Workout Wednesday

Common Workout Misconceptions

1. I don’t have time to exercise.

Nobody has time to exercise. We live in the Age of Activity, where the idea of leisurely afternoons on the back porch have fallen victim to time-management courses and multi-tasking. And that’s just before breakfast. But if you think about it, exercise actually creates time, because it adds longevity. If you invest 30 minutes in yourself each day, you can keep yourself full of energy well into your golden years. You’ll never have to deal with low energy levels, and you may even be able to avoid diseases that come with advancing age. Diet and exercise are the closest things we have to the Fountain of Youth. In the 30-minute daily sessions I recommend, you’ll be set up with feel-good chemicals in your brain, energy, vitality… in short, waking hours that are more productive and enjoyable. You have time for all of that, don’t you?

2. I’m fat because I was born with a slow metabolism.

Research shows that the majority of people have an average metabolism. But people assume they have awful metabolisms, because they see themselves gaining weight with ease. The truth is, if they were to start eating right and exercising, they’d see dramatic changes in their bodies. Sure, there’s a bell curve: There are some extremely skinny people who seem to be able to eat anything that’s not nailed down and not gain an ounce. There are also morbidly obese people whose metabolisms work much more slowly than average. But no matter what, your situation can be helped. A clinically obese person may never be a waif-like model, but she can mitigate it -- instead of weighing 300 pounds, she might be able to use diet and exercise to work her way down to 150 pounds -- and keep it off. That’s because metabolisms -- yours, mine, Ben Affleck’s, Charlize Theron’s -- can be sped up. (Or slowed down, if you make the wrong choices.)

3. If I work out, I’ll look like a bodybuilder.

Hey, watch it! Just kidding. I’m fully aware that you might not want to look like a professional bodybuilder. But you might consider this analogy: You probably don’t want to be a NASCAR driver, either. But what if I said you had it within your reach to be able to drive like one? Likewise, what if I could show you a few simple techniques that champion bodybuilders use to achieve low body fat, boost their metabolisms, and, ultimately, shape their bodies? Besides, muscle is more dense than fat. It takes up less room. In fact, five pounds of muscle is about half the volume of five pounds of fat. And muscle is what can give you brawn. Muscle won’t make you look weird; it’ll improve your appearance.

4. Yeah, but I’m eating right. I don’t need to exercise.

This is not true. Balanced nutrition and exercise (Banex) yields the best results. When following the Lean Body Meal Plan, you’ll be in a hypocaloric state, which means you’re running a slight deficit in the calorie department. When your body notices it’s not receiving enough calories, it’ll look for them someplace else. There are only two places: your fat stores or your muscles. Unfortunately, it’s easier for your body to grab muscle and tear it down. And that’s why a lot of diets fail in the long term: People cut calories indiscriminately, the body dips into muscle stores, and metabolism decreases. Which makes dieting all that more difficult. But if you’re exercising every day, your body will pause before breaking down muscle. Your body will think: Hey, I need these muscles! I’m being stressed with weights every day! Guess I’ll have to dig up those needed calories from the fat stores. That’s the unconscious, evolutionary thought process of your body. Exercising, along with a smart meal plan, means you can be in a hypocaloric state but keep your all-important muscles.

5. I might exercise for a while, but then I’ll say to hell with it.

Even if you haven’t developed the habit of working out and eating correctly on a regular basis, you can reprogram yourself anytime to do so. Many of our daily habits are merely routine things that we do repetitively. Every morning we get up and shower in the same way, eat the same things for breakfast, take the same drive to work, shout “Yo, Big Guy” to Bob in Accounts Payable in the same tone of voice, and so on. If you think about it, your daily life is made up of dozens of routines. I’m asking you to add just one more routine to your day: the exercise routine. Once you make the commitment to working out each day, no matter what, all you need to do is give it time. Maybe three or four weeks. The first couple of weeks may be tough. You might need to give yourself pep talks to get going. But by the third and fourth week, I guarantee that it’ll be easier to stick to your program. By that time, you’ll be noticing big changes in your body, and it will seem almost natural to work out every day. And by the end of the initial 12-week phase of this program, the exercise habit will become a part of your internal self.

you can do it

These misconceptions are very familiar to me. I’ve heard many people say the same things during my years as a fitness expert and personal trainer to thousands. And all they do is hold people back from having the bodies they want.