Debunking 6 Common Strength Training Myths

I am a big champion for exercise—cardio or strength, it all is necessary to prevent disease, maintain sanity/self-care, and improve quality of life. When it comes to strength training, however, there are some myths that prevent people from picking up a dumbbell. There are countless myths around resistance training that stem from its origin—bodybuilders who started training people in the gyms they worked out in early in the 20th century, when fitness clubs were opened to the masses. These men (not many women back then) only knew how to do what they knew, which is lift heavy and lift all day.

With the advent of exercise science, we are privy to more and more information about how beneficial resistance training truly is and its nuance, regardless of who wants to train.

Here are the most popular myths that seem to stick around and why they do not carry weight (pun intended!):

1. Strength training will make me “bulky.”

Whenever I start training a woman, the first thing that typically comes out of her mouth is, “I don’t want to lift heavy weights, because it will make me look bulky.” This could not be farther from the truth. In fact, gaining muscle makes the body look leaner, because muscle tissue has shape as opposed to fat tissue.

Aesthetics aside, unless a woman supplements with testosterone, eats an excessive amount of protein, and/or lifts for prolonged periods of time, she will never look as bulky as a man. Women are not physiologically capable of producing big bulky muscles, because they do not produce enough testosterone without the support of supplements and a protein-rich diet.

2. It cannot burn calories like cardio can.

While a cardio training session may burn more calories than a resistance training session, the quality of the calories is what really matters. Cardio training sessions lasting between 30-60 minutes burn more energy that comes from carbohydrates, not fat. Fat burning comes from very long, low intensity sessions—think a two-hour hike or running a marathon—or short very high-intensity training sessions like sprints or, you guessed it, resistance training!

Resistance training sets, especially with moderate-to-heavy loads and complex movements like squats, deadlifts, push-ups, dumbbell rows, or cleans, produce high intensity intervals that burn tons of fat calories in less time. The key is, resistance training requires a lot of effort to push, pull, or lift loads against gravity and needs a lot of different muscle groups to support the effort. This gets the heart and all the limbs pumping at their max intensity, which requires a different combination of energy stores. Even after a workout session, the body takes longer to recover from hard efforts over moderate ones, allowing the body to burn more fat for longer.

Plus the more muscle tissue the body has, the more calories the body burns at rest.

3. Strength training is bad for the joints.

How can strength training be bad for the joints? Well, some state that load-bearing activities can cause trauma to the joints and eventually cause injuries, and others state resistance training can make the muscles tight, reducing one’s flexibility.

This is a big myth. It is not load-bearing activities like weight-training that are the problem, it’s doing them incorrectly. Microtraumas to the joints are more prevalent in overtraining via cardiovascular activities, not by controlled weightlifting.

While stretching is the primary way to maintain flexibility of muscles, mobility of joints is improved with resistance training, because to properly work through the full range of motion of any movement, i.e., a squat or a press, the muscles and connective tissue around the joints must stabilize to adapt to the resistance a weight puts on them.

Note: I am not saying that cardiovascular exercise is bad, I am saying overdoing it is!

4. I need weight machines and expensive gym equipment/memberships.

Resistance training is described as exercise where one performs exercises against some gravitational pull. This can be myriad things—dumbbells, cable machines, resistance bands, suspension trainers, and even one’s bodyweight. Beginners need nothing else than their bodyweight to begin resistance training. As one progresses, more stress needs to be placed on the body to keep improving. This means more equipment will be necessary to do so. However, there are many different types of equipment (mentioned above) before one needs expensive equipment; the pandemic has proven this in spades. If someone wants to improve their fitness and body composition, there are loads of gym-free avenues to do this.

5. Strength training is only beneficial to certain people.

While strength training is necessary for performance enhancement in bodybuilders, powerlifters, and other athletes, there are so many benefits to resistance training for everyone, especially for older adults and women.

I discussed some benefits in a previous post, but here is a brief big picture:

• Improved posture and function.
• Improved power which benefits balance.
• Improved bone density.
• Reduced risk of chronic lifestyle diseases, e.g., cancer, osteoporosis, diabetes, heart disease, arthritis, and obesity.
• Can help prevent or reduce cognitive issues, i.e., depression, dementia, or Alzheimer’s.
• Increases mood, while improving body image and self-esteem.

6. “Spot reduction” training can happen.

I hate to burst anyone’s bubble but doing tons of crunches or planks is not going to tone the tummy away; neither will doing endless reps on the inner or outer thigh machines. Unfortunately, genetics plays a key role in where you lose fat or your body shape.

Eating a nutritious diet while having a healthy balance of cardio and weight-training, specifically moderate-to-heavy loads (hence high intensities) will promote burning fat and changing your body composition the way your body sees fit.

While I hope this information motivates you to get out there and lift, it is important to know how to do it safely and effectively. I will provide some tips next month, but you can always elicit the help of a fitness professional to get you started!

References:

Hunter, G. R., McCarthy, J. P., & Bamman, M. M. (2004). Effects of resistance training on older adults. Sports Medicine, 34(5), 329-348. DOI: 0112-1642/04/0005-0329

McArdle, W. D., Katch, F. I., & Katch, V.L. (2015). Exercise physiology: Nutrition, energy, and human performance. (8^th Ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Wolters Kluwer Health.

Palastanga, N. & Soames, R. (2012). Anatomy and human movement: structure and function (6th ed). Elsevier Health Sciences.