There's so much misinformation out there, I decided it might be helpful to clarify some fitness claims for you!
The below are all things that I've either heard or read at some point and I'm fairly sure you will have heard them too but here's the thing: none of them are actually true!
1. Lifting weights will make you big
This isn't quite right. As I mention in a previous blog, training for size is a very specific type of strength training and requires a significant amount of time, dedication and food! Adding workouts focused on lifting weights into your programme is a really great thing. The clue is in the name 'strength training': it creates strong muscles which results in more stable joints. It also helps slow down the ageing process which is pretty cool!
2. You can remove belly fat with specific exercises
This is categorically untrue as you can't spot reduce fat, you can lose it all over and then work to tone specific areas but you can't remove fat from one specific area of your body.
3. Lactic acid is what makes you ache the next day
How many times have you felt sore after a workout?! I bet it's quite a few!! It used to be said that this was where lactic acid has built up in your muscles. This isn't actually true. There is still much speculation as to what actually causes this ache (technically known as DOMS - Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) but no one really knows just yet. Lactic acid however, is a fatiguing by-product which occurs when you're working at certain intensities - it's the burn you feel in your muscles and makes you want to stop, more practice makes you more tolerant to it 🙂.
4. If you're thin you're healthy, if you have a larger body shape you're unhealthy
This is more about our perception, we are conditioned to view small body shapes as the healthiest and most desirable and larger as unhealthy. However you can have a larger shape but be extremely fit - I once had a colleague who was a size 16 but who ran marathons! Equally you can have people who are are very slim but are just as out of shape as anyone else who leads a sedentary life. Don't judge a book by it's cover.
A better measure would be to look at body composition, a healthy body fat percentage for a woman is 21 - 36% and 8 - 25% for men. Everyone has a different body type and shape, it's just about finding what health looks like for you.
5. You have to be starving to lose weight
While in order to lose weight you have to be burning more calories than you're consuming, that does not mean that you have to be hungry! Have a go at removing about 10% of calories from the food you consume - trying to make smart and nutritious choices, then make up the rest of the deficit with exercise! Just get moving and be as active as you can, even making small changes like taking the stairs instead of the lift make a big difference.
I hope that these have helped? As always, if you have any questions or would like some advice just hit me up with a message and I'll come back to you as soon as I can.
Happy exercising!
C xx
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