#exercisemisconceptions

So you want to get fit, are eager to get started, but everyone is telling you different things and you don’t know what is fact or fiction. This article will go through 9 common misconceptions surrounding exercise and give you the lowdown. So lets get stuck in 

1. If you’re not sweating you are not working hard enough - how many times have you heard this? Sweating has nothing to do with how hard you are working, it is your body’s way of cooling off and not an indicator of exertion. 

2. Eating huge amounts of protein will build muscle and help reduce fat - it will lead you to gain a lot of weight instead. 

3. Doing crunches or working out on ab machines will get rid of belly fat - it will strengthen the muscles around your midsection and improve your posture, however, being able to see your abs is based on body fat percentage and you can’t choose where you are going to lose weight. 

4. Swimming is a great weight loss activity - swimming is great for increasing lung capacity, toning muscles, you’d have to swim for hours a day to lose weight, because of the waters buoyancy and its effect on your body. 

5. Yoga can help with all sorts of back pain - it can help with muscle related back pain, but if the problems are related to something else (ruptured disc) it wont help. 

6. Running on a treadmill puts less stress on your knees than concrete - as its the force of your body weight on your joints its the same whether you are on the treadmill or on the pavement. Mix up your cardio workouts to lessen the stress on your knees. 

7. An aerobic workout will boost your metabolism for hours after your workout, while this is true, its not as much as you think, and while strength training burns a little more, the benefits are still marginal. 

8. Weight lifting will make women bulky - it won’t!! Women simply do not produce enough testosterone for this to happen! Weight lifting will help reduce inches, body fat and weight. It will also help reduce the risk of osteoporosis by strengthening bones. 

9. No pain no gain - you do not need to kill yourself when you workout! Moderate intensity workouts reduce the risk of death from several diseases by the same amount as high intensity exercise.