5 “Damaging Admissions” From Fitness And Nutrition Experts You Need To Stay Clear Of This Holiday Season
By admin
Do you remember when you had that epiphany?
You know the one when you realized that your parents don’t know everything? And then the one when you discovered that teachers are sometimes wrong?
It’s an experience we all go through, it’s an eye opening one that helps us to understand fault, perfection (or lack of perfection) and over all humanity.
The same is true in the professional world. Doctors aren’t always the best at helping medical issues, accountants aren’t always perfect at counting money.
And fitness trainers… We have our faults as well.
Today Dan and I are here to talk (literally) about those faults. The 5 major damaging admissions from fitness pros that you need to avoid.
I loved doing this podcast! Dan and I brought some good stuff to the table and like normal, we revealed a bit of our imperfections as trainers too.
Listen to the podcast below for the full experience and to learn what you need to be aware of when taking fitness advice.
5 Damaging Admissions From Fitness & Nutrition Experts
1 – Science is the answer.
You go to your trainer and he tells you that a new study was published that said that “x” was the best way to train, therefore you’re going to start training that way too. There are a lot of trainers and fitness pros who rely on science alone to dictate their knowledge. These trainers are great at spitting out facts and sounding reputable.
While that’s all great, it’s important to remember that studies can be iffy from time to time. Researchers are going after a particular result and will often do a few tweaks to get it. Certain variables are removed/added that make the study less reflective of day-to-day life.
One great article we recently read, Food Is Not Fuel brings up some great points that makes a reader go… “wow, you’re right, food isn’t fuel” because of the scientific lingo that is throughout the article. But then you have an equally great article, Food IS Fuel which refutes it and points out all the mistakes. I love both, and Dan and I strongly suggest you ready them!
The bottom-line is this, when it comes to research and studies, don’t be afraid to take pieces of it and and experiment. But at the same time, don’t think the results are written in stone. If you go to ScienceDaily.com you’ll likely find a second study reporting the exact opposite results.
Ask your trainer for flexibility and stress these points to him/her.
2 – My way of training is the best.
Many fitness professionals feel their way of training is the best and will argue to their death that anything outside of their realm is pointless. Trust me, I’ve have to deal with a few of these. It’s really hard not to roll your eyes… but then again I am sure I am guilty of it as well. After all, intense body weight workouts are my passion!
Not everyone is like this but I’m sure you know a few that fall into the die-hard training style of just one form of fitness.
When it comes down to it, all styles of training offer benefits in some way or another.
- Why is running good?
- A Duke study found that aerobic exercise (typically running)… reduced visceral body fat and liver fat… even helping insulin resistance… better than resistance training.
- According to Dr. Cris Slentz, “Resistance training is great for improving strength and increasing lean body mass but if you are overweight, which two thirds of the population is, and you want to lose belly fat, aerobic exercise is the better choice because it burns more calories.”
- Clearing running and any aerobic exercise is good and you NEED it bottom line.
- Why is weight lifting good?
- It’s a great way to build strength…
- It boosts metabolic efficiency… burning of calories during non-workout hours.
- It boosts joint strength
- It builds stronger bones
- Why is yoga good?
- It increase flexibility
- It increases range of motion
- It helps to eliminate knots and tight muscles which cause imbalance
- It help you learn to breath which most people don’t know how to do
- Why is bodyweight good?
- It’s the best mix of aerobic and anaerobic exercise
- Its safer
- It increases flexibility, coordination, and mobility
- It can be taken anywhere you go
- Why is Crossfit good?
- It pushes you hard
- It helps with accountability
- It’s a functional style of training for the most part
Bottomline, don’t force yourself to do just one form of training. Play around with fitness and see what you like the best! And if you’re able, cross train by mixing more than one form workouts into your regiment!
3. My way of eating is the best!
I am a vegan and therefore you should be one too.
Just kidding! I would NEVER EVER say that! Not in a million years.
We think that nutrition is stronger than workouts for this. People are almost as dedicated to their nutrition as they are to their religion. They’ll swear up and down that their style of eating is the best and nothing compares.
Some experts even go as far as to put others down for refusing to follow their personal nutrition habits.
I am not one of those, I believe 100% that you have to experiment with diets to find what works for you. We’re all different in that sense. My eating habits are different than Dans because our bodies are different and require different things.
Paleo, vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, Mediterranean…. whatever. Even a mix of everything works. And for some people, not following a “diet” at all is the best option.
Don’t let anyone try to pressure you into following a program that you’re not 100% comfortable with.
4. Push Until You Can’t Move
The 80s were all about step aerobics, the 90s Tae bo, and now we’re in a fitness age where pushing yourself to the max is the cool thing to do.
Taking the body to the limit just because. Does that even sound fun?
No! And it’s really hard on the body. Pushing it to the extremes can have damaging affects! You aren’t able to recovery fast enough between workouts and you’re setting yourself up for injuries.
Nope, no thanks.
While I train hard, I make sure to focus on my clients’ individual abilities. What can they handle? Are they going to far? Are they not going far enough? There is a fine line.
You can still see amazing results without having to walk like an old lady for 3 days after a workout because of sore legs.
Challenge yourself, but don’t be pressured into going into an unsafe zone. Listen to your body!
5. Get a success story.
The above pictures were taken 15 minutes apart, read this article to discover the truth!
Trainers need you just like you need them (or do you really need them?). They want you to be successful to drive their business. I’m guilty of this, I need testimonials and weight loss success stories to help drive my business forward.
However, I am not about to put that need above the needs of my clients.
Success can happen quickly, but fast success often means temporary results. The best outcome is that of long and study results. The trainer that helps you to create lifestyle changes and that has you on steady and doable program is the one that you want to look for.
Don’t let their own goals over shadow your overall goals.
We talked about a very famous trainer recently publicized for this in the podcast, I would love to hear your thoughts!
And that’s it!
We mentioned a few others above that we came up with so even if you can’t listen to it right now, definitely come back and listen in!
Can you think of any other damaging admissions?