The Best Full Body Toning Workout Plan For Women

What Toning Means | How To Tone Up | Toning Vs Building Muscle | Full Body Toning Workout Plan For Females | How To Progress | FAQs About Toning

Page last updated: 27/10/26

Many women start training with the goal of wanting to ‘tone up’. But what does toning actually mean, and what’s the best way to achieve it?

In simple terms, toning refers to building lean muscle while reducing body fat to create a firmer, more defined appearance. The most effective way to do this is through structured strength training.

In this guide, PureGym Denton Gym Manager and Personal Trainer Laura Melia looks at what toning actually is, the best way to get toned, and shares a gym-based full body toning workout plan for women to follow at the gym.

What does being 'toned' mean?

Being 'toned' usually refers to a physique that is lean with firm, defined muscles. 

From a fitness perspective, this comes down to two key factors:

• Building muscle mass
• Reducing body fat

Toning doesn’t mean making muscles longer or leaner. It simply means increasing muscle while lowering the layer of body fat covering it, so muscle definition becomes more visible.

Because of this, any effective toning workout plan for women should include resistance training. Research published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine shows that resistance training increases muscle strength and size over time. Combined with appropriate nutrition, this leads to a more defined, athletic appearance.

Studies specifically in women (including middle-aged or older groups) demonstrate positive effects on muscle hypertrophy, strength, function and body composition with regular resistance training.

In the next section, we’ll break down how to approach training and nutrition to support this goal.

How to tone up

There are two parts to achieving a toned look: building muscle and having a low body fat. This can be done by:

• Challenging the muscles with resistance training at least twice a week per muscle group. This can be with free weights, resistance machines, resistance bands, or even bodyweight workouts. The key is to sufficiently challenge the muscles so that the body repairs and rebuilds them.
• Eating enough protein. The amino acids in protein are used by the body to repair the muscles. If you are strength training without eating enough protein, you may struggle to grow your muscles.
• Getting enough calories. It can be tempting to cut calories when you want to look leaner, but you need to have plenty of calories to build muscle and fuel your workouts. If you have excess fat to lose, choose a moderate calorie deficit to assist with weight loss while prioritising strength training and lots of protein — this will allow you to build muscle while lowering your body fat. If you are at a healthy weight, you can either eat at maintenance calories or at a moderate calorie surplus.

Toning vs building muscle: what's the difference?

Although they're spoken about as different things, toning and building muscle both refer to the same thing — increasing muscle mass. However, they involve slightly different goals, which can impact the process:

• Toning refers to having both muscle definition and low body fat to create a lean, athletic look.
• Building muscle refers to creating noticeably bigger muscle mass, which can impact your body proportions more dramatically — for example, bigger glutes or arms.

Both involve strength training to stimulate muscle growth, and both usually involve some kind of nutrition and diet to help achieve the desired look. 

Women's full body toning workout plan

Looking for the best toning workout plan for females? 

Laura has shared this female body toning workout plan to try at the gym. It can be repeated two to three times over the week or combined with other workouts such as this full body workout with weights or this dumbbell full body workout. Make sure to start with a warm up, and end with a cool down, to prevent injury.

Choose weights that are challenging but allow you to complete the reps. As you get stronger each week, increase the reps or weights to continue to challenge the muscles. For example, if you can manage 10 reps of 10kg in week 1, you would increase the reps until you can do 12, and then increase the weight so you can only manage 10 reps again. Continue to repeat this each week.

Who this full body toning workout is for

This workout is ideal if you:

• Want to build lean muscle and create a more defined, ‘toned’ look
• Are aiming to lower body fat while maintaining or building muscle
• Prefer a structured full body gym routine you can repeat 2 to 3 times per week
• Are new to strength training or want a simple, balanced programme

It may not be ideal if you:

• Are training specifically to build significant muscle size
• Are following an advanced bodybuilding or strength-focused split
• Are looking for a quick, no-equipment home workout

Quick summary: full body strength and toning workout for women

• Level: Beginner to intermediate
• Frequency: 2-3 times per week
• Time: 45-60 minutes
• Equipment: Dumbbells, barbell (optional for squats), incline bench, cable machine (row), leg curl machine, exercise mat
• Goal: Build muscle, reduce body fat, achieve a lean and ‘toned’ appearance

1. Squats – 4 x 8-10 reps

Choose from bodyweight squats, goblet squats, or barbell back squats depending on your ability. Make sure you can complete your reps with good form, including getting your thighs parallel with the floor.

2. Inclined shoulder press – 3 x 10-12 reps

You can either do a seated dumbbell press and set up a bench to create an incline back support or use the shoulder press machine. Ensure your feet are flat on the floor, your back is flat against the support, and that you fully extend the arms without locking your elbows out.

3. Seated row – 3 x 10-12 reps

You can either do seated rows on the cable machine or use the resistance machine seated row. Ensure you fully retract your elbows back, and be careful not to sway too much with the movement.

4. Lying hamstring curl – 3 x 10-12 reps

Make sure you adjust the hamstring curl machine so that the pad rests above the heels. Keep your feet flexed and hips firmly on the bench during your reps.

5. Bicep curls – 3 x 10-12 reps

You can perform bicep curls with dumbbells or using the bicep curl resistance machine. Make sure your upper arms and torso stay still throughout the exercise, and if using the resistance machine, keep your elbows pressed firmly into the support pad.

6. Tricep extensions – 3 x 10-12 reps

Can be done with dumbbells as overhead tricep extensions or on the tricep extension machine. Keep your torso and upper arms still to avoid moving the load away from the triceps.

7. Press ups – 3 x 8-10 reps

If you can't do full press ups, perform kneeling push ups or incline push ups. Keep your core engaged to avoid the hips sagging — they should stay in line with your shoulders throughout.

8. Russian twists – 3 x 10-12 reps

Russian twists can be made more challenging by holding a dumbbell, or by extending the legs out farther than the body.

How to progress this toning and strength workout for women

Once you’re comfortable with each of those exercises and find you can easily complete all reps, there are a few ways you can increase the challenge to boost results: 

1. Increase the sets and reps: gradually add more reps of each exercise so you’re performing each movement for longer.
2. Increase the weight: start by increasing the weight for one set, then build up to using the heavier weight across all sets. Once you can complete all sets and reps comfortably, increase the weight again.
3. Find a more challenging version of the exercise: if the standard version is starting to feel too easy, there’s almost always a progression for you to try instead. Check out our exercises pages — we list a range of variations for each movement. For example, there are 12 types of push ups you could explore, from incline press ups for beginners through to the more advanced options like superman push ups. 

So why is it that people looking to tone up are often scared of building muscle?

There are a few reasons this might be the case, including lack of knowledge around what being 'toned' means or how to achieve it, and fear of getting bulky from building muscle.

Building muscle mass is actually very challenging, it requires a lot of training, eating in a calorie surplus, and a lot of patience! It's very rare for someone to accidentally build significant bulk without trying, particularly for women who are slower to build muscle than men due to hormonal differences.

Frequently Asked questions about toning

How often should women train to tone up? 

For most women, training three times a week is a great starting point. That gives you enough stimulus to build muscle while still allowing time to recover.

If you’re doing full body workouts, two to three sessions per week works well. If you prefer splitting your workouts (for example, upper and lower body days), you could train three to four times weekly. You can learn more about workout splits for women here. 

How long does it take to see toning results?

It depends on where you’re starting from, but most people begin to notice small changes within four to six weeks. That might look like feeling stronger, clothes fitting differently, or muscles feeling firmer.

Visible changes in muscle definition often take closer to eight to twelve weeks, especially if fat loss is part of the goal. Early progress can feel slow, but it builds momentum with consistency.

Is strength training enough to tone up? 

Strength training is the most important part of toning up, because it’s what builds muscle in the first place.

However, whether muscle definition becomes visible depends partly on body fat levels. If someone has a higher body fat percentage, they may need to focus on nutrition alongside strength training to create a calorie deficit.

You don’t have to do endless cardio, but pairing resistance training with appropriate nutrition gives you the best chance of achieving a leaner, more defined look.

How can women tone their arms?

The best way to tone your arms is through a mixture of upper body compound exercises like chest press and lat pulldowns, and arm isolation exercises like bicep curls and tricep extensions. This will help to create enough stimulus to build muscle in the arm. Depending on your body fat percentage and where you store fat, you may also need to lose some fat through a calorie deficit.

How can women get a toned stomach?

For a toned stomach, you'll likely need to combine some fat loss with core strengthening exercises like crunches and planks. Genetics also play a big part in how 'toned' your stomach can look.

Can women over 40/50/60 tone up?

There is no age limit to toning up or building muscle! In fact, as you get older, it becomes even more important to build and maintain muscle mass, as women who have gone through the menopause are at higher risk for muscular atrophy and bone loss. While hormonal changes associated with the menopause can make it more challenging to lose weight, resistance training can help to create a more toned appearance while improving muscle and bone health. Check out our guide to fitness and the menopause here for more information.

Does cardio help with toning up?

Cardio is not crucial for creating a toned appearance. If you are trying to lower your body fat, cardio can help, but a calorie deficit is more important in doing this. Cardio is great for overall health, so we do recommend including some cardio in your workouts, but if your goal is to tone up, prioritise strength training.

What is skinny fat?

A common mistake beginners make is attempting to achieve a toned physique by losing weight through cardio and dieting, and neglecting building muscle. This can lead to what is commonly known as a 'skinny fat' appearance. This refers to when a person has a low weight or BMI, but with a high body fat percentage due to low muscle mass.

Being ‘skinny fat’ can be associated with poor metabolic health, increasing the risk of diseases like type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, heart disease, and circulatory disorders.

In summary

To get toned, women should focus on building muscle through strength training and supporting it with sensible nutrition. Stay consistent, increase the challenge over time, and be patient, because definition comes from steady progress, not shortcuts.

If you’re looking for more fitness inspiration, check out our Workouts for Women hub, where we share guides, exercises and workout plans for a range of ages, skills and goals. If you’d like even more guidance, you could join a PureGym near you and book a session with one of our expert personal trainers. They’ll be able to support you in reaching your goals.