By Pyc Fitness
©2004-2008
It's common knowledge in the health and fitness world that you need to find a plan that works for you and stick with it to lose weight and reach your optimum health goals. But here's the thing - we're not robots, nor are we immortal. In any successful exercise and weight loss program there needs to be room for flexibility and forgiveness.
Big Health and Fitness Lie #4: You Must Work Out 7 Days a Week for 30 Minutes Each Day¡
If you¡¯re a robot.
I laugh when people say you should exercise six to seven days a week for at least 30 minutes. Not because it¡¯s bad advice - it¡¯s just not realistic to start.
When I hear this, I get a silly image of cavemen logging their 30 minute cardio workouts on their cave walls.
They just didn¡¯t do it. They just moved. That¡¯s all they did and it¡¯s all you have to do too, in terms of exercise.
So if it¡¯s not six to seven days a week for 30 minutes, then how much exercise is the minimum you should be doing?
Three to six hours a week - anytime. Just move when you feel like it, rest when you don¡¯t. It¡¯s that simple. This program will give you all you need to know about how, when and where.
And if you¡¯re good at math and saying ¡°wait a minute, those numbers are just about the same,¡± then you¡¯re right. They are. But it¡¯s all about perspective. If I tell you that you need to workout for seven days a week and you miss two days, what happens? You realize you¡¯ve created an impossible goal.
Eventually you¡¯ll lose some steam and start to feel bad that you¡¯re not sticking to the program.
Further along in this book, I¡¯ve laid out a simple way for you to keep track of your activity using a point system instead of hours. All you need to do is accumulate a certain number of points a week and you¡¯re on the fast track for fitness success. You can use it or you can keep track of hours, just don¡¯t get caught in the ¡°number of days¡± exercise trap.
You won¡¯t believe how easy it really is.
Big Health and Fitness Lie #5: No Pain, No Gain
I thought this saying went out with the bodybuilding craze of the 80¡¯s, but I am still amazed to hear people mutter those 4 words in the middle of a tiring workout.
You know you shouldn¡¯t be hurting, you know that the ¡°no pain, no gain¡± philosophy is wrong, but you¡¯re still pushing too hard.
Pain means stop.
And this is exactly what I make sure anyone I¡¯m working with does when they¡¯re in pain. I want you to do the same.
Your body diagnoses what¡¯s going on inside with extreme efficiency. If something smells, you don¡¯t eat it. If something tastes bad, you spit it out. If something rubs, you get a blister.
If something is getting damaged, you feel pain.
Why on earth do we continue to push through this pain?
There are probably a few reasons. One that I think is most revealing is that we¡¯ve applied a mental ideal or construct to combat a physical fact.
If you¡¯re a salesman and you don¡¯t like cold calling, but go out and call 1000 people, you¡¯ll most likely be rewarded by more sales, a bigger paycheck and a nice new car. That makes sense. This is the mental ¡°No pain, no gain.¡±
You have to break out of your comfort zone.
But on the physical side, pain is a fact - not a mental construct. If you have pain in your lower back, there is actually a physical issue, muscular or skeletal, that needs attention. If you keep doing whatever it is that is hurting you, you will eventually do irreparable damage.
The salesman isn¡¯t in this type of danger - he just doesn¡¯t like making phone calls. This is an emotional belief or a discomfort, not a physical fact. He will not tear a muscle and not be able to physically walk away from his desk if he makes a couple of calls.
An important distinction between pushing mentally and pushing physically is that your body has limits, your mind does not. If it hurts, don¡¯t do it. Assess if you¡¯re doing it right, and then try it again.
If it hurts twice, give it a rest and maybe try again another day.
Don¡¯t force your fitness and risk an injury that could damage your body and interfere with your health and fitness for the rest of your life.