Four Workout Tips for Toning Muscles

Tone muscles and work off extra calories with a few simple exercises. Include these simple sets in your regular workout or try a few sets consistently to help shape and stretch your unused muscles.

Try a basic arm exercise that promotes posture and control. Stand straight with your shoulders back, arms out and facing each other in a "fist bump" level with your chest. Pull them apart in a single stroke, like rowing a boat -- move smoothly and firmly, until you feel pressure in your shoulder blades. Then bring your arms in contact again and repeat. Try in sets of six or eight, doing at least four sets per session.

For arm strength and muscle definition, try "reverse pushups". Lean against a solid surface like a counter or table, hands resting behind you on the surface. Let your hands support you as you stretch your body out, heels touching the floor. Lower your body towards the floor, then lift up again, using your arms and shoulders to do the work. Try three sets of six, but go slow at first to avoid too much muscle strain.

Use closed and open squats to help tone thigh and calf muscles. Keep your legs together, feet slightly outstretched, and bend as if sitting, then stand again. For additional pressure, try squeezing your muscles with each upwards "push"; place additional pressure on your thighs by resting your hands on them with pressure as you stand. For traditional legs apart, apply the same pressure to your legs. Perform four sets of ten per session.

The "twist crunch" is a great way to help tone abdominal muscles. Lie flat with your legs bent and raised at the knee, elbows bent with arms pulled inwards. Crunch your abdomen in a left-to-right pattern so your right elbow moves towards your left leg, etc. -- you should feel the pressure in your side as the muscles "crunch" inward. Try sets of ten repeated six times in each session.