When clients start their training with us, they tend to come with preconceptions; a set of “facts” about fitness they believe to be set in stone. However, a good percentage of those facts turn out, on closer examination, to be utter nonsense.

Since we’ll be taking on a brand new group of clients to our Warrior Tribe this September 10th ,many of them harbouring crazy notions about fitness like fleas on a street dog, we thought we’d try to dispel a few of those myths early.

So here are our top ten fitness rules that you can safely ignore forever…

1- “Fat Makes You Fat”

Well it must, right? It’s actually called fat. Actually, fat is vital for many body functions, including the production of testosterone. So when guys think barbecuing meat makes them more manly, they’re technically correct. Fat does contain lots of calories, however, so it’s best to treat it as the counterbalance to carbohydrates; when carbs are low, fats can be relatively high, and vice versa. So if your carb intake is relatively low and daily intake of fat in the 80-100g range is perfectly fine.

For more on fat loss, check out this article from a few weeks back.

2- “Jogging is The Best Exercise”

We’ve all seen the poor chubby bloke attempting the 1,000 metre speed-hobble round the park. Next time you see him, grab him round the shoulders and shout “you’re doing it wrong!” before mounting him and riding him around yelling “yeehaw” (don’t do that).

Few people have the strength and muscle balance to run without getting injured. Start with a three-day-a-week weight training program. You’ll never look back.

3- “Crunches Give You Abs”

You already have abs. If you eat less crap and lift weights you may actually see them some day. Crunches are the icing on the cake. Just stop eating the cake. 

4- “You need to Train For Core Stability”

Exercises on unstable surfaces or vibrating platforms are a waste of time. They’ve become trendy in recent years, but give you precisely zero benefit, except in specific ankle rehab situations. So if you do find your girlfriend lying on top of the washing machine on spin, it’s not because she’s trying to tone up. 

In fact, while we’re at it….

5- “Lift Light Weights to Tone Up”

Muscles get bigger or smaller, that’s it. Any discussion of “tone” is best directed toward saxophones and obscure German Cinema.  Lift as heavy as you can safely manage for 8-12 good reps.

For more on building muscle, check this blog out.

We’ll be back shortly with the rest of the list.

In the mean time, for further info or to sign up to the Warrior Tribe, London’s only group body transformation program, go here…