most people feel like they regain some tone on P3, but not all. i think for people who are pretty muscular to begin with, the loss is not very noticeable (during P2). for those who have low muscle tone to start with, or are very inactive (like myself), i think the loss of muscle appears more dramatic. although in theory it seems like the hcg would minimize muscle loss, my personal stats are not much different than if i had lost the weight by diet alone (where about 30% of what you lose is muscle).

a certain amount of muscle loss is inevitable, even necessary. i started at 240#. i did the math from my BF analyzer- if i lost 100# and only lost fat, my body fat percentage at the end would 0%- and of course that's impossible. if you're quite overweight, you've developed extra muscle simply to carry the extra weight- so you don't necessarily need all of that.

if you're used to exercising before the protocol and stop during P2 (which i don't advise, by the way), you are bound to lose a bit of muscle tone- and this can easily be firmed back up during P3. but there is a difference between the muscle you have being flabby, and actually having less muscle overall.

during P3 your body is still "getting back on it's feet", so to speak. so i don't believe in massive "biggest loser"-type workouts in P3. but i think moderate cardio is great (especially walking), as well as light to moderate weights, and activities such as yoga, biking, tennis, etc.

remember also to distinguish between that flabbiness being decreased muscle tone, and loose skin. you can't do anything about the skin. the younger you are, the more your skin with shrink back. but if you're over 45, you're most likely going to be left with some "bat wings" that could knock over a small child if you're not careful.... :)

I've lost a net total of 67lbs since I started (last August I think), and I wouldn't say I feel toned. But, back then I didn't do much at all. I was very sedentary, with very little desire or energy to stick with an exercise program. Now that I'm nearly done with R3/P2, I'm going to start getting ready to run at least a few 5k races this spring. I think it's important to start toning up now that I've lost enough weight to make exercise possible. The other day I ran across the street because a car was waiting at the crosswalk. I couldn't believe I could move that fast.

I know people talk about how P3 will redistribute fat stores around in the body, but I don't see how that can affect muscle tone. It seems like only exercise could do that.