Debunking Fitness Myths
Over the years lots of fitness ideas, trends and methodologies have been bantered about. For the serious minded, myths about fitness need to be brought to mind in order to stay the course, and get the most from the time and energy invested. Let’s dispel some.
Training Every Day Gets Better Results.
Well, not typically. Your body needs rest in order to recover and adapt to what you are asking of it. Rest is often times more important in the training cycle, as is the training itself. The older we get the more recovery time we need in order to bounce back from bouts of exercise. Over training can lead to injury, mental and emotional burnout, and retrenchment in results. Training everyday is not needed for most of us, as most of us, aren’t elite athletes being paid for performance. The pay off for us regular folks is long life, good health, preventing injury, and maximizing results through qualitative and quantitative rest built in to our weekly exercise, AND keeping fitness fresh and fun.
Crunches Give Me a Six Pack.
It will help, yes, but the keys to six-pack abs are clean eating, cardio consistency, strength training frequency, and varying the angles of attack on your abdominal cavity. Crunches generally only target upper to mid abs. The lower abs; belly button south, require the use of your legs with spinal flexion to target those areas. The abdominal tie in to your obliques, and the movements to target them, are essential in developing all of the muscle structures, but all is for naught if the clean eats fly out the window due to the social interactions, dining out, and over indulgement. 70 percent of the attack plan should be built around what you are consuming in terms of food quality, timing of meals, and calories. The other 30 percent is the work ethic and angles of abdominal attack in training.
Supplements are the Fast Fix.
I am a fan of supplements, but it has to be taken in as a part of an entire program and kept in perspective. There is no a “magic pill” for what you are trying to accomplish. The supplement industry is not regulated by the FDA. Hence, manufacturers use marketing claims to get you to invest in the product. But, what is the product actually made of, and what is it actually doing to your body long term? What is in the “proprietary blend” on the label, and why won’t they tell you what it is? Perhaps you can remember Fen Phen? It was the supposed weight loss magic pill that was later revealed to cause heart valve defect/failures, and it was FDA regulated. Muscle growth or weight loss claims are just that, claims of marketers attacking us at our need…for speed. Slow down, go at it consistently, use well researched, widely and long term available supplements wisely, and you’ll get there. Fitness is a journey, not a destination.
Long Distance Slow Pace Cardio Is Best.
For my dogs on long walks, yes, that IS true, for THEM. However, slow pace cardio for you or me does little to force our cardiovascular system in to an adaptation mode. Sure I enjoy the slow stroll, site seeing, aren’t my little Chihuahuas so cute mode, but to get results on a walk, I need to be walking as if I am late to THE most important meeting I have ever been to, and my little pups can not contend with that pace. The key to your cardio is variations in timing, intensity changes, frequency and duration. If you are on a weight loss or “lean out” goal plan, long distances slow, should not be in your play book. Nice to have? Yes. Need to have? No.
I Can Get Fit with Surgery.
Don’t even get me started. The last thing you want is someone cutting you open to install a zip tie on your stomach, staple it in half, or cut away the fat then stitch your stomach back together. Like most drugs, surgery comes with side effects and often the side effects of these modalities are often worse than the issue causing the use thereof. It will not make you fit or make you more fit. Your heart, lungs and muscle are still in the same condition they were pre surgery. What makes us fit is movement and nutrition. Additionally, we know several whom have gone down the surgical route only to regain the weight lost by the procedure. The long term fix is move more; eat less, portion size, frequency of meals, and quality of food choices, along with a directed and inspected fitness and cardio program. There is an incredible self actualization and empowerment that realized fitness goals do for you mentally, as well as physically. Do the work; get the BIG payoff.
Category: Life Style
