Hit or Myth
Just the other day, one of my clients said to me, “Well, you know, muscle weighs more than fat.” That’s really not true. If muscle weighs 16 ounces and fat weighs 16 ounces then they weigh the same, right? Correct. The issue is that muscle is denser than fat. Imagine a small golf ball that weighs eight ounces. Now the fat density of eight ounces would resemble a soft ball. Big difference. It’s the size of those two body parts that matter. Muscle is tight and fat is fluffy—so to speak. It’s surprising that people get other facts and figures wrong when working out.
Take, for instance, the guy who (on his first day with me) insisted that he didn’t want to get muscle-bound or look like Arnold. Well, to keep this in perspective, less than 10% of males have the genetic predisposition to naturally develop huge muscles from working out. It takes a whole lot more than that. For you ladies, only 10% of you have the genes to obtain muscle bulk—sorry.
I get many people—especially women—who tell me that they want to work on one specific area. For most women, it’s hips, butt, and thighs that are problem areas, and there is no such thing as spot reducing. Recently, it’s triceps—the back of the upper arms—that are being talked about. These are a major headache for women as they age and gain weight. They’re called “the wave.” When you wave bye-bye, so does the back of the upper arm. Fat is distributed throughout the entire body—so spot reducing is really unobtainable.
You’ve all heard of “no pain-no gain,” right? Well, it’s really a fitness faux pas. Fact is “no pain-no gain is very bad. It’s normal for many of us who start a fitness regimen to be sore for a day or two after the workout. It’s the buildup of lactic acid in the muscle after the workout. This is normal, and the soreness fades in a couple of days. But, when you really over do it and cross over the pain threshold, then you could have muscle strains, bone pain, joint pain, a ligament tear, or even a tendon strain. These are very serious and can set you back days, weeks, or months from your workouts. So, ease into your workout, or better yet, hire a personal trainer.
We all know someone who trains at the gym seven days a week. They’re called gym rats. These people are so afraid of being out of shape that they practically live at the gym. Their mantra is the more you workout, the bigger and better you get. Not necessarily. The body actually rebuilds itself when at rest. So these kinds of people need to take time off to recuperate. If they continue this insane daily workout regimen, they will wind up with a debilitating injury.
“I will look great because I joined a gym.” Just because you joined a gym doesn’t qualify you as a fitness freak. I know many who’ve joined and lost interest within weeks/months of joining. Progress can be made with sensible working out on a regular basis, a modified diet of healthy foods, limitation of sugar, fats, and processed foods, and proper rest and stress free relaxation. Limiting your alcohol intake to none, no smoking, and a healthy lifestyle are the only way you will succeed in your fitness goal.
Rick Moore is a personal trainer certified by the American Fitness Professionals & Associates.