Workout Myths and facts that you really shouldn't miss to know.

Every day in the whole world a person going to the gym or may do yoga at home, or run in the morning. The number of misconceptions or myths about fitness will inevitably come along with the number of people who are trying to stay fit. Like,

One looking to lose weight should not eat Almonds, Cashews, Peanuts, and Walnuts because they are high in fat. 

If somebody is looking to lose weight, One should not be eating post 6 PM. 

This is just the tip of the iceberg. So in this section, we will be busting some of the fitness myths that are so popular that we now actually believe them to be true. 

 

Myth #1: Weight training stunts one's height growth. 

Teenagers especially in India, don’t go for weight training, or they are not allowed to enter the gyms by their parents, thinking that weight training will stop their height. Well, this is completely untrue. No studies have ever been able to prove that lifting weights inhibits or stunts growth. How tall a person will grow, depends mostly on genetics. However, if one regularly exercises and maintains a properly balanced diet, they can push till a certain age. For men, it is 21 years, and for women, it is 18 years. But there is no evidence to prove that weight training will impact your height negatively. 

Training Chest, Back, Biceps, Triceps, and other muscles of the body are nowhere related to the height of an individual. On the contrary, Many bodybuilders had started working out in their pre-teens but are still above 6 feet. The only way by which one can hamper their height is if they start taking steroids. Other than that, there is no problem whatsoever. So, if you are not lifting because you think that it may stop your height. You should think again. 

 

Myth #2: Eating Eggs and Nuts cause acne and Pimples. 

Since childhood, we have been instructed to stay away from eggs and nuts. Especially in summers because they cause body heat, pimples, acne, and whatnot. Well, this is also one major myth that needs to be busted. Eating nuts or eggs does not cause pimples. Pimples are formed when the dirt and oil are stuck in between the pores of your skin. Well, acne is a major topic in itself, but you should know one thing that egg whites and nuts are very important sources of protein and healthy fats respectively. And they should be a part of your diet irrespective of the weather conditions. 

Although, eating too many eggs or nuts may indeed cause heat in the body but then any food consumed in excess has its side effects. As far as eggs are concerned, only yolks may cause body heat. And one should not eat more than two whole eggs a day. As far as egg whites are concerned, one can eat 10-15 egg whites even in summers. On the other hand, nuts are a great source of healthy fats. One can consume 2 handfuls of nuts daily without any kind of problem. 

So, I think this is high time we debunk this myth and stop compromising on a balanced diet because of the weather conditions. 

 

Myth #3: Spot reduction (Reducing fat from specific parts of the body).

Now, many people ask this question that, "How can they reduce fat from their thighs?" Or, "How can they reduce fat only from the arms?"

Well, fortunately, or unfortunately, one can not reduce fat from specific parts of the body. For most people, The body tends to deposit fat in certain areas like the layers of the onion. Although one can strengthen the muscles of one part of the body, one can not reduce the fat from the specific part as the body will just utilize its energy from anywhere fats are stored. So, if you want to cut off fat from one part of the body, it is not possible. 

 

Myth #4: Girls should not do weight training because they will get bulky. 

Most girls refrain from lifting weight because they think that it might make their bodies bulky like that of boys. Well, this is also a very common myth that needs to be busted as soon as possible.

The main reason why boys get a muscular body is because of the hormone called testosterone. The quantity of testosterone present in women is less compared to that of men. So, no matter how much weight you lift, you will never get a muscular body. If you have ever seen a girl who has been lifting weights and has a bulky muscular body, it can only be because she has been injecting testosterone into her body. So if a girl will lift weights, it will help her increase her strength, tone her body, burn more calories, and effectively lose body fat. So, if you are a woman looking to cut body fat, I would suggest you go for weight training. Don’t worry, you will not get bulky. On the contrary, you will be surprised to see the results. 

 

Myth #5: One can not lose weight without exercising. 

Now, I have come across many people who think that they are unable to lose weight because they are very busy and have no time to exercise. If you are also one of them, who is looking to lose weight but is too busy to exercise then I have good news for you. The way our body shapes depends 80% on what and how much we eat, and only 20% on how much we exercise. So, if you are looking to lose weight, all you need to do is maintain a proper diet.

Now, when I say diet, I don’t mean that you should be starving yourself. Instead eat a diet that is well balanced with complex carbohydrates, proteins, healthy fats, Vitamins, and Minerals. The basic idea to lose weight is that calories consumed per day should be less than your maintenance calories. For example, Your maintenance calories come out to be 2000, and if you consume 1800 calories. You have consumed 200 fewer calories. Which leads to loss of weight. 

Myth #6: Unused muscle tissue converts into fat. 

 

The muscle tissue has muscle cells, and the fat tissue has fat cells. They are not interchangeable. You must know, By no means it is chemically or physically possible for muscle tissue to convert over to fat and vice versa fat into muscle. 

 

Myth #7: Morning Workouts are the best.

 

It depends on your goals training fasted in the morning is more conducive to losing fat. Because when you wake up, You're in a fasted state. And that means your body is consuming itself. So it's looking at fat storage, it's looking at muscle storage. And if that's the time where, if your goal is to lose weight and slim down. Thinking, the best time to optimize that window for training. But in terms of the effectiveness of training in general.

 

Well, it doesn't matter. You just need to make sure, that if you are training at night. You are not fatiguing yourself throughout the day.

 

Myth #8: Stretching before workouts prevent injury.

So when most people think stretching. They are thinking of static stretching. In it, you achieve a certain position. And hold that position. And your goal is to increase your range of motion. 

A problem with that is you can end up loose. And if you follow that type of stretching with something explosive or something ballistic or something strength-based. You will have loose tissue. And you're won't be able to produce as much force and you could also potentially lead yourself to be injured because you're not as stable.

So, Stretching should be done only to relax the muscle.

 

Myth #9: Cardio burns fats.

If you are trying to lower your body fat. Cardio isn't the best way to do it. Cardio doesn't burn fat, cardio burns calories. So if your goal is to lose weight, you want to be in a caloric deficit. So as a part of getting into that caloric deficit, doing cardiovascular exercises is helpful. 

But if you're not eating a diet, or if you're not monitoring your caloric intake, and making sure that you are in that deficit. No amount of cardio that you do, You can't outrun a bad diet. 

And in fact, doing too much cardio can be a bad thing. If all you're doing is cardio, intending to lose weight. You can start to burn into that muscle tissue. So if you're burning your lean muscle tissue. This leads to slowing down your metabolism, which leads to a decrease in your bone density, and you could be making yourself weaker. 

So that's why I think this myth is potentially the most dangerous and damaging one for the general population.

 

Myth #10: Muscle weighs more than fat.

This is one myth I hear all the time. It's just like a kg of bricks, weighs the same as a kg of feathers. So it's not that muscle weighs more than fat, it's that the muscle is more dense than fat. 

So in terms of you building muscle, you can add weight on the scale. It isn't necessarily the best indicator of progress when we're trying to develop our physique. And oftentimes, you can add muscle and the scale will reflect that you're heavier. But over-time understanding, that for all the lean muscle you have. You're increasing your resting calories burn per day. That's a long-term sustainable change in your body. 

 

Myth #11: Crunches give you six-packs.

Six-pack is not about doing tons of crunches. A lot of it has to do with your nutrition also. Abs are muscle, and if you're gonna target the muscle, you have to do it with exercises like crunches, leg lifts, bicycle crunches, and oblique twists. 

 

Myth #12: The More sweat, The Better the workout.

So sweating a lot means you got a great workout. Unfortunately, that's not true either. Some people are just naturally more prone to sweating, some people just have underactive sweat glands. So it means that you're healthy and your filtration system is working. 

But it doesn't necessarily reflect the effectiveness of your workout. 

 

Myth #13: Sports drinks are the best way to rehydrate.

Most commercial sports drinks are the most efficient way of rehydrating following a workout. But plain water isn't going to cut it either. Consuming water is not the most effective way of hydrating because hydration is not just water. There are also trace minerals like electrolytes, which help with nerve conduction. 

So if you're looking for the best way to rehydrate post-workout, it could be very beneficial. You can DIY(Do It Yourself) it at your home. Just add a dab of pink Himalayan sea salt to the water. Pink Himalayan sea salt has over 60 trace minerals all of which are found naturally in human sweat.

 

Myth #14: Powerdown protein post-workout.

After a workout, you should also eat protein immediately. Right? 

Well, if you already have a protein-rich diet. You don't need to worry so much about downing a protein shake right after your workout. 

But, what you are going to be depleted of though especially if you're doing an aerobic exercise. You're going to be depleted of Glycogen. Glycogen is the immediate form of energy for muscle contraction and that comes in way of simple carbohydrates and sugars. So post-training it's important to replenish that glycogen.

 

Myth #15: No breaks, Keep on going.

Even if you're fueling muscles with a proper diet, they still need time off. The old myth that we should not take a day off is extreme. There's a huge value in letting the muscle repair itself. So every time you do your workout, a small tear is gonna happen. But the body is going to repair itself. 

But if you continue to keep on going without breaks. You won't be giving a window of opportunity for the body soldiers to jump right in and fix the tear. Because those body soldiers would just need some of that downtime to heal that tear.

But if you decide to keep on going without breaks, there is a high chance you might be facing a lot of fatigue in those muscles.

 

Myth #16: No pain, No gain.

First of all, Pain and Soreness are two different things. Pain is not a good sign of a proper workout. But pain is the signal of your body saying an injury has occurred. And if continued, it may get you to some serious consequences. 

However, Soreness in muscles is the breakdown of muscle tissue during that breakdown. However, Your muscles get stronger as they get familiar with those stressful exercises by gaining that broken muscle tissue. But overdoing anything will always have its side effects on those muscles.

 

Myth #17: You’ll get huge results in 1 month.

 

One month is not enough to undo a lifetime of bad habits. So it's important to Start slow and Find the things that you enjoy. Find the physical activities that make you feel good to make that a daily habit. 

 

Myth #18: There are good and bad workouts.

There's no one type of movement that you should be doing that is better than the other. So if you enjoy dancing, Go out and dance. Dancing three times a week, or do a dance cardio class or something that gets you moving. If you like to jump on trampolines. Do that. The best workout for anyone to do is something that they enjoy. Because the only way that you're gonna stick to your workout being a lifestyle for you is to be doing something you enjoy.

 

So, friends, these were some of the myths which I thought were very common and needed to be busted. So, I hope you found this helpful.