Fitness and bodybuilding myths: 34-66

Fitness is a field where good advice and tall tales often share the same locker room. Here are the next 66 bodybuilding, fitness and strength training myths from the Top 100, specifically items 34-66/100.

This part continues an earlier topic: One Hundred Bodybuilding and Fitness Myths 1-33/100. We’ll go through claims that get repeated in the gym, on forums and sometimes even by coaches, although the real picture is much calmer and more practical.

Fitness and myths: why do they stick around?

In the gym it’s easy to believe simple rules. Never let your knees go past your toes. You must always get a pump. If the workout doesn’t break you at the end, the muscle won’t grow. It all sounds certain, but the body doesn’t run on slogans.

Many myths are born when a grain of truth gets blown out of proportion. Yes, bad technique can hurt the knee. Yes, too much ego can overload the back in a deadlift. But it doesn’t follow that squats are bad for the knees or that deadlifts are bad for the back. The difference lies in technique, training load and how prepared the person is.

Honestly, some of these myths are convenient, too. If someone says muscle growth comes only from one specific program, one supplement or one secret trick, then you don’t have to think about sleep, food, consistency or whether the weights are moving upward over the years.

Fitness and training myths 34-50

34. Testosterone is extremely bad and harmful for a man’s health. In reality, testosterone is a normal male hormone. The problem arises when people start messing around with drugs and doses on their own.
35. Steroids cause rage and aggression. In some people mood and behavior can change, but it isn’t a simple automatic switch. The risks are real, but the caricature doesn’t explain what is actually going on.
36. Even as a natural bodybuilder you can get as big and massive as you want. Natural development has limits. Genetics, years of training, nutrition and recovery matter a lot.
37. There are methods and tricks that let even an advanced natural bodybuilder add 2 – 3 kg of quality muscle mass in a short time. For advanced lifters, progress comes more slowly. Quick numbers are often just fluctuations in water, glycogen or body weight.
38. Squats are bad for the knees. A bad squat can be bad. A well-learned squat can be one of the best exercises for strength and muscle mass.
39. Deadlifts are bad for the back. The deadlift takes skill and patience. With the right load, it trains the back, hips and grip very effectively.
40. The Smith machine is always a smart alternative to free weights. The Smith machine can suit some situations, but a fixed bar path doesn’t automatically make it safer.
41. Taking BCAA as a supplement is pointless. If your total protein intake is in order, the effect of separate BCAA may be small. If your nutrition is shaky, powder alone won’t fix the whole picture.
42. Short sets don’t build muscle. They do, as long as volume, effort and progression are in place. Muscle doesn’t just count reps; it responds to total work.
43. The right way is to train the way Arnold trained. Arnold is Arnold. His training load, experience and recovery capacity are no yardstick for a beginner.
44. Full-body routines are outdated and useless. In reality, full-body programs can be very good, especially when you train two or three times a week.
45. Westside is the only right way for powerlifters to train. Westside is a system, not a magic law. A powerlifter can progress on many different programs.
46. When you squat, never let your knees go past your toes. For some body types and squat styles, the knees move past the toes quite naturally. What matters more is control and pain-free movement.
47. GOMAD…GALLON OF MILK A DAY (a diet in which, on top of your regular food, you drink one gallon, or 3.8 liters, of milk every day) is pointless and the work of the devil! It can help some skinny people gain weight, but it doesn’t suit everyone. Digestion, appetite and overall food quality matter.
48. The pump effect is important and mandatory in every workout. The pump feels good, but it isn’t the only measure of results.
49. Feeling exhausted and drained at the end of a workout equals muscle growth. Fatigue is not the same as progress. Sometimes it simply means your recovery is taking a hit.
50. Muscles make you slow and clumsy. With smart training, muscles can make you more powerful, more stable and even faster.

What does fitness really need?

The simple truth: progress comes from good work, repeated. Not from one heroic workout, not from one supplement, and not from picking the harshest program you can find on the internet. For most people, a strong foundation is fairly boring: proper technique, enough volume, gradual increases in training load, sleep and food.

That doesn’t mean details don’t matter. They do. But details only start working once the foundation is in place. If you train irregularly, sleep little and swap your program every two weeks, neither visualization nor the perfect exercise angle will save you.

Nutrition and body myths 51-66

51. You should never cheat on any exercise! A little controlled momentum can work in some exercises for advanced lifters. Beginners are better off learning clean technique first.
52. Real muscle growth is only possible through a proper mind-muscle connection and visualization. The mind-muscle connection helps, but muscle also needs mechanical tension and enough work.
53. If you stop training, your muscle turns into fat. Muscle doesn’t turn into fat. Muscle can shrink and fat can build up if your activity drops while your eating stays the same.
54. Women can also get massive like Arnold with the right training. Women’s hormonal profile and rate of muscle mass gain are different. Strength training usually makes you stronger and more toned, not gigantic overnight.
55. Sit-ups and crunches are the solution for a proper “6-pack”. Abs need training, but a visible “6-pack” also depends a lot on your body fat percentage.
56. Only one-hundred-percent clean nutrition guarantees maximum muscle growth. Too much rigidity can actually wreck your consistency. What matters most is enough energy, enough protein and sensible food choices.
57. Bodybuilders follow and track what they eat year-round. Many do track, but competition season and the regular off-season aren’t the same thing.
58. No powerlifter ever tracks their nutrition. A good powerlifter knows that body weight, recovery and strength go hand in hand.
59. Most bodybuilders are gay. That’s simply a prejudice, not a substantive claim about training or the sport.
60. If you take steroids, you’ll soon look like Ronnie Coleman, too. Drugs don’t replace genetics, years of work, food or extreme dedication.
61. If you take steroids, you can get as strong as Bill Kazmaier. Same story: strength doesn’t come from a single factor.
62. Nutrition accounts for 90% of your results. Nutrition is very important, but percentages like that are misleading. Training, recovery and consistency don’t go anywhere.
63. Train more often and you’ll see faster progress! Frequency only helps if your recovery keeps up.
64. Train longer in each session and you’ll see better results! A longer workout isn’t automatically a better workout. Sometimes shorter, more precise work is more effective.
65. You can get big and powerful without heavy weights, too. Yes, you can build muscle across different rep ranges, but over time the training load or effort has to increase.
66. Isolation exercises are what give muscles striations. Striations come from the combination of muscle mass and a lower body fat percentage. An exercise alone won’t make your skin paper-thin.

FAQ

Does fitness always require very strict nutrition?

Not always. Stricter nutrition may be necessary to reach contest condition, but the average trainee can go a long way with simple, consistent eating.

Are squats and deadlifts suitable for beginners?

They are, as long as you learn the technique patiently and choose a sensible weight. An exercise isn’t dangerous just because of its name.

Do you have to be completely wiped out at the end of every workout to build muscle?

No. Sometimes you need to push hard, but a constant feeling of being drained and exhausted can be a sign that your recovery is falling behind.

Author: Janar Rückenberg (translation)

Source:Turg.Fitness.ee

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