Are you following all the “rules” and still not seeing the gains you want? Maybe you’ve fallen prey to one of these common bodybuilding myths:
Myth #1: Do your Cardio First
Fact:
If you want to burn more fat, do your cardio after you do weights. Doing your regular lifting will get your metabolism going and up your levels of both testosterone and human growth hormone, two key fat blasters/muscle builders. Then when you hop on the treadmill (or whatever you use for cardio) you end up burning more fat. Conversely, if you exhaust yourself doing cardio first, you might have less energy to put into your lifting. Less weight and fewer reps means less explosive muscle growth.
Myth #2: Slow and Steady Wins the Fat-Burning Race
Fact:
Sure you’ve got huge muscles. Lots of people do. What’s standing in between you and the body of your dreams is those last few pounds of fat that are concealing your definition. Melting body fat is just as important as bulking up your muscles. But you know that already, which is why you do your 30 minutes of steady jogging every day. What you don’t know is that steady, lower-intensity cardio isn’t helping you melt fat nearly as well as High Intensity Interval Training, or HIIT. HIIT involves being in the 90-100% MHR (max heart rate) range for about a minute, then taking it down to 50-60% for a minute, on and off for your 20-30 minutes of cardio. You’ll burn more while you’re working and after you stop working for a body that will be the envy of everyone at the gym.
Myth #3: Get up Early and Workout Before Breakfast
Fact: It would be better to workout after dinner. Working out after 6pm burns 9% more body fat and put on 3% more muscle than if you did the same workout in the morning. Researchers aren’t sure why, but controlled studies show it to be a fact.
Myth #4: Never Do Another Crunch
Fact:
It’s true that exercises like the plank are great for training abs, but the old-fashioned crunch is still worth doing. The reason is that this old favourite hits all four of the muscles in the abdominal region. A 2008 study indicates that if you want to really activate the muscles, especially the obliques, you should crunch up quickly and explosively, then lower yourself slowly. Of course, this is difficult to do properly. Always make sure you are well supported on a mat, and are using your stomach (not your arms yanking on your neck) to do your explosive crunches, or you’ll end up hurting yourself.
Myth #5: Less Weight, More Reps to Burn Body Fat
Fact:
If you need to melt away those last stubborn traces of fat and are finding it difficult, try upping the weight and lowering the reps! Instead of the standard 10 reps, choose a weight where your maximum number of reps is 6-8, then push yourself to rest for no more than a minute between sets. Maxing out at 6 reps per set and resting for only 30 seconds between sets burns up to 50% more calories while training, and also kicks your metabolic rate into high gear for longer after you train. Sounds good to us.
This article proved too well that a lot of gym goers have very little knowledge of what can help them achieve the body beautiful that they wanted. I myself always thought that doing cardio workouts is the key to lose the fat. After making consultations with fitness experts, I realized that I actually should do weights instead. Whew!
HGH is very useful for athletes and gym enthusiasts. I actually could not understand why sports officials make a good fuss about it.
can i get myself involved in bodybuilding at 50? i’ve done very little exercise during my youth as i have lived a highly demanding corporate life. now that i’m close to retirement, im starting to get concerned about what i’ll do afterwards. should i completely slow down?