Brown Bag Lunch and Learn Lecture Series Debunking Fitness Myths for Women

Myths to Debunk No pain. No gain. If you can’t exercise, you might as well do nothing. Your metabolism slows down once you hit 30 no matter what. Strength training will bulk women up. Strength training is only for the young. Some exercises are good for “toning” your muscles and some are good for “building mass.” The more crunches you do, the more abdominal fat you will burn.

Myths to Debunk Excessive sweating while exercising means you are not fit. If you stop exercising, your muscles will turn to fat. The best time to exercise is very early in the morning. Warming up before working out isn’t necessary if you’re careful. Keep your workouts in the “weight loss zone” on the cardio equipment if that is your goal. Drinking water while you are exercising will give you cramps. There is a quick fix out there somewhere!

Myth: No Pain! No Gain! False. You should only be sore the first few days after beginning a program. Feeling sore constantly means your muscles/body are not recovering. A sensible exercise program may be uncomfortable but should not be painful. DOMS – Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness

Myth: If you can’t work out often enough and long enough, you might as well not do it at all. False. Any exercise is better than no exercise. All activity counts – take the stairs, walking fast through a big parking lot, yard work, etc. ACSM & CDC recommend accumulating a minimum of 30 minutes of moderate physical activity on most, preferably all days of the week.

Myth: Your metabolism slows down after age 30, no matter what. False. Hundreds of research studies have shown that the slow down of metabolism is due to a loss of muscle tissue. The loss in muscle tissue is due to a lack of physical activity. How…?

Metabolism As we age… Muscle fibers shrink in number & size = decreased metabolism Muscle fibers become less responsive = decreased strength, balance & coordination

Metabolism Aging = ↓ muscle = ↓ metabolism (BMR) A reduction in BMR means that our bodies are less able to use the food we consume as energy. One study found that the average woman who strength trains 2-3 times per week for 2 months will gain nearly 2 lbs. of muscle and will lose 3.5 lbs. of fat.

Metabolism ↑ lean muscle mass & BMR. Muscles use calories at a faster rate than fat. The more muscle you have, the more calories you burn!

Myth: Strength Training will Bulk You Up. False. Some women have a greater capacity to build muscle than other women, but the body builder image is not easy to achieve and not done naturally. Women do not have the genetic potential for big muscles or enough testosterone for muscle growth.

Myth: Strength Training will Bulk You Up. Specificity of Training Program –Muscular Endurance strengthens and tones muscles –Perform 12+ repetitions –Do not be afraid to challenge your muscles

Myth: Strength Training is Only for the Young. False. Truth = It is never too late for anyone to improve their muscular fitness. Women & men in their 70s & 80s have built significant strength through strength training.

Myth: Some exercises are good for ‘toning’ muscles and some are good for building mass. False. Physiologically, there is no difference between toning and strengthening a muscle. As muscle strength improves, muscle tone improves due to a greater density of muscle fibers. The training program influences toning vs. building mass (# of repetitions/intensity)

Myth: Some exercises are good for ‘toning’ muscles and some are good for building mass. To achieve the sculpted look, you must develop your muscles while simultaneously reducing the amount of fat under the skin (on top of the muscles). As fat diminishes, the muscles can be seen under the skin.

Myth: The more crunches you do, the more abdominal fat you will lose. False. “Spot reduction” is not possible. The only way to flatten a stomach is to reduce the amount of fat with a proper diet, cardiovascular exercise, & strength training program. Abdominal exercises are still important –Core strength & stability –Total body strength, leading to higher metabolism, etc.)

Myth: Excessive sweating while exercising means you are not fit. Not necessarily. If you are fit, the more you will sweat. Sweating is the body’s way of cooling itself. Sweating mechanism improves as you become more fit. Fit people lose less salt because more of it is reabsorbed by the body’s cells as it travels from the sweat glands to the skin’s surface. There is a genetic component involved.

Myth: If you stop exercising, your muscles will turn to fat. False. Fat cannot turn into muscle & vice versa. Fat & muscle are two entirely different tissues. If a muscle is not used, it will shrink (atrophy). If you eat too many calories, you will increase your body fat.

Myth: The best time to exercise is early in the morning. False. There is no best time to exercise, it is a matter of what works best for you. No relationship exists between the time of day that you exercise and weight control. If you exercise at a particular intensity, you’ll “burn” the same number of calories regardless of when you exercise.

Myth: The best time to exercise is early in the morning. It may be more difficult to exercise after eating a meal because of the amount of blood involved in the digestive process diminishes the level of oxygen carrying blood servicing the active muscles. This depends on the make up and size of the meal, how hard the person will be exercising, and how soon the individual exercised after eating.

Myth: Warming up before exercising isn’t necessary if you are careful. False. Gently stretching and warming up your muscles before and cooling down after you exercise is the number one defense against a variety of painful injuries. Warm up and cool down should be an essential part of all exercise programs.

Warming Up and Cooling Down The purpose is to prepare the body, especially the cardiovascular and musculoskeletal systems, for the conditioning phase of the exercise session. The purpose of the cool down is to assure that adequate blood is returned to the heart.

Why is warming up so important? Enhances the delivery of oxygen to the muscles. Increases body temperature. Increases blood flow to the exercising muscles. Increases blood flow to the heart. Causes an early onset of sweating. Enhances the speed of transmission of nerve impulses. Prepares the cardiovascular system for the upcoming (more strenuous) physical activity.

Myth: Keep your workouts in the “weight loss zone” if that is your goal. False. The argument behind this myth is that low intensity aerobic training will allow your body to use more fat as an energy source, thereby accelerating the loss of body fat. It is true that a higher proportion of calories burned during low-intensity exercise come from fat, high-intensity exercise still burns more calories from fat in the final analysis.

Example of LOW intensity vs. HIGH intensity fat burning 30 minutes of low intensity (50% of maximal exercise capacity) = approximately 200 calories & 60% of those calories come from fat = 120 calories from fat 30 minutes of high intensity (75% of maximal exercise capacity) = approximately 400 calories & 35% of those calories come from fat = 140 calories from fat

Myth: Keep your workouts in the “weight loss zone” if that is your goal. You’ll burn more total calories the higher your intensity. Wise to stay in the “weight loss zone” when beginning a program or if you are overweight. There is NO fat burning zone.

Myth: Drinking water while exercising will give you cramps. False Drinking water will not bloat your body or hamper your performance. Water will help your workout. Losing an excess during workouts can result in exhaustion, muscle cramps and loss of coordination— leading to injury.

Water To prevent dehydration: –Drink 8 ounces before you begin your workout –Drink during your workout (8 ounces every 15 minutes) –Drink 8 ounces once you’ve completed your workout –If you wait until you are thirsty, you’ve waited too long.

Myth: There is a quick fix out there. FALSE! A well-balanced diet coupled with regular exercise is still the safest and most effective way to achieve weight loss or performance goals. “The results you achieve will be in direct proportion to the effort you apply.” -Denis Waitley

References American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) American Council on Exercise (ACE) Centers for Disease Control (CDC)