Fitness and Exercise

Popular diet and slimming fads are harmful not only because they are nonsense and misleading but because they lead people down into harmful practices. However, because they are so commonly touted even by celebrities, most people think mainstream nutrition is legit.

Here are more diet myths that we should stop believing.

A low-salt diet reduces the risk of a heart attack

Unless you have a condition called salt-sensitive high blood pressure (which means you get hypertension if you have a high salt intake), this myth is not true. However, it has been persistent for many years even in hospitals that despite not having any supporting evidence, people will willingly eat bland food. Hypertension is more complicated than just having a lot of salt in your body, but of course it’s easy to just believe there’s on culprit.

A high-carb and low-fat diet is good for you

Recent studies show this to be false and is not the healthiest way to slim down fast. In fact, researchers even argue that it will increase the risk of getting cardiovascular disease and will have no effect on the body whatsoever.

Eat smaller meals instead of three huge meals

Some people believe they can get through the day by eating like birds. But it is more difficult to monitor your portion sizes this way. Two to three healthy meals a day should be enough to give you the energy you need.

You should completely avoid saturated fat

There are conflicting evidences that show saturated fat can increase the risk of heart diseases and strokes, but a moderate amount of saturated fat is not harmful for you. Instead of completely cutting off fat from your diet, you should be more mindful of portion sizes instead. Some people are even scared of consuming full fat milk and opt instead for low-fat milk because of the belief that saturated fat can kill you.

More protein in your diet can cause diseases

Some people have stopped eating meat just for this reason. They believe that too much protein can cause kidney diseases but cutting off protein completely is a bad idea. Your body needs it, especially if you are also working out regularly.

All red meat is bad for your health

Wellness articles that tell people to stop eating red meat should learn to distinguish between unprocessed and processed meat. Again, the key to staying healthy is to eat everything in moderation.

When you plan to get serious with your physical fitness, the last thing you want to get is an injury. Some injuries will leave you out for weeks and some can be so fatal that you’ll have to leave the gym indefinitely! Of course, nobody wants to suffer any kind of pain that can put them away from the gym for food. And knowing about the common causes of injuries will safeguard you from them.

Equating soreness with a good workout

A common idea between gym-goers is that being sore after a workout means you had a good one. Let me tell you straight out that this isn’t exactly true. The soreness you feel comes from the build-up of lactic acid in the muscle when you flex and contract them with each rep. Now, lactic acid is important for muscle growth but having too much will eat away at your muscle tissues. As a result, you’ll make lesser gains and make yourself more susceptible to injury. That’s why you shouldn’t equate soreness with a good workout.

Not learning the proper form

Having bad form when lifting is probably the most common cause of injuries at the gym. It’s especially important that you learn the proper form as a beginner. For one, having the correct form will help you maximize your strength and muscle growth. And more importantly, you’ll put yourself in less danger! Obviously, the longer you stay at the gym without having the proper form, the more likely that you’ll pull a joint or rip a muscle.

Ego lifting

If you don’t know what this is, ego lifting is basically lifting heavier weight (well, to feed one’s ego of course) at the expense of proper form. If your hands are already shaking too much at the downstroke of a bench press or if you have to jerk up just to lift the weight for a shoulder press, then you’re ego lifting. This is also a high-risk mistake because, as said earlier, you’re disregarding your form just to lift a heavier weight. In most cases, this can be way more dangerous because you’re holding a heavier weight than usual.

Having a bad spotter

If you’re not new at the gym, you already know that some like to test their strength every few weeks with “heavy days”. No matter which gym you go to in Singapore, you’ll see one or two people lifting heavy with the assistance of a spotter. Now the spotter’s main role is to provide a little help when the bar gets too heavy for you to finish the rep. If you’re doing a heavy bench press and your spotter is looking elsewhere or messing around, the bar might fall on your chest or face without him even having time to catch it.

Category: Fitness and Exercise

6 Diet Myths You Should Stop Believing

Most Common Causes of Injuries at the Gym