8 Exercise Myths Busted

Below are some old, but stubborn exercise myths. Bust them for yourself, then share them with a friend.

Myth 1: I can target my fat loss.

Fact: Cardio exercise burns fat, and it burns fat all over. You may not initially lose fat from the places you want to, but you will experience fat loss if you do cardio exercise combined with eating fewer calories than you burn off. You can not will yourself to lose fat from a particular body part. Nor can you exercise one body part and experience fat loss from only that part. Runners do not have defined, slim legs with large, flabby arms just because they run on their legs. They burn fat from all over as they run. Their leg muscles develop, but the fat burning is all over. Strength training can enhance the appearance of specific muscles and lets you continue to burn calories after you are done lifting, but it does not reduce the fat lying over those muscles.

Myth 2: I can do crunches to spot reduce my belly fat.

Fact: Doing crunches firms abdominal muscles, but does not reduce the layer of fat over them. You can have wonderful abdominal muscles hidden by a layer of belly fat. Cardio will reduce the fat so you can see your muscles firmed by crunches. The same principal is true for inner thigh exercises; they tone the muscles but do not reduce just that inner thigh fat deposit.

Myth 3: I am on my feet all day so I really don't need to exercise.

Fact: Rarely do our jobs provide balanced, sustained exercise. As a hospital nurse I was often on my feet for 12 hours straight, but I never broke a sweat and never got my heart rate up. I was usually standing, or moving around, but definitely not exercising; I was not working my muscles, heart, and lungs. Being busy is not the same as exercising. Shopping is another activity that counts as being on your feet but not as exercise. Even construction workers need to think about rounding out their exercise. They may do a lot of heavy lifting and carrying, but they may not be working all muscle groups equally, or doing sustained cardio. They may use their quadriceps and biceps a lot, but still need to focus on their hamstrings, triceps, back muscles, and cardio outside of work. (Granted they might need to do less than people who live at a desk.)

Myth 4: The longer I work out the more calories I burn.

Fact: Not necessarily. A long stroll may not burn many calories. Current research shows that you can burn more calories by adding bursts of higher intensity exercise. So instead of walking at a moderate pace for a longer time, try bumping up your intensity for a minute several times throughout your walk. You can walk less time overall with a greater calorie burn just by adding in bursts of intense walking. Intensity bursts can be used with any form of cardio.

Myth 5: If I don't break a sweat I haven't done anything worthwhile.

Fact: People sweat at different points during their activity; some people sweat easily and some people do not. There are exercises where you can work your muscles and not sweat. Sometimes you can do pilates, stretching, yoga, balance work, slow walking without sweating. (The slow walking here might be to lower your triglycerides, or move arthritic joints.)

Myth 6: If I can't exercise for at least an hour I'm not getting any benefits.

Fact: You might not be building your endurance by exercising in small chunks but you can reap heart health and calorie burning benefits by exercising for 10 minutes 3 times a day. You can burn a significant number of calories and build muscle in 10 minute segments (think jump roping, boxing, climbing stairs, and boot camp). You can definitely condition your muscles and add to your calorie expenditure in repeated small time chunks. Maybe not blocking off an hour for exercise is an excuse to do none!

Myth 7: There is no better exercise than running.

Running is a wonderful exercise for many reasons; you build endurance, it burns many calories, it builds bone strength, it is portable... But running as your only form of cardio can set you up for overuse injuries by repeatedly taxing the same leg muscles in the same manner. It also does nothing for building strength in the upper body. Consider cross training; run some days and do a different sport for cardio on alternate days. Swimming or rowing are good pairings for running as they use a completely different set of muscles. Remember to do strength training and stretching with your running.

Myth 8: Lifting weights will make women bulky.

Fact: Lifting weights does not make women bulky. Women do not have enough testosterone to bulk up and even men have to work at gaining bulk. Doing strength training can build strength and muscle mass without bulk. Muscle takes up less space than fat, looks better, and is more metabolically active (burns more calories just to maintain it). Strength training can give you a sleek, toned look without bulk.

Laura Crooks is an RN, speaker, and certified wellness coach who helps busy women create solutions so they can decrease their stress, make time to exercise, and create a pleasant balance between their professional-personal-family time. Through You Bloom Wellness she offers both group and individual coaching, presentations, classes, and wellness programs. For more information and to subscribe to a free e-zine, Ideas for Healthy Living, please visit youbloomwellness.com youbloomwellness.com.