Unraveling the truth behind common exercise myths can be a game-changer for your fitness journey. Let's debunk ten such misconceptions that may be hindering your progress and explore the science-backed facts for a healthier, more effective workout regimen.
Exercise is healthy, but it’s hard to keep it up
Daniel E Lieberman, Harvard professor of evolutionary biology, explodes the most common and unhelpful workout myths
- Most adults in high-income countries don’t get the minimum of 150 minutes of physical activity recommended by most health professionals
- We need a new approach
- Look beyond the weird world in which we live to consider how our ancestors in other cultures managed to be physically active
Myth 5: You can’t lose weight walking
Most workouts don’t burn that many calories and just make us hungry so we eat more
- The truth is that you can lose more weight much faster through diet rather than exercise, especially moderate exercise
- Regular exercise also helps prevent weight gain or regain after diet
Myth 7: It’s normal to be less active as we age
Despite rumours that our ancestors’ life was nasty, brutish and short, hunter-gatherers who survive childhood typically live about seven decades, and they continue to work moderately as they age.
- The truth is we evolved to be grandparents in order to be active in to provide food for our children and grandchildren.
Myth 9: ‘Just do it’ works
Most people don’t like exercise and have to overcome natural tendencies to avoid it. To promote exercise, we typically prescribe it and sell it, but let’s remember that we evolved to be physically active for only two reasons: it was necessary or rewarding.
- Make exercise necessary and rewarding by making it social.
Sitting is not the new smoking
People in every culture sit a lot, even hunter-gatherers who lack furniture.
- Studies show that people who sit actively by getting up every 10 or 15 minutes wake up their metabolisms and enjoy better long-term health than those who sit inertly for hours on end.
- However, leisure-time sitting is more strongly associated with negative health outcomes than work-time.
Exercise is not a magic bullet
Although we never evolved to exercise, we did evolve to be physically active just as we evolved to breathe air, drink water, breathe air and have friends.
- In the modern western world, we do not have to exercise to be healthy, but just a little exercise can reduce the rate at which you age and substantially reduce your chances of getting a wide range of diseases.
Myth 4: Our ancestors were hard-working, strong and fast
Most hunter-gatherers are reasonably fit, but they are only moderately strong and not especially fast.
Running will wear out your knees
Numerous high-quality studies show that runners are, if anything, less likely to develop knee osteoarthritis.
- The strategy to avoiding knee pain is to learn to run properly and train sensibly
- Not increasing your mileage by too much too quickly.
Myth 1: It’s normal to exercise
For millions of years, humans were physically active for only two reasons: when it was necessary or rewarding
- Necessary physical activities included getting food and doing other things to survive.
- Rewarding activities included playing, dancing or training to have fun or to develop skills
Myth 2: Avoiding exertion means you are lazy
Physical activity costs calories that until recently were always in short supply (and still are for many people).
- When food is limited, every calorie spent on physical activity is a calorie not spent on other critical functions, such as maintaining our bodies, storing energy and reproducing.
There is an optimal dose/type of exercise
Many medical professionals follow the World Health Organization’s recommendation of at least 150 minutes a week of moderate/vigorous exercise for adults
- However, this is an arbitrary prescription because how much to exercise depends on dozens of factors, such as your fitness, age, injury history, and health concerns.
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