There is nothing more irritating to me than having people tell me they cannot get in better shape for one reason or another. Then there are some other more subtle myths that if you are following you are actually HURTING your fitness efforts. See #1, #3, and #4 specifically. Now here are 5 in no particular order:

1) You Will Burn More Fat If You Exercise Longer at a Lower Intensity
More of the calories will directly be coming from fat but in the end fat loss is a function of calories in being less than calories out. Higher intensity = more calories out.

2) If you’re not working out every day, you are wasting your time
This kind of thinking keeps a lot of people from even starting an exercise program. Research continues to show that any exercise is better than none. Even walking one hour a week has been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease.

3) Exercise alone will allow you to reach all of your goals
As with all responses to exercise, weight gain or loss is impacted by many factors, with another main one being diet. What you eat accounts for at least half of fat loss. “A six pack is made in the kitchen..” has a lot of truth to it.

4) For losing weight, stay away from lifting weights because you will bulk up
Most exercise experts believe that cardiovascular exercise and strength training are both valuable for maintaining a healthy weight. Strength training helps maintain muscle mass and decrease body fat percentage. It is VERY difficult to get bulky, in fact you have to be actively trying to bulk up and eating thousands of extra calories to gain significant muscle weight.

5) I can’t do it, I just don’t have the genetics
Yes you can. Everyone can at least be healthy. Studies show that obese people who participate in regular exercise programs have a lower risk of all-cause mortality than sedentary individuals, regardless of weight. Both men and women of all sizes and fitness levels can improve their health with modest increases in activity. And both men and women CAN slim down to whatever fitness level they would like to be at with hard work, exercise, and a proper diet.