me, though, – my waist. I still have belly fat and love handles. I so dearly want to get rid of them and my belly. Thanks for reading!

Sincerely,
Bellyfat Benjamin

Hi Benjamin,

Congratulations on your weight loss! That is quite an accomplishment, especially when done on a *stationary* bike! Spending any amount of time on a stationary bike takes some commitment!

But yes, the last place you’re going to lose fat is around your midsection. It’s not uncommon to have veins popping out of your arms and legs, but then have a gut!

I can’t say from direct weight loss experience, but from my observations (as well as principles that apply to other endeavors,) I would estimate that it’s harder to lose the last 5-10 pounds of belly fat than it is to lose 50-100 pounds and go from “overweight” to “reasonably slim.” But, it is possible with the right diet and exercise.

When it comes to diet, I do have an article about dieting for six pack abs, in case you missed it.

It takes more than a perfect diet, though, so let’s talk about exercise. Yes, exercise burns fat. It also burns glycogen (i.e. sugar.) Depending on the intensity of the exercise, you will burn a different percentage of each fuel.

There are many theories (and myths) out there about the “fat burning zone” and whatnot, but I suggest you ignore those (since so many of them fall into the myth category.) As long as you’re burning off a lot of calories in total, it doesn’t matter whether you’re burning carbs or fat.

The point of it all is, high intensity exercise is the way to go. For example, doing a bunch of bodyweight exercises like the plank over the course of 20-30 minutes will probably burn as much fat as 1-2 hours of easy riding on a stationary bike. (Long days of hiking and bike riding are fun and are certainly a good way to burn fat, but you probably don’t have time to exercise 6+ hours each day.)

Toning is a whole other story, especially how it’s portrayed by the average fitness magazine, but here’s the quick version: Toning = fat loss. It’s the same thing. The “toned” look is simply because your muscles are more pronounced once you lose body fat. You can get a toned look by building more muscle or by losing fat, but to actually “tone” a muscle is a very complicated topic. Muscle can get bigger, but “toning” is just a word that is misused all too often (usually by the same people telling you you’ll lose a lot of fat by taking a stroll around the block!)

(*True muscle toning is beyond the scope of this article, and is better left for someone like Pavel Tsatsouline to explain.)

So keep eating healthy and exercising hard, and you’ll keep getting closer to that chiseled body.

(Just don’t expect it to be quick and easy, that will just lead to disappointment.)