Myths have always been associated with exercising and weight loss. These ‘half truths,’ get passed on from one person to another, changing our outlook towards losing weight and can sometimes even lead us to make wrong choices. Let us find out which of these myths have no weight attached to them!

You will find that you get tons of free advice when you embark upon a journey to lose weight. How much truth is attached to all these myths that make you think “Losing weight is so hard”? Experts believe that most if the myths associated to weight loss and exercising are baseless. We don’t waste you to waste your precious time in trying to find the truth behind these commonly believed myths, so we have some laid out for you to draw your own conclusions!

1.       Exercising On An Empty Stomach Makes You Burn Fat –

Weight loss is a continuous process, and it is not true that exercising in the morning on an empty stomach has any benefits over exercising in the evening. Also, to effectively burn calories, you need some calories to fuel your workout. These calories need to come from food; so exercising on an empty stomach is never recommended by experts. In fact, it not only has no benefits, but can also breakdown your muscle mass to fuel the workout. While it is also not recommended to exercise after a large meal, a protein filled snack that also constitutes slow digesting carbohydrates is a must before any workout.

2.       If You Stop Going To The Gym, Muscles Turn Into Fat –

This is one of the most atrocious myths out there! Muscle and fat are two very different tissues in the body and one cannot convert in to another! What ideally happens once you stop exercising is that your muscles shrink in size, because they are not built further by exercise. They don’t disappear anywhere! The reason you see more fat is because you have stopped exercising, and the extra calories in your body that are not expended are converting in to fat.

3.       The More You Exercise, The Better It Is –

More is not always better when it comes to exercising. If you want to lose weight, you need to have more intensity in your workouts, not longer durations. Exercising for prolonged durations can have negative effects on your body. Remember, you can build muscles only to a certain levels. After that, the body needs to rest and recuperate while the muscles are being repaired and recovered. Should your body not get adequate rest, your muscles will rupture under the excess stress.

4.       If You Are Not Sweating, You Are Not Burning Calories –

Sweating has nothing to do with burning calories. Sweating is a natural process through which a body maintains temperature and cools itself. Whether you sweat or not will depend on the kind of exercise you are doing, the intensity, the temperature of the room and even your clothing! So only because you aren’t sweating doesn’t mean you haven’t burned calories.

5.       It’s Inevitable To Gain Weight As We Become Older –

There is an iota of truth attached to that, because as we age we naturally lose muscle mass. But that is no excuse to gain weight. The efficiency of your metabolism is not just governed by your age, but also by the amount of muscle you have on your body. So if you don’t want to gain weight as you age, it can be stopped! Simply try and do some basic strength training exercises that keep muscle mass from breaking down and follow a strict diet and exercise regimen to avoid gaining the weight with age.

6.       XYZ Is The Best Exercise To Lose Weight –

There is no best exercise to lose weight. Some exercises are definitely more effective than others, but these have no real benefits for average gym-goers or exercisers. No matter what form if exercise you choose, you will eventually lose weigh if you stay consistent and enjoy the workouts.

7.       Eat A Spoonful Of Sugar Before Workout –

Eating sugar will rapidly increase your blood glucose levels. This will stimulate insulin release in to your system, which will quickly and effectively remove the extra sugar from your blood stream. When this happens, your blood sugar levels will do down much below from where they started, and you will feel exhaustion set upon you much faster.  Instead of sugar, try a protein shake that also has a healthy blend of carbohydrates to boost your workouts.

8.       If The Label Says “Fat Free” I Can Eat As Much As I Want –

This is one of the most popular marketing gimmicks in the food industry. Fat free doesn’t mean calorie free. So even if you are eating something with no added fats but is high in calories, you will store the excess calories as fat!

9.       If You Drink Water While Exercising You Will Get Cramps –

If you drink a liter of water in one go and then resume exercising, you will probably feel cramps. But if you constantly sip on water before, during and even after exercise, you will feel no cramps. In fact, in summers this is important as staying hydrated is the only way to ascertain your body doesn’t overheat during exercising and you stay comfortable.

10.   Doing Abs Exercises Is The Best Way To Get Rid Of My Paunch –

Abs exercises will tone and condition your abdominal muscles. If there are layers of fat covering those muscles, abs exercising cannot burn them away! For that you will need cardio exercises, as spot weight reduction is not possible. You will need to lose overall bodyweight and the abs exercises can simultaneous strengthen your abdominal muscles.

11.   If I Don’t Have A Personal Trainer I Will Not build More Muscle –

You don’t need a personal trainer to gain muscle mass. If you have enough motivation and knowledge on what you should eat, which exercises are best for mass gain and what should be avoided for muscle breakdown, you don’t really need a personal trainer to stand over your head and tell you what to do.