MYTH 1: “LOSING WEIGHT IS ALL ABOUT CALORIES”
Calories is definitely a big factor in weight loss but not the be all and end all, as long as you’re in a deficit (energy expenditure exceeds energy intake) you will lose weight (key word being weight, not fat) taking care of your hormones is the trick to sustainable fat loss, hence why starvation diets don’t always work long term. Hormones respond to different types of calories differently, which is why overall calories need to be made up of the right macro nutrients.
MYTH 2: “LOSING WEIGHT IS ALL ABOUT EXERCISE”
For as long as I can remember, we have been told to lose weight you need to do lots of exercise 80% exercise 20% diet… Wrong, you can probably flip that figure on its head and you’re closer to the real figure, not everyone can spend 7 days a week training in a gym. Diet is essential for fat loss, which is why you can lose a shed load of fat without stepping foot in a gym. Exercise is important of course but not vital right from the start.
MYTH 3: “LONG CARDIO SESSIONS WORK BEST FOR FAT LOSS”
People believe spending hours jogging on a treadmill, hours pedaling on a bike is the fastest and most effective way to lose fat and ‘tone up’. Whilst these techniques can help, they have many downfalls and there are more efficient options.
The side-effects of long cardio sessions may be:
- Increased cortisol (the stress hormone)
- Increased hunger (Go run for an hour and see how hungry you feel after)
- Increased risk of pain, injury and inflammation rates (shin splints, foot injuries, trips, hip and back pain, etc.)
MYTH 4: “USE HIGH REPS AND LOW WEIGHT FOR FAT LOSS”
Again, a myth which doesn’t really make much sense. Surely high reps and heavy weight would bring about greater calorie burning? In my opinion, weight training over cardio every day of the week. Strength/endurance weight training is absolutely paramount when trying to achieve a better body, the reasons being:
- Increasing muscle mass will Increase basal metabolic rate, this decides how many calories your body burns when resting, if you want to be burning more calories whilst you sleep, choose weights.
- High Intensity weight training will burn more calories per hour then jogging/walking on a treadmill.
- More muscle will help you tone up, and give you the body you want. Nobody wants to be skinny and boney. Be skinny fit not skinny fat!
- GIRLS! You will not turn into a man with bulging muscles over night if you weight train, guys produce a hell of a lot more testosterone than girls hence why we get bigger, have deeper voices, etc. If you weight train and eat clean you will achieve a slim, toned physique you’re proud of.
MYTH 5: “EATING FAT MAKES YOU FAT”
Everybody believes eating fat is what makes you fat and unhealthy, not entirely true. Eating trans fats and a lot of saturated fat from processed products can cause health problems and excess fat gain but foods containing healthy fats, and saturated fats from natural sources are ESSENTIAL for optimizing hormones, promoting your body to use fat as energy, and they also taste great too.
PROCESSED CARBOHYDRATES AND SUGAR are the things you MUST AVOID to lose fat, they’re addictive and stop the release of fat from fat cells and trigger fat storage. Carbohydrates are fine to eat just be careful of which ones you choose to use, and where you place them in your program!
