It can be difficult finding a workout and fitness regime that suits you best. When researching the best new exercises and trends it can be easy to get caught up with some confusing topics such as ‘will weight training make you bulky?’ and ‘should you eat before a workout’. There are many fitness myths out there but we’re going to debunk three of the top myths.

Myth 1 - Cardio Should Be First

You’ll see many people in the gym going straight to the treadmills or exercise bikes and spending the majority of their doing some form of cardio. Although cardio has some great benefits, it can be more beneficial to do weight training first. If you perform cardio first you will use up your stores so that you cannot weight train effectively. Weight training first however will allow you to use your glycogen stores to get those last few reps in and increase your testosterone and cortisol which will help you smash your cardio.

Woman running for fitness

Myth 2 - Women Should Only Lift Lighter Weights

For years and years many women have believed that women should lift lighter weights for higher reps in order to ‘tone’ muscle instead of bulking. Firstly, it’s very difficult for a women to become really bulky by weight training, unless they are adding additional supplements to their diet. Secondly, the principle of ‘progressive overload’ comes into play when gaining muscle, put simply, this means that you have to progressively over load your muscles over time to effectively train them. When weight training, women should typically aim to lift as heavy as they can for the amount of reps they are performing.

Myth 3 - The More Gym Time, The Better

This is often some peoples mindset when setting a new fitness goal. Many people believe that the more often they go to gym, the quicker they will see results. In fact, it’s vital you give yourself rest days to allow your body to recover. If you don’t give your muscles time to recover, you could prevent your muscles from rebounding and improving. If you train effectively, there is no reason to work out every day.