If your New Year’s resolution was to get in shape, you might want to rethink your fitness routine. There’s a lot of misinformation out there that could keep you from meeting your goals and could actually derail some of the good you’re trying to do. These are some common workout myths and the truth behind them.
Myth: You only need to work out once or twice a week to stay in shape.
- Truth: That’s not enough for sustained health benefits. For real results, we should be exercising three to five times a week.
Myth: The best time to work out is first thing in the morning.
- Truth: The best time for a workout is whatever time you can stick to consistently.
Myth: Weight lifting turns fat into muscle.
- Truth: You can't turn fat into muscle, they’re two different tissues. Weight training does help build up the muscle in and around any fat tissue and the best way to reduce fat tissue is to eat a healthy diet.
Myth: Puzzles and games are great workouts for your brain.
- Truth: Research shows that regular old physical activity seems to be better for brain health than any mental puzzles out there. Studies show aerobic exercise - any activity that raises your heart rate and gets you moving and sweating for a period of time - is beneficial to the brain.
Myth: Exercise is the best way to lose weight.
- Truth: Being active is important, but experts say that it’s not so easy to “work off” what you eat and that slimming down starts with healthy eating habits.
Myth: Sit-ups are the best way to get 6-pack abs.
- Truth: Planks, which use several groups of muscles along your sides, front, and back, can get you six-pack definition and a strong core.
Myth: Weight training is for men.
- Truth: It’s just a great way to strengthen muscles and it has nothing to do with gender.
Myth: It takes at least two weeks to get 'out of shape.'
- Truth: For most of us, muscle tissue could start to break down after a week without regular exercise.
Myth: Running a marathon is the ideal way to get fit.
- Truth: You don’t ever have to pass the five-mile mark to get many of the benefits of long-distance running.
Source: Business Insider