Fit Not Fad: Fitness Myths

Join Bianca in the premier episode of the Fit Not Fad podcast as she discusses - and corrects - common fitness myths that you may have heard.

Bianca Grover: Hello and thanks for tuning in - My name is Bianca Grover and this is the “Fit not Fad” podcast. I am an Exercise Physiologist and Personal Trainer and to me, health and fitness is a passion. 

I always enjoy learning new things about my field and I especially enjoy educating others. Which is the point of this podcast. 

Not everyone has a background in exercise, and that’s fine, but that makes it easy to believe false fitness information. And there is a lot of it out there.

So what better way to begin than to debunk some fitness myths?

In this episode I will go over 6 fitness myths I’ve heard and lay out some facts on what is really happening.

Here is a look into what we are covering today: Turn Fat Into Muscle, Spot Reduction, Quick Results, Workout Frequency, I Don’t Want to Get Big and Stretching.

To begin we are going to talk about turning fat into muscle.

TURN FAT INTO MUSCLE

This is probably the silliest thing on the list but I’ve heard so many people talk about turning fat into muscle through exercise. What’s sad is that I’ve even heard some personal trainers tell their clients that they can turn their fat into muscle if they lift heavy and frequently.

You can not turn fat into muscle. Why? They are 2 completely separate types of tissues in the body with different roles and uses. Both necessary, let me add that.

Our muscles are responsible for getting us to move, they produce body heat and provide protection to our internal organs. Just in case we get injured we are in a car crash, there’s more layers to go through to get to our organs. 

Based on the type of muscle, they even control breathing, digestion, urination, vision, even our heartbeats are controlled by a muscle, the heart. They’re pretty busy little things.

On the other hand, fat, or adipose tissue…not so busy but just as necessary to the body. Despite what some people might say. 

Fat provides insulation to the body, cushion and stores energy to be used by body organs.

Regular exercise and a change in diet can lead to decreasing the size of your fat cells. Your fat cells are like little storage containers.

When we lose weight, we basically shrink them and the lipids get released into the bloodstream to be further broken down, which leads us into the next myth.

SPOT REDUCTION

Unfortunately spot reduction does not work. What is spot reduction? 

Well, let’s say you want to lose some of the extra weight you carry on your arms. You start doing bicep curls and triceps extensions like a crazy person. You wave your hands and flap your arms but you just can’t not seem to shave off that extra fat. It’s because spot reduction is not a thing. 

We can not command our bodies where to lose the extra weight from. If that were the case, things would be very different for all of us.

Here is another thing, but you probably already know this: you can not dictate where your body carries the extra weight either. It is genetic and hereditary, and based on where that weight goes… you might be at a higher risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

Just look at your family history. Do you have anybody in your family who has cardiovascular disease?  Does your mom carry her weight around her hips, around her stomach? These are some interesting things to look at and we probably will in a different episode.  

Is there anything you can do to lose weight or prevent weight gain then, if spot reduction doesn't work?  You already know this one too. You must exercise regularly and have a healthy diet. 

Make sure you don’t just hit the same muscle groups over and over again, try and engage multiple muscle groups within one exercise. For example you can do a squat with an overhead press, you can do a reverse lunge with some rows. Just get creative

Hydrate yourself, control your sodium intake and watch your sugars. 

Also, remember that results, especially when it comes to weight loss and muscle building do not happen overnight. And that is actually what we’re going to talk about next.

QUICK RESULTS

There is so much we could talk about on this topic…but generally quick results are not a thing. Of course success depends on many factors.

For example, is the goal even attainable? What is the timeline we’re looking at? What are the goals? How do you measure “success”? 

Every new year comes with New Year’s resolutions but not many of them make it. In fact about 80% of them don’t even make it past the first 2 weeks. That’s crazy.

It’s because some of these goals are not realistic; people want quick results, a quick change...but not much work goes into it. 

Health and fitness changes take a little bit of time and work and a whole lot of dedication because they are absolutely worth it.

Don’t expect to get significantly stronger after 2 weeks of lifting or expect your VO2 max to move from average to excellent after 1 month of training. 

Our bodies are amazing and complex but  they need time, practice and resources to make that magic happen. 

The 3 best things you can do for yourself and your goals are to be realistic, consistent and dedicated. You define your “why”. You decide how important it is to lose those 10 extra lbs.

WORKOUT FREQUENCY

Speaking of consistency in training, I realized that many people have this misconception about working out, and you’ve probably heard it too. 

“Working out once a week is enough to lose weight and build muscle as long as it’s very intense.”  No, that is not how it works. 

The American College of Sports Medicine or ACSM  and the CDC recommend sll healthy adults aged 18–65 yr should participate in moderate intensity aerobic physical activity for a minimum of 30 min on five days per week, or vigorous intensity aerobic activity for a minimum of 20 min on three days per week. 

Every  adult  should  perform  activities  that  maintain  or  increase  muscular  strength and endurance for a minimum of two days per week. A good way to follow the guidelines is to shoot for 150 minutes of moderate to vigorous cardio a week and at least two days out of the week for resistance training and that should target all major muscle groups. 

And no worries, doing a full body workout twice a week will not get you “ripped”, like some believe about the next myth.

GETTING “BIG”

Some people believe that casually lifting weights will make you bulky and noticeably bigger. I am embarrassed to admit that I used to believe this myth too when I was in high school.

 I ran track in high school and naturally, our coach also had us weight lift twice a week, for obvious reasons. I say obvious now because I understand how important it is to incorporate resistance training into our lives, especially as athletes. 

But back then, I was just a girl who did not want to have massive arms. I know it sounds ridiculous and it is, but that’s why I think it’s important to educate young athletes and non-athletes that lifting is actually recommended, but you won’t turn into the Hulk overnight. 

Not everyone is a body builder and bodybuilding is not exactly a walk in the park. Body builders lift more often than twice a week, kids. 

You know what else bodybuilders do? They stretch. Stretching is useful and not a waste of time. Yes, this brings us to our sixth and final fitness myth.

STRETCHING

It saddens me to see how many people skip stretching at the gym before and after they workout.

Some deem stretching as boring, long, a waste of time, pointless...but it’s quite the opposite. Stretching is very good for your muscles and you should never skip it. 

You should especially stretch if you lift heavy or you’re about to run long distances. Not only does it help get you warmed and ready to go, but it prevents injury through expanding your muscle fibers. 

Your flexibility increases when you stretch. Flexible muscles are healthy, strong muscles. Your muscles will be able to take on more weight without injury and you will be able to perform your exercises through the full range of motion, which is what you want out of a quality workout.

Not only that, but stretching and keeping your muscles flexible and strong will allow you to age gracefully and functionally. You’ll be less likely to be in a crazy amount of pain as you age. Maybe your grandparents are going through that right now.

It is so easy for misinformation to spread nowadays. I believe we need better health and fitness education programs in our communities, especially for middle-school and high-school aged kids. 

You know, start early, build a good base - so people understand growing up these are the things I should be looking for to stay healthy and fit.  

Exercise science is a relatively new field of study but it has amazing potential in disease and injury prevention. 

I hope you learned something new today and I’m excited for our next episode. We will cover the basics of starting an exercise program, setting goals, components of fitness and workout equipment. Stay tuned and if you liked this episode, share it with a friend or family member.