Exercise and physical activity are essential aspects of a healthy lifestyle.

As our bodies are living machines, the best way to keep them going is to keep them going.

 

Today, modern society is privy to quite a unique opportunity when it comes to health and fitness.

 

Physical activity is now a commodity, a service, one which can be tailored to our specific needs and one that can be enjoyed alone or with others.

 

But it wasn’t always like that. Once upon a time, exercise and fitness were not separately defined entities, they were part of daily life

The Story Of Exercise

Think about it, there was once a time in human history where hours of traversing up and down uneven terrain, hunting food and escaping the possibility of becoming food were part of daily life.

 

These natural activities engaged our bodies to their normal limits, helping us stay fit.

 

Today, our settled lifestyles, as well as a decline in manual tasks in favor of more intellectual work, has led to an unprecedented level of sedentarism when taking all known human history into account.

Because of this, for a while, purposeful exercise was never considered by the general public.

 

Not until the 1960s with the advent of aerobics training and later on the establishment of exercise science academies did fitness enter the public health sphere.

 

Advances in sports and medical science, as well as the understanding of the importance and benefits of physical activity, have to lead to many methods and systems being developed for the sake of good health.

 

Just like anything in life, amongst all the tried and trusted methods and information, there are a few antiquated beliefs and guidelines that still exist.

 

In this article, we’re going to look at some of the most prevalent and frustratingly untrue fitness myths.

4 Exercise Myths you Shouldn’t Believe

Exercise is for Younger People

The story that exercise ends once you reach a certain age is completely untrue. In fact, exercise should be taken more and more seriously as you get along in years.

 

That’s because amongst all other benefits, exercise greatly reduces the signs and effects of aging.

Your body diminishes in capability the less you use it, suffice to say, a lack of exercise actually makes you grow older, faster.

 

Evidence suggests that a good exercise program can roll back the physiological equivalent of 30 years off a senior person’s age.

 

Because exercise keeps your body and mind sharp, older people get to retain their adult independence for much longer. One major point of distress when we get older is the gradual reliance on others for our care.

 

This loss of independence can be put off until the very end with good exercise.

You Have to Spend Hours Working Out or You Haven’t Worked Out At All

The image of multiple hard sets, incredibly strenuous lifts and hours of heart-pounding, intense cardio is often used to elicit the idea of a good quality workout.

 

The truth is, exercise doesn’t have to be so intense, some times, it should be anything but intense.

Overtraining is a real risk and can lead to quite the opposite effect that exercise aims to produce.

 

Even a 10-minute stretch or cycle can fulfill some activity requirements.

 

Exercise is not an all-or-nothing principle. You can enjoy the benefits as long as you commit to some physical activity. Even your daily walk or cycle can put your health and fitness in the green.

 

Remember, exercise is simply just simulation for natural physical stress if your daily routine already provides enough of a range of physical activity, you don’t need to worry about killing yourself in the gym for hours at a time.

You Can't Exercise With A Chronic Condition

Many people today suffer from chronic conditions such as diabetes, obesity, arthritis, and hypertension to name a few.

The common assumption is that one shouldn’t work out with these conditions stressing their bodies.

 

We want you to know that exercise is medicine, and sometimes, it is one of the best things to include as part of the treatment and management of chronic illness.

 

Take type 2 diabetes for example. This is a chronic condition where the management of blood glucose levels is out of whack.

 

It turns out that a lack of physical activity is one of its root causes. It also turns out that exercise helps limit the potential for excess blood sugar levels. Making it an effective part of diabetic treatment.

I’m A Woman, Heavy Exercise Will Make Me Manly

The myth that lifting heavy and training intensely turns women into men has been dragged and busted unconscious discussion.

It still does seem that there is still a bit of a gender role stigma attached to exercise even if most people now consciously agree that exercise alone can’t masculinize a woman.

 

Working out simply expresses your genetic potential. If you’re a genetic female, good training and intense exercise will only accentuate your feminine features.

Conclusion

There are loads more myths and beliefs about exercise and fitness we would have loved to cover. These are just a few we felt would be a good way to peel the lid off common misconceptions.

 

The best piece of advice we can give is to consult a fitness professional. One certified by an accredited body and get your advice from there