Diet and Fitness Myths and Facts

FITNESS MYTHS AND FACTS

There are plenty of Myths our there about Diet and Exercise.  

Diet Myths and Facts

Myth:Most people believe primarily in diet (restriction of food) and exercise plans to control weight, including most doctors and health professionals.
Fact:Weigh is complex. 40 to 60% is genetically determined. The remainder is influenced by our culture, lifestyle and environment.

Myth:Most adults believe a person’s weight is dependent on willpower. If the diet fails they blame themselves.
Fact:It is the diet that failed, not the person. It is food restriction that fails, because it is unnatural and unhealthy to restrict the type of food eaten. The secret is in appetite awareness.


Myth:Dieting brings the promise of being happy and successful
Fact:Dieting leads to body dissatisfaction which is linked to poor mental health. Dieting leads to more dieting – but each time it gets harder and you feel worse about yourself

Myth:Most women like to talk about the latest ‘diet success’ story in women’s magazines.
Fact:The chances of a young, active, healthy Australian women being physically like a mannequin is 1%, and she has no chance of being like Barbie.

Myth:All fat is bad.
Fact:Our bodies need fat for vital functioning. The key is to replace unhealthy fats in your diet with healthy fats such as olive oil.

Myth:
Eating late at night, after exercise, results in weight gain.
Fact:Eating in addition to your regular meals (and in excess of calories needed) will result in weight gain. Your body does not care what time it is, just if it needs fuel.


Exercise Myths and Facts

Myth:
Strength training will make women too muscular.
Fact:Women do not have enough testosterone to create big bulky muscles. In fact they naturally have less bone and muscle than men, which explains why females are at greater risk of developing osteoporosis than males. The fact is women SHOULD undertake strength training to decrease the risk of osteoporosis.

Myth:Light weight on your arms and legs can boost your exercise benefit.
Fact:These sorts of weights are not heavy enough to give you the benefit of strength training, slow you down and can alter your natural gait which in itself causes problems.

 Myth:Certain exercises will rid of trouble spots
Fact:You must lose the excess fat covering the muscles in order to discard that ‘flabby’ appearance. When you exercise, the areas where you will lose body fat is determined by your genes.


Myth:If you don’t lose weight there is no point exercising.
Fact:It is not uncommon for people to give up on their exercise routine if they don’t see immediate results. What we need to remember is that exercise gives us benefits that we cannot see as well as those we can. Exercising reduces the risk of diabetes and heart disease, we reduce our triglyceride and raise our HDL (good) cholesterol, and the psychological benefits have been proven to include both depression and anxiety relief.


Myth:You can’t be fit and fat
Fact:Overweight and obese individuals do not have elevated mortality rates. It is only if they are sedentary and non active. It has been shown that fitness is as good a predictor of dying as other risk factors, like high cholesterol, blood pressure and diabetes. Fitness is such an important predictor of mortality that it is an essential  part of a person’s general health risk’s and medical check up’s.


Myth:No pain, no gain.
Fact:Many people believe that you have to work at a very high intensity for six or seven days a week to get the benefits of exercise. In fact you need to train according to your goals. Any amount of activity on a regular basis is beneficial.


Myth:If you stop working out your muscle turns to fat.
Fact:Impossible! Muscle and fat are two distinct tissues that cannot be converted from one to the other. If you stop exercising your muscles will atrophy (shrink) which will create the ‘flabby’ appearance. Also, when your muscles are smaller you do not need as many calories and your metabolism slows down, so if you do not alter your energy intake to compensate for the lack of activity you will gain weight.


Myth:If you didn’t exercise when you were younger, it’s too late.
Fact:Studies have shown you are never too old to reap the benefits of exercise.


Myth:If you can’t exercise regularly, don’t bother.
Fact:The benefits of exercise start after your first workout or first brisk walk. 10 minutes of activity done regularly will assist with your health and fitness.


Myth:The more you sweat the more fat you lose.
Fact:If you exercise in high humidity and or temperature you will sweat profusely, but the weight loss will however be fluid and not fat loss