I had developed some serious health problems when my doctor said that I needed to lose weight. Subsequently, I took the advice seriously, and I started working out. People at work, friends at parties and other moms at my son’s soccer practice would try to help me with small tips that had helped them lose weight. What I figured was that these tips did not always work for me. We do everything, follow every little advice that people share with us because we think that will help us also lose weight and become fit. Then my trainer told me that there are many similar myths regarding weight loss that people should not believe. Every body type is different and so are its requirements. Your friend’s workout routine will not suit you and vice-versa. I learned this lesson through my workout sessions, and I am sharing them so that you don’t make the same mistakes.
1. Running On The Treadmill Is Better For Your Knees
We think running on the treadmill is better than running on asphalt or concrete. In reality, the surface you run on does not make any difference. Running stresses your knee joints, irrespective of the surface. Your body weight causes the stress on your joints. It is not the surface you run on. The best way to reduce stress on your knees is to try a full body workout instead of running ten miles every day. A full body workout session will include all your body muscles and stimulate better blood circulation. Also, varying these routines will enable you to keep running for years.
2. Doing More Crunches Is The Answer to Six Packs
You can do a hundred crunches and still not be able to flash your six pack abs. Doing crunches will, undoubtedly, strengthen your abdominal muscles and can better your posture, but they are not the way to getting abs that look like they have been carved out of stone. It has got more to do with lowering your body fat percentage. In other words, for six pack abs you need to lose your belly fat, and crunches do not help with that. A complete body workout session is the solution to lowering your body fat percentage.
3. Your Muscles Will Be Replaced With Fat If You Stop Exercising
This is one thing that most of us believe and dread. However, it is not true. Fats cannot replace your muscles. When you are working out, your muscles develop because you are trying to strengthen them. When you stop working out, your muscles just shrink from the lack of exercise. If you gain weight after you have stopped working out, it results from reduced burning of body fats. You can lose all that weight in a week if you followed some experts’ advice. So, you now know that you need not worry about gaining weight if you stop working out. Just take care of what you eat and ensure you are burning those calories.
4. Push Yourself Through The Pain
Workout sessions are not supposed to hurt. Muscle fatigue after your workout is understandable. Your muscles were not used to the exercise, so they need to recuperate. If your muscles hurt during the workout, you should ideally rest. Once the pain subsides, you can continue with the workout. However, if it continues to hurt, you should see a doctor about it. Most of us say that we need to work it through the pain, and it is bad advice. If you have an injury, never try exerting yourself, it only makes the injury worse.
5. You Should Workout As Long As You Are Okay
Most people make this mistake when they are starting out or returning to their workout program. We think we should keep going as long as we feel okay. However, the effects of pushing yourself come around only a day or two later when you feel burnt out. You were used to an intensive workout program, and then you took a break. Returning to that intensive program should be a gradual process and not a one-day effort.
6. Machines Are The Safest Way To Exercise
Machines are safe, true, but they are safe as long as they are adjusted to your requirements. A machine has to be adjusted to your weight and height if it must align your body correctly and help you do your exercises correctly. So, you need a trainer or a coach who will be able to decide the right settings for you and help adjust the machine to suit your body best. Otherwise, you are prone to worse injury while using a machine than while doing free weights and non-machine workout.
7. Lifting Weight Only Makes You Bulky
Most often we, especially women, live with the notion that lifting weight will only make us look big. The truth, however, is that lifting heavy weight only forces increased metabolism, and your muscles might fail halfway through repeating the exercise. Heavy weight lifting initiates the growth of lean muscle tissues and reduces fat. For bigger body frame, you need more hormones (testosterone), fat and tissues, which can happen if you snack on food with excess calories, have excess anabolic hormones and stimulate more insulin secretion. If you are on a balanced diet and into heavy lifting, you will have a leaner body.
Our objective is to become fit, besides losing excess weight. It is, therefore, important to go about our workout routines in the right and safe way. Do not pay heed to all tips your friends give you. They don’t work always. Besides, if you need advice, you can always ask your trainer for some real and proven tips. Your trainer will know what your body will respond to better. Discard all myths and live healthy!