5 Fitness Myths You Need to Forget

It's your so-called facts that are the myths. Exercise absolutely does increase your appetite. Think of a gas tank using up fuel. The more you burn, the more you need. Also, a calorie, is a calorie, is a calorie - 1200 calories of boneless chicken breasts will take you no farther and no faster than 1200 calories of chocolate. Re: exercise being a better choice than dieting for weight management again - wrong, wrong, WRONG! Keep your calories down and your weight will follow. On the other hand, unless you are in training for the iron man competition - you can put those Big Mac fantasies to rest. Nice try.

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HELLO, WE LEARNED ABOUT 1, 3, 4, 5 WHEN WE WERE IN SCHOOL!!!

EXERCISING DOESN'T MAKE YOU HUNGRY? WELL, YOU PROBABLY AREN'T DOING IT RIGHT!!!!

Man, who writes this sh!t?

Eryn_Lindsay:
YOU are wrong. Just because you find something is different for you doesn't mean it is like that for everyone else. You are an anecdotal case, not the average.

demanding:
A reasonable amount of carbohydrates is normal for the human diet. Starving yourself of normal body fuel WILL deplete energy. Some people overcome the lack of energy with pure will power, but most people will exercise less when they avoid carbohydrates. Most people loose weight on the Atkins diet for the first month (primarily from water loss), and then gain it back -- often their weight at the start of the diet.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atkins_diet#Controversies

Eyrn i have to disagree with your second statement. yes you can eat what you want along with exercise and still lose weight if you follow the calories in vs. calories out but that only works to a certain point. ive lost over 135 pounds in the last 2 years and for the first 100 i did just what you said but then i started plateauing and i realized i needed to start looking at other things like salt and fat intake, carbs vs. protein and all that stuff. after buckling down and watching everything i eat i started losing again, even without exercising quite as much. i am also able to maintain my weight much better when i dont workout because the foods i eat are healthy whereas if i still ate badly (even keeping my calories in line with what i should have for a day) and didnt workout, i would quickly start putting weight back on.

Protein can and will help the developement of your body for sure. But good old fashion fitness and eating the right foods will do wonders. In my opinion if you want to gain the fitness level you desire, fitness is about 30% and what you eat is about 70%. If you can simply cut out sugar from your diet you will lose weight by the pounds.
A great fitness program is Crossfit. Check out Crossfit.com!!!!

dudeman:
Why are you comparing humans to internal combustion engines? There is nothing in common. Breaking a sweat means your perspiration has begun to build up on the skin surface faster than it will evaporate. It has nothing to do with loosing weight -- except loosing water. Here in Shanghai, I break a sweat by walking to the Metro station three minutes from my front door. It's the heat and humidity, not the level of exertion that makes me wringing wet.

This is one of the worst, most misinformed articles I have ever read on here. This is so false I felt I had to comment. Running burns more calories than walking period. I do P90X, trust me you are more hungry, and if you don't eat more your stomach will twist into very painful knots about every 3 hours. You can lose weight from diet alone, but most people don't stick to a healthy long term diet, which is why they don't lose weight. Cut out soda all together and you'll lose weight. There is a best time to exercise, and it's 5-6 pm. That is when your body temp is usually the highest during the day, and thus more conducive to exercise and fat burning. You should really do some better research before you write this kind of article.

I am so hungry after an hour of swimming, more so than running, I am still hungry. You need 5-6 micro meals, instead of the 3 basic square meals.
The only time I have suggested walking instead of running is to someone who is out of shape. Walking is good for someone who hasn't run since the sixth grade. If they want to run, I tell to get to 1/4 mile track, run or jog a half lap, and then walk a mile. And gradually every other day build up the distance.

i am a personal trainer and #2 is wrong. During cardio your body processes glycogen better and requires you to replace it to replenish your glycogen stores in your body. Glycogen are carbs broken down by a process called glycolysis. Therefor your body tells you to replenish with carbs. If you are doing resistance train you need to take in protien. CHECK YOUR SOURCES BEFORE YOU POST AN ARTICLE!!!

The reason running is more effective at weight loss is that it raises the resting metabolic rate, which walking does not do. Even if the same number of cals are burned during the workout (ie same distance), more cals are burned after running while at rest. Interval cardio training and weight lifting raises the RMR even more as they put a strain on the CNS. These have the ancilliary benefit of GH release as well, which slow go cardio doesn't do. This is one reason why you see folks year after year plodding away on a treadmill slowly and they never really change.

Yes, it does matter what cals you eat, it's not as simple as cals in v. cals out. The kinds of foods consumed have a direct effect on the endocrine system so the author is correct about that. As he mentions, highly process carbs will have a much greater effect on insulin than, say, lean protein or even fats. Cals do matter, sure, but the kinds of cals will also have an effect. Additionally, the body needs a balance of macros in order to create energy and spare muscle tissue - the first inclination of the body is to store energy as fat, which is a survival mechanism (which is why starvation diets don't work). Anyone who says that it's simple cals in v. cals out and you can eat anything you want either has a fast metabolism (ectomorph) or has never been lean in their life.

I see a LOT of ignorance being spread around just by reading the comments here. People really need to get educated on fitness and nutrition before spouting inane opinions.

I wish the author cited their sources. Many of these "facts" are false.

i damned near pissed myself when i read this article. the first 2 are complete bull. the last 3 accurate. coming from somebody who has completed a # of marathons and Duathlons, running will cause u to lose more weight than running, and you will eat like a horse when running hard, which is alright as long as you r running, what u eat is what matters, anybody who says walking twice as far as running is lying!

yep,this author needs to be schooled.

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Well, this article illustrates the downside of the Internet. Great resource for information, but not all information posted in the vast information wasteland of the Internet is entirely accurate, put in the proper context, or explained as thoroughly as it should be.

Having said that, as a Tactical Fitness Instructor and lifelong fitness enthusiast, I can say that this article is not necessarily incorrect, but it is definitely not well written and is overly simplistic in its explanations. It is obviously meant for those individuals that have very little knowledge of exercise and health, so I think it should have been written with a bit more clarity.

I'd say statements 3, 4 and 5 are OK as written. I do think it is a sad testament to our nation's nutritional knowledge that number 3 has to even be addressed. How could anyone believe that calories from a "Twinkie" could ever compare to the same number of calories in a more nutritious food source:)? Of course the source of calories matters! Ooohhh, where do we go so wrong? DAMN YOU, MCDONALDS!

#2/Exercise Increases Hunger: Again, a very simplistic explanation of this topic is given. If you increase your quality and quantity of exercise, your body will indeed need to be fueled by QUALITY nutrition. If you try to appease your body with junk, then your body will probably still crave the quality nutrients it needs. Bottom line: Exercise makes your body hungry for QUALITY nutrition to refuel itself.

Now for my personal pet peeve (See statement #1): WALKING IS NOT AS EFFECTIVE AS RUNNING: TRUE!!! The article states, ".. if a runner and a walker cover the same distance, they burn about the same number of calories." And, even worse, "So if you're willing to take the 'slow route,' you'll likely lose just as much weight." ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! This overly simplistic statement only considers the issue of caloric burn. Health and fitness is more than burning calories. If you want to be fit and healthy, you need to work! No pain, no gain! Our countries obsession with doing less and trying to get more gain is HORRIBLE! Throw away the "Infomercial" gadgets and talk to a real fitness trainer. It isn't rocket science. Move your body. ALL current fitness and exercise studies confirm that high intensity intervals or circuits produce greater results in our body's aerobic (heart/lung) and anaerobic (muscles) systems. Look up Tabata's research or refer to a quality exercise science source like the Cooper Institute. Quit wasting your time watching TV while chatting with your BFF on the treadmill for an hour! Sure, you are burning calories, but, essentially, nothing else. 15 minutes of interval training on a treadmill coupled with some basic bodyweight resistance circuits would get you out of the gym in 45 minutes and CHANGE YOUR BODY COMPLETELY. I PROMISE! And, if you are so concerned about caloric burn, know that people with more muscle burn calories at rest;)

'Nuff said. I gotta go burn off some frustration in the gym! :)

Yep, especially when you lift weights, your body does naturally cause you to crave more food, especially protein, to replenish your muscles you've broken down. I would like to see the research that says otherwise.

Kevin, good stuff there, you hit the nail on the head. Out of all the posts here I agree with pretty much everything you said. What I find distressing, albeit no surprising, is the low level of knowledge in the other posts. What gets me is that many folks THINK they know what's best and that they are healthy when they are not.

Two points to note: take a look at any given supermarket line at what most people choose to eat, or the line around any fast food joint's drive through; and, look at the statistics on how many people get regular exercise and how fewer still exercise at a level of intensity to make a difference.

It's easy to blame the establishment, just like anything else, and to a degree they have done a disservice to us by not offering common education (the health and fitness education in schools is pathetic, or nonexistent), but anyone who is serious about turning a new leaf will do it and find a way. Most people just don't want to change bad enough.

As a physiologist I'm sad to see misinformation so widely disseminated to a public that truly needs correct information on the topic of energy balance and weight loss. A mile walked is most certainly not equal to a mile jogged, and duration is not necessarily more important than intensity. When it comes to exercise, maximize energy expenditure (Calories) and you'll maximize your chance for weight loss. The author may wish to review a little physics.

All of the comments prove that all people lose and gain differently. You can't put people into specific groups and expect the same results. The medical community is finally learning about all of this -but they still have a long, long, long way to go.