In case you browse through health and fitness periodicals regularly, you are likely to come across many suggestions regarding weight loss. Some of these suggestions really work, but others don’t. The methods that are generally not effective are those recommended by fad diets, weight loss supplements, and pills. The particular suggestions that really benefit most people are always very simple: those related to diet and exercise. However, the weight loss industry is riddled with common myths and inaccurate information, and people often have a tendency to misrepresent the facts, either for personal gain or simply out of ignorance. In the following paragraphs, let me focus on 3 of those weight loss myths.
1. Myth One – Location-Based Fat Reduction Is Possible – This is not completely true, and I’m sure all weight-loss specialists will unanimously admit it. You simply cannot force your system to reduce fat under any circumstances, no matter what kind of exercises you do. If you just do crunches and leg lifts regularly in hopes of decreasing belly fat, you’ll find that instead of decreasing abdominal flab, you’ll decrease the mass of muscle that exists under the abdomen. Therefore, your concentration should not be solely on abdominal exercises and leg lifts; It is also advisable to follow a balanced diet plan that will improve your metabolism and allow you to get rid of fat fast!
2. Myth Two: Significantly reducing calories in your diet reduces excess fat – This particular misconception has encouraged a number of people to start crash dieting. People decide to try crash diets hoping to lose those extra inches, not knowing that crash diets harm their health rather than help them. In fact, every time you starve or fast, your system figures out that it’s likely to kill you, and then your body switches into starvation mode. During starvation mode, your system slows down, your metabolism melting your muscle mass (instead of body fat, which is stored in reserve) to generate energy. This way, you don’t lose much fat at all; however, you lose your valuable muscles. As soon as you return to your regular diet, you will gain more fat!
3. Myth Three: Cardio Alone Can Help You Lose Weight: While it’s true that cardio can help you lose a few pounds, it’s not true that cardio is the only type of weight-loss exercise available; do not forget about aerobic exercises. In fact, the amount of body fat you can reduce by doing cardiovascular or aerobic exercise is about the same. Alternatively, weight lifting is preferable to both cardio and aerobic workouts as it not only helps you burn fat during your workout, but even afterward!