Fitness Facts & Fabrications

This fitness flirt has had to face the facts.

I have had a few major misconceptions about fitness.

I guess it's difficult for me to admit because I'm a nurse. If anyone should be an authority on health and wellness it should be me. I preach to my patients on the importance of diet, nutrition, and exercise every single day, I administer nursing care in order to improve their well being and encourage them to adopt healthy, active lifestyles. So I should know what I'm talking about right?

Well with my wealth of knowledge on the human body, health, and nutrition I thought I knew almost everything there was to know about fitness. But I was wrong.

And I'm discovering that I still have a lot to learn. So I wanted to share some of the fitness facts and fabrications I have come across so far. I hope the lessons I have learned help some of you in your journey from flab to fit :)

1.    "Running is the best way to get in shape"

I used to get on the treadmill, run for an hour and call it a good day at the gym. Although I did notice a few subtle changes in my figure, loss of body fat, some increased muscle tone in my legs, and improved endurance, I never felt like the effort I was expending doing cardio was equal to the results I saw in the mirror.

And that's because you can run your booty off all day long, do your zumba dances, ride your spinning bike until you're dripping sweat but you won't end up looking like a cover model on Shape magazine by simply doing cardio alone.

During a cardio session you burn calories while you're exercising but afterward your body returns to it's normal metabolic rate. But during weight bearing exercise you build muscle and muscles use calories for fuel. So for every pound of muscle you build, you burn more calories. And your muscles continue that calorie burn throughout the day even after you leave the gym and you're at home doing something inactive. Weight bearing exercise makes you more metabolic, for every pound of muscle you build you burn about 60 extra calories per day. Although cardio is still important to improve cardiovascular health and increase endurance, to really get fit, tight, and toned you have to engage in pumping some iron.


2.    "Lifting weights will make me bulky"

I'm a girly, girly girl. I love the color pink and ruffles and sparkly things. And I want my body to look girly and feminine too. Like sexy and soft with curves in all the right places. So I was always kinda afraid if I seriously started lifting weights in the gym I would end up looking like Arnold Schwarzenegger's scary man sister or something.

The truth is it's pretty much impossible for a woman to gain huge amounts of muscle mass. We just do not naturally produce the amount of testosterone (the hormone responsible for increasing muscle size) required to build enormous muscles. Those big, bulky body building he-shes you see on TV are most likely either using steriods or spending many excessive hours of heavy lifting and chugging protein shakes in order to gain that gargantuan amount of muscle. You have to do deliberately want to look that way and it requires a lot of effort.

So don't worry, you won't end up looking all bulky and masculine by lifting weights. You won't begin to grow side burns or anything freaky. Strength training will only get you the slimmer, toned, tight physique you seek :)


3.     "I exercise to eat dessert"

I used to live with the belief that if I enough spent time in the gym I could reward myself by eating whatever I wanted. I have a fast metabolism so for a long time this worked out well. But even after hitting the cardio hard I still held stubborn excess fat in the abdominal area. I became frustrated and began doing a million crunches everyday trying to get that perfect bikini body I wanted. But this had little effect on my stomach poochiness.

The saying "you are what you eat" is true. If you eat fat, you're gonna be fat.  And fitness experts say nutrition accounts for approximately 60% of your results in sculpting your physique! If you've been hitting the gym and are unsatisfied with your outcome I would suggest taking a look at what's lurking in your kitchen cabinets. I'm guessing the culprits are the sweet, salty, sugary unhealthy snacks you have available. It helps to shift your focus from food as fun to food as fuel. Think about the fuel you are filling up on and what effect that is having on your body's engine. And start filling up with high octane foods like lean protein, whole wheats, fruits, and veggies. Making these changes in your diet will have a dramatic effect on your fitness!


4. "I'd rather use exercise machines than free weights"

As an inexperienced fitness flirt I was drawn to the exercise machines at the gym. They seemed safer, easier to use and I thought they would help me maintain proper form since I wasn't working with a trainer and didn't have a clue what I was doing. But the truth is you still have to know the right technique for each move, the correct way to operate the machine, and how to properly adjust each one to your personal height and weight. It is possible to perform even the simplest exercise wrong. And without proper form you aren't receiving any benefits or building muscle from the moves you do.

(example: bicep curls. probably the most elementary move known to man. You pick the weight up, you put it down. But one day in the gym my loving husband informed me I was doing this simple exercise wrong! Using a heavier weight than usual, I was minding my own business doing my curls when my husband who had been watching informed me I was using more of my back than my biceps to complete the reps. So pay attention to your form! It's better to complete fewer reps with the correct form than multiple reps without it)