4 Common Weight Loss Myths That You Should Know About

Weight loss is truly a challenging feat to accomplish. With the sheer determination and strict discipline that one must consistently maintain and uphold (and which, unfortunately, are not innate of everyone), not everybody ends up with a success story.

Adding to these challenges are those myths about weight loss that sabotage attempts at achieving that perfectly-toned body.

So, to help you discern myths from facts, we present to you four myths about weight loss:

1. Exercise is the best way to lose those dreaded extra pounds.

Contrary to popular belief that merely being physically active is key to weight loss, experts suggest otherwise. In fact, it is the most arduous method of weight loss.

The food that we eat and our metabolic rate determine our energy balance, and our level of activity has a negligible influence on it. Hence, depending on physical activity to achieve weight loss is an extremely difficult work.

Consequently, the American College of Sports Medicine recommends an accumulated 250 to 300 minutes of exercise every week to achieve weight loss. That translates to about 30 minutes per day. Such exercise schedule, combined with intake of nutritious low-calorie food, may be the best way to lose weight.

2. It is impossible to be fat and fit.

Despite being overweight, people can be considered metabolically healthy but only on one condition – being regularly active. However, a more positive outcome is associated with regular activity and ideal weight so there are more benefits to shedding those extra pounds.

Also, it should be noted that while some people who are not regularly active may seem to have a healthy body build, this is not always the case. Inactivity is associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, depression, and anxiety.

3. No pain, no gain.

You need not experience pain to lose weight. Although an exercise regimen of moderate intensity is recommended, extremely intense routines are not necessary. A study revealed that there is no significant difference in achieving weight loss through moderate-intensity and vigorous-intensity exercises.

With moderate-intensity exercises, a person can still converse though breathing may be a bit difficult, examples include riding a bicycle at a moderate pace and brisk walking. Vigorous exercise such as running, on the other hand, makes it impossible to chat with people around you and will make you sweat profusely.

4. Resistance training is the only way to lose weight.

The benefits of resistance training include increasing lean body mass, improving functional capacity, and helping prevent osteoporosis. Its primary association with weight loss is that metabolic rate increases as the muscle mass increases, as muscles require more energy than adipose tissue. It is also important to note that building lean muscle mass is way more serious than it sounds.

A more effective alternative to resistance training is aerobic or endurance training. A study revealed that in comparison with resistance training, aerobic training was more effective to achieve weight loss. Aerobic training is more popularly known as cardio exercises.

Whatever exercise regimen you choose, just remember that it must be tailored to your preference and capacity to promote compliance – it must be something that you enjoy doing and most definitely, something that is not beyond your ability.

Credits: Corneel Vandelanotte, CQUniversity, Australia