Today I want to take a few minutes to bust some of the most common fitness myths I hear day in and day out working in the fitness industry.
Before we jump into the myths I want to confirm with you, yes these things are truly myths, however it doesn’t mean that some companies out there won’t tell you these things are true in order to sell a product or service. This is one of the hardest things about the fitness and wellness industry…it’s completely unregulated. So my biggest piece of advice is if you are working with someone in the fitness industry know who they are, what they stand for and what their credentials are to promote those things…
Thanks for coming to my brief TED talk!
Myth 1 – Spot Targeting
This is probably one of the biggest and most common things you hear working in the fitness industry. Things like “I want to lose weight in my belly” or “I want to tone my arms” or I want to lose weight in my thighs”, ect. There are programs out there that will sell you on flat abs and lean legs, but they are using those terms solely for marketing purposes. It doesn’t mean that the program may not help you lose weight in your midsection or lean up your legs, but you can not do a single exercise or combination of exercises and guarantee that you will lose weight in a specific spot…NOT GONNA HAPPEN.
Unfortunately, you don’t get to choose where you lose weight or how your body changes when you start a fitness routine. Do certain exercises work specific muscles, of course but going with a well rounded program that focuses on full body movements is always the best option. Well balanced programs can help to improve strength in your whole body and will help to prevent injuries. Genetics do play a role in how you body is shaped and focusing on spot reducing is never a good approach to improving your health and wellness. Have a program that promises “flat abs” or a “better butt” or some other specific target, you may be better off skipping out on that one and finding a fitness professional who can build you a well rounded program that is tailored to your goals.
Myth 2 – Lifting Weights Will Make Me Look Bulky
This is probably the second most common myth you hear in the fitness industry. Specifically sitting down with women they often say “I want to tone up, but I don’t want to lift heavy weights because I don’t want to look bulky”. Although this is starting to change in the fitness industry, lifting heavy weights will not make you look like Arnold Schwarzenegger, unless you are really trying to.
Many women see photos of female body builders and think I don’t want to look like that, they are too muscly. But here’s the thing, even those female body builders who may look like that in the photos you are looking at don’t look like that most of the time (because they have dropped to such a low body fat percentage, that it’s not something they can maintain over a long period of time). The truth is, gaining large amounts of muscle mass is as much if not more work than losing weight is. In order to pack on huge amounts of muscle you need to eat a ton of food and to stay that lean you need to keep your body fat percentage very low which usually comes with an extremely strict diet. It’s not enjoyable for most people and it’s certainly not sustainable over long periods of time. Yes lifting weights will increase the size of your muscles, but not to the extent that most people are worried about it. It’s not easy to look like those body builders so you shouldn’t worry about lifting weights making you look bulky.
Myth 3 – You Can Tone a Muscle
As a fitness professional if there was one word that I could remove from the vocabulary in the gym it would be the word “toned”. The fitness industry sells the idea that you can “tone” a muscle like it’s different than just building muscle (because that scares females in particular).
But here’s the thing, toning a muscle is just building muscle mass. No you aren’t building massive amounts of muscle that are going to leave you looking bulky, but you are building muscle…that is what gives a muscle the “tone” that so many people chase. When you increase the size of a muscle it looks bigger and more defined (which is what most people call toned). When in reality this is what we call hypertrophy training (which is a fancy word for building more muscle, or making the muscle bigger and stronger). So instead of trying to “tone” your muscles, just aim to build muscle mass and use that mindset instead and before long you will see that look you are chasing.
Myth 4 – Machines are Safer than Free Weights
Although generally for beginners this is true it doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t use free weights. If you are a beginner and still learning certain movement patterns machines have a place for sure, however free weights can be even more effective and just as safe when exercises are performed properly. The same way that using a machine improperly could lead to an increased risk of injury.
While machines do have a place and can be an important part of a training program they don’t replace free weights and there are many things that free weight training gives you that you can’t get from machines. When I am working with someone I traditionally use weight machines early on and mostly to help them get comfortable with the idea of moving weight around. Once they have achieved that, moving into free weight style training (or a combination of free weight and machines) is typically more beneficial for most people (although this may be goal dependant as well).
Myth 5 – If you Aren’t Sore after a Workout you Didn’t Train Hard Enough
Have you ever been told that is you aren’t sore then you didn’t work hard enough? Or maybe you’ve heard the “no pain, no gain” motto but soreness is not an indication of how good your workout was.
I’m going to say that again…soreness is not an indication of how good your workout was. For most people muscles get sore when they are exposed to something new which is normal and okay. However if you are following a consistent program over many weeks, you will reach a point where you will be less and less sore. Even using the concept of progressive overload on the same exercises you will probably not be super sore after every workout…and that is okay. If your weights are increasing and you are continuing to introduce more stress to the muscles then you will continue to see improvements, you don’t need to not be able to walk the next day to class your workout as a good one (in fact for most people who are just starting out, being sore all the time will probably not help them want to continue to make fitness a part of their daily lives).
Myth 6 – Supplements are Essential in your Fitness Routine
Have you ever been told that you need a pre-workout or a protein supplement to be successful on your fitness journey. While there is absolutely a place for supplements in the fitness world, they are just that…SUPPLEMENTS.
Supplements are meant to be used in your diet if you are missing something or not getting enough of something by eating the foods that you are eating. This means that if you are striving to gain muscle mass and you have trouble eating enough protein, then there may be a place for a protein supplement for example. But it doesn’t mean that you won’t make progress in the gym if you are not using a protein supplement. If you are eating enough protein in your diet you will still see the results you are looking for. Supplements can be a great tool, but not using them doesn’t mean that you won’t see progress.
Was there a myth here that surprised you? Or were you expecting all of these. These are some of the most common ones, although there are plenty more out there. Is there something that you’ve heard and questioned? Feel free to drop them in the comments and if I have the answer I’m happy to share, and if I don’t have the answer I’m happy to dive into research and find one!
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