Women frequently ask me how they can achieve a toned look without gaining too much muscle. Despite this fear, it is very unusual for women to pack on muscle. Women have different hormone levels than men, which makes gaining muscle very difficult. The key to ensure that you tone up rather than bulk up is not to avoid strength training, but to concentrate on lowering your body-fat and making moderate strength gains. To achieve this, a healthy eating plan is essential. Without a balanced diet, you can exercise all you want and not lower your body-fat. Secondly, cardiovascular exercise is important to help burn off some extra calories. Finally, you need a specific workout that concentrates on moderate weights with higher repetition sets. Start by performing one exercise for two to three sets of 15 to 20 repetitions on each body-part.