Weight Training Myths

[RedSpikeyThing]

I was inspired from another post to start a thread that lists the most common myths. Please post myths and common misconceptions and I'll update this post to add them. Hopefully this will stop the loads of questions that come up about the same thing over and over again.

I think it's ok for this thread to also become a huge debate about all of these things. Discussion is how we learn

Common Myths

You can work only the upper chest
No. You can't. Someone please post the details about why, and I'll make this more specific.

You can build muscle and burn fat at the same time.
You can, but it's really hard. You must have complete control over your diet.

There is one super routine that makes everyone look better
Everyone is different. What works for you may not work for others.

Steroids instantly make you big.
No. You still have to work your ass off and eat like a horse.

Women instantly get huge and look like men when they lift weights.
Unless they are "enhanced", they will continue to look like muscular women - they lack a Y chromosome.

Weight gainers are practically steroids.
They are food. In fact, they are mostly sugar. They will help you gain weight if it pushes you into caloric excess.

I just can't eat enough!
You're not trying hard enough.

You can spot reduce fat. i.e. How do I lose just the fat around my belly?
In short, you can't. You lose fat from your body as a whole, not a specific spot.

Eggs make your cholestorol bad.
They only do this if you have an existing problem with cholestorol.

Deadlifts cause harm to your back.
They will hur your back if you have improper form. In the long run, having a stronger back will benefit you.

You need supplements to get big
Supplements only substitute when you can't get enough naturally.

You can take fat burner pills and expect to lose weight.
You still have to eat in caloric deficit and workout.

Creatine is bad for you
No it's not unless you have previous kidney problem

Bodybuilding means getting big like Arnold overnight
I wish! Bodybuilding is building muscle mass but it takes a lot of time and dedication as well as some AAS help to be like Arnold.

Liftin gets you big and cardio gets you cut.
Your caloric intake determines everything. Cardio can be used to help create a caloric deficit, but you should depend on it. You could look at cardio as allowing you to eat more and still lose weight.

Woman should train differently than men
Men and woman should train basically the same, just the amount of weight they lift will vary.

Squats are bad for your knees.
Nope. See explanation below.

Lifting weights stunts your growth.
No it doesn't. Could some please provide an explanation as to why?

Please post more myths!

[Questor]

db curls make you a weightlifter
crunches will shed teh 20lbs of fat on your tummy

[Cirino83]

You can spot reduce fat. i.e. How do I lose just the fat around my belly?
YOU CAN'T.

Eggs make your cholestorol bad.
They only do this if you have an existing problem with cholestorol.

Deadlifts cause harm to your back.
They are considered one of the most important lifts. They only cause harm if your form is way off.

You need supplements to get big
Supplements only substitute when you can't get enough naturally. i.e. Protein shake when you didn't eat enough from whole foods.

You can take fat burner pills and expect to lose weight.
You still have to eat in caloric deficit and workout.

Creatine is bad for you
No it's not unless you have previous kidney problems.


Ahh there are millions of myths...I will think of more and post. Good thread and should be made a sticky for future reference when the list is complete.

[RedSpikeyThing]

Thanks for the input guys! I've added it to the original post.

Keep it coming!

[MeHoW]

This has sticky potential if you guys provide some proof/links etc.

[Guido]

This has been done before.

[Cirino83]

Liftin gets you big and cardio gets you cut.
Diet determines everything. If you lift you will get stronger, to get big you need to eat. To get cut eat in caloric deficit...cardio is good for your health not to ge you cut unless your diet is right.

You can isolate biceps to get a better peak
Biceps are predetermined by genetics. You can get them bigger by lifting and eating, but shape is genetic.

Woman should train differently than men
Men and woman should train basically the same, just weights will vary (in most cases)

When you stop workin out you get fat
You only get fat if you sit around and eat all day

I thought there would be alot of responses to this thread...I guess I'll make the list myself then

[Cirino83]

This has been done before.

LOL Please don't rain on our parade...I'm having fun with this thread

[RedSpikeyThing]

This has been done before.

Really? I did a quick search and didn't get anything that was strictly about myths

[crazedwombat]

Bodybuilding means getting big like Arnold overnight
No, bodybuilding is building muscle mass but it takes a lot of time and dedication as well as some AAS help to be like Arnold.

Crunches will give you abs if you do enough of them.

Abs appear based on diet, not increased muscle mass. The muscle will build but still hide under the fat.

[zen]

"Building up your legs takes away resources your body needs and makes your upper body smaller"
Wrong. In point of fact, they have done studies that show the opposite is true. In fact, some studies have shown residual growth in upperbody muscles in programs where only the legs are worked out.

"If you don't take 'essential' amino acid suppliments, you harm your muscles ability to grow or recover"
If this is true, how is it that people with natural diets grow strong?
How did bodybuilders do it back in the day before the suppliment industry?
Amazing as it may seem, even people on vegetarian diets seem to be able to grow and recover.
There's more protein in one egg or a cup of milk than a handfull of those horsepill amino acids. Don't get hung up on them.

[beatlesfreak]

You guys have already covered just about everything, but how about these?


Myth: Squats are bad for your knees. You should do leg extensions instead.

Myth: You should cut fats out of your diet cuz "fat makes you fat".

[FortifiedIron]

Lifting more frequently is better.
Nope. You grow out of the gym, not in it.

Now define Frequently because by reading that your not disproving a myth but supporting one.


Kc

[FortifiedIron]

Myth: Squats are bad for your knees. You should do leg extensions instead.

Some of you guys mind find this stuff interesting:

Chandler, TJ, Wilson, GD, & Stone, MH, The effect of the squat exercise on knee stability. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 21(3), 1989.

Past studies have produced conflicting results as to the effect of squat exercises on knee stability. One hundred male and female college students were measured using a knee ligament arthrometer on nine tests of knee stability. Over an 8-wk training program, full or half squats did not consistently affect knee stability compared to non-squatting controls. To measure the effect of long-term squat training 27 male powerlifters (14 Elite or Master Class) and 28 male weightlifters (8 Elite or Master Class) were measured on the same tests. Powerlifters were significantly tighter than controls on the anterior drawer at 90 degrees of knee flexion. Both powerlifters and weightlifters were significantly tighter than controls on the quadriceps active drawer at 90 degrees of knee flexion. Data on powerlifters and weightlifters were also analyzed by years of experience and skill level. No effect of squat training on knee stability was demonstrated in any of the groups tested.
--------

ESCAMILLA, R. F. Knee biomechanics of the dynamic squat exercise. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc., Vol. 33, No. 1, 2001, pp. 127-141.

Purpose: Because a strong and stable knee is paramount to an athlete's or patient's success, an understanding of knee biomechanics while performing the squat is helpful to therapists, trainers, sports medicine physicians, researchers, coaches, and athletes who are interested in closed kinetic chain exercises, knee rehabilitation, and training for sport. The purpose of this review was to examine knee biomechanics during the dynamic squat exercise.

Methods: Tibiofemoral shear and compressive forces, patellofemoral compressive force, knee muscle activity, and knee stability were reviewed and discussed relative to athletic performance, injury potential, and rehabilitation.

Results: Low to moderate posterior shear forces, restrained primarily by the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL), were generated throughout the squat for all knee flexion angles. Low anterior shear forces, restrained primarily by the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), were generated between 0 and 60[degrees] knee flexion. Patellofemoral compressive forces and tibiofemoral compressive and shear forces progressively increased as the knees flexed and decreased as the knees extended, reaching peak values near maximum knee flexion. Hence, training the squat in the functional range between 0 and 50[degrees] knee flexion may be appropriate for many knee rehabilitation patients, because knee forces were minimum in the functional range. Quadriceps, hamstrings, and gastrocnemius activity generally increased as knee flexion increased, which supports athletes with healthy knees performing the parallel squat (thighs parallel to ground at maximum knee flexion) between 0 and 100[degrees] knee flexion. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that the parallel squat was not injurious to the healthy knee.

Conclusions: The squat was shown to be an effective exercise to employ during cruciate ligament or patellofemoral rehabilitation. For athletes with healthy knees, performing the parallel squat is recommended over the deep squat, because injury potential to the menisci and cruciate and collateral ligaments may increase with the deep squat. The squat does not compromise knee stability, and can enhance stability if performed correctly. Finally, the squat can be effective in developing hip, knee, and ankle musculature, because moderate to high quadriceps, hamstrings, and gastrocnemius activity were produced during the squat.

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the reason letting your knees drift in Oly squats is VERY simple. When your knees drift, you place them in an awkward position (when bearing load) in which forces parallel to the ground and over the knee itself will create shearing forces.
Note in the drawing that if the thigh is at parallel, the force of gravity pulls 100% in the x direction (i drew from an odd angle so X is up down and Y is left right). That means all of the force is placed over the knee cap directly down... greatest shearing forces. If you go below parallel, then what happens is as you can see, the Fy and Fx change magnitude and direction slightly to lessen the load and pull back on the kneecaps, actually reducing some of the shearing force.
Also, notice how powerlifters mention to push your legs apart? Or how even when you rock bottom when your knees hit about 90 degrees they tend to come in?
Simple reason for that t=rxF or torque=rFsinX. The sine of X is greatest (in our range of motion) at 90 degrees... meaning the MAXIMUM torque (which does the greatest damage to our knees) is done at parallel. Usually people tell you to go a little below parallel for that reason. Changing direction at 90 degrees does the most damage to your knees. Also, because of the direction of r and F, the torque is directed inwards, so your knees tend to buckle in. Hope this clears a few things up.

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Generally from all the stuff I've seen this far on the topic, the knee is at its most exposed position at approx. 90 degrees. When your standing or squatted at your best 'passive' ROM your knee joint is more stable.

Wilk K et al. A comparison of tibiofemoral joint forces and electromyographic activity during open and closed kinetic chain exercises. Am J Sports Med; 24(4):518-527 - Actually shows that a leg extension is putting more shear pressure on the knee than a squat.

And of course Zatsiorsky, Siff, and Verkhoshansky all suggest squatting to full flexion.

Hope that helped some people.

Kc

I've posted that 3 different times here in relation to similar questions. However I doubt many people are reading it.

Kc

[RichMcGuire]

Its soo long :P

[whiteman90909]

Myth- Deep squats will damage your knees and parallel is better for them.
Myth- High rep ab workouts are the best way to stimulate growth.

[UnknownSoldier]

Here's a popular one that I will just post and not prove


Lifting weights stunts your growth.

[RedSpikeyThing]

Now define Frequently because by reading that your not disproving a myth but supporting one.

Good point. I'll remove that until something more conclusive comes up.

[RedSpikeyThing]

Main post updated.
Thanks for the input, and let's keep it rollin'!

[Guido]

LOL Please don't rain on our parade...I'm having fun with this thread

Okay. I just think most of these myths are debunked on in the "Best of Bodybuilding/Fitness" sticky thread.