Exercise Myths

People struggle to begin exercise for a variety of reasons. They may have an overloaded work schedule, they’re always running the kids somewhere or they might not know which exercises are the best. Still, there are people that have heard exercise myths and have taken them to be fact. Well, today let’s put some of those myths to bed.

Myth 1: Crunches will give you flat abs. While this is one exercise to target the abdominals, it’s not necessarily the best. They don’t burn off a lot of calories and they don’t help you lose fat from your body. If you really want a fire-burning ab workout, try planks or bridges. These are going to get you sweating which will help you burn more calories. You may also want to try ab exercises called the low-belly leg reach, the mountain climber or the donkey kickback.

Myth 2: Running is bad for your knees. It’s actually been proven that running is safer than sports such as football. Yet, at the same time, you still have to stretch, workout those muscles and be careful. Women are more than likely to have knee injuries over men because they have less strength in the hamstrings (lower leg) and quadriceps (upper leg). These two muscles have the tendency to increase the likelihood of an ACL injury, which is why runners should stretch at least 2-3 times a week.

Myth 3: More gym time is better. While you may be able to push hard, every few days you need to give your body a rest. It’s not healthful for your body to be packing weights at the gym everyday. This puts you more at risk for a serious injury. Try having a break every other day from exercise if you’re a beginner, or once a week if you’re more serious. This will give your muscles time to relax and return strong the next time you go.  

Myth 4: Lifting weights makes you look bulky. Whether or not you bulk up lifting weights has to do with testosterone. Men have about 20 to 30 percent more testosterone than women. This is why they look more muscular when they lift free weights. For women to look like this, however, they would have to workout more than the average woman. Cardio, also, helps you build muscle and loose fat.

Myth 5: No pain, no gain. This phrase has almost come cliche. It’s an exercise phrase that means you should push yourself to the push your limits of endurance. Yet, if you’re sore and feel like a dump truck of bricks fell on you the next day, you have to ask yourself if it’s worth it. Sure, we all want the perfect body—but it shouldn’t come to the cost that we can’t get out of bed. If you’re in this much serious muscle pain, you need to consult a doctor.

I hope this debunks a few myths for you. Myths seem to circulate so fast and then people believe them. But do your homework and always believe the facts instead. Don’t ever let a myth stop you from achieving the perfect body.

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