There are many myths surrounding dieting. For example, you can lose 10lbs in a week just by drinking water. That sounds crazy, right there. While some will try it, most realise the unrealistic and unhealthy goal. However, some dieting myths sound like they could really work. Here are six that you need to watch out for.
You Can Eat as Much as You Like as Long as It’s Healthy
As long as you eat healthy food, you can have as much or as little as you like. That’s the common misconception, and people get really annoyed when they still find that they’re gaining weight. The truth is you can’t just eat and eat and eat.
It doesn’t matter what you’re eating, there are calories in food and you need to think about portion control. If you eat too much, regardless of healthy or not, your metabolism will struggle to burn it all and your body starts to store the excess as fat.
As Long as You Exercise You Can Eat Anything You Want
The next myth is that exercise is the only important part. The truth is that weight loss is 80 percent diet and 20 percent exercise.
While they both work really well together, you really need to focus on the amount of food you eat. Creating a calorie deficit is important, and exercise just helps with that.
Low-Fat Is the Best Option
You’re in the supermarket and see a low-fat or normal version. Of course the low-fat is the best for your diet, right? Well, not always. Low or reduced fat does not mean no fat like some people believe.
There are still calories in there. There are also still sugars in there that you need to think about. While it is healthier in most cases, it’s not always the best option.
Carb-Free or Fat-Free Diets Are a Must
The Atkin’s Diet, South Beach Diet and others similar teach people that carbs are bad. This is definitely not the case.
The wrong carbs are bad. It’s important to focus on healthy, complex carbs. Likewise, your body still needs some fat, but the healthy fats. Your body needs a bit of all food groups, so you should never cut one out entirely.
Crash Dieting Helps You Lose Weight Quicker
Yes, this is true but only to a point. Crash dieting is considered ok if you have a lot of weight to lose and you want to kick start your system for the first two weeks.
However, it’s much harder to lose weight over the long-term and then keep it off. You don’t teach yourself the healthy habits of weight loss, so you end up gaining it all back and more afterwards.
You Shouldn’t Eat After 6pm
There’s a common misconception that eating late at night is bad for weight loss.
A study was conducted at Cambridge’s Dunn Nutrition Centre, which found that it’s the total number of calories consumed within a 24-hour period that affects weight loss; not the time that you eat. So you can eat at any point in the day.
There are many myths surrounding fitness during pregnancy. You can hear that you shouldn’t continue running, or that yoga is the only type you should consider. Well, it is time to bust those myths. Here are six pregnancy fitness myths and the truth behind them.
You Shouldn’t Start Right Now
If you’ve never exercised in the past, you may hear some people telling you not to start right now. This is a big myth that can actually do you more harm than good.
While you don’t want to start marathon training right now, there is nothing wrong with trying out some light exercising. Moderate exercise, such as walking or prenatal yoga, are great to do even if you’re new to exercising.
Strength Training Is a Big No-No
Your body will produce more relaxin, a hormone that helps to loosen the joints during labour.
Because of this, there are some people who believe that strength training should be avoided as there is a risk of injury. There is always going to be a risk of injury, but you can do some strength training on a moderate level. Listen to your body. If you’re in pain or struggle to do something because of your joints, look for other types of exercises.
It’s Time to Cut Back on Exercise Considerably
If you’re a fitness fanatic, you need to let it all go. Well, that’s what you hear. Want the truth? You don’t need to dial back the exercise that much, at least right away.
You will eventually find that you have less energy and your centre of gravity changes so you have to change your exercise routines. It is also important to remain hydrated the whole time to avoid damaging your unborn baby.
Cycling and Running Must Be Avoided
Have you heard how you shouldn’t cycle or run when you are pregnant?
Well, that’s not quite true. You don’t need to give it up right away, but you may want to consider it later. Your centre of gravity changes and balance may be an issue, which can make road running or cycling dangerous. Switch your exercises so that if you do go dizzy suddenly it’s not going to put you or your baby at risk.
You Can’t Do Abdominal Workouts
There is some truth in this. You can’t quite do the traditional abdominal workouts. As you get into the second trimester, you will need to remain off your back because of the risk of the baby putting pressure on an important artery.
However, there are plenty of other abdominal workouts that you can take advantage of, and doing them is great to build up the strength for labour.
You need to Stop All Exercise in the Last Trimester
There are some people who believe that exercise should be stopped in the last trimester.
This really is not the case. However, you will need to adapt your exercises to suit the position of the baby and the amount of energy you have.
Plucking a Grey Hair Means Two or Three Appear in Its Place
Grey hair is a sign that you are aging. It is a normal process but that doesn’t mean you want it to happen.
Instead of letting your grey hair get you down, you may decide to pluck that one strand out. Ever heard that two or three will just take its place? This is completely false.
Your genes will determine when the hair will turn grey not whether you pluck it or not! Your hair can’t send a message to the bits that haven’t grown yet!
Your Hair Can Withstand a Ton of Weight (About)!
This is another false one but it may surprise you to hear that your hair can withstand up to 12 tons!
This is only if your hair is healthy though. The hair is made of a protein called keratin and the hair shaft is like a chain of interlocking ropes.
However, that doesn’t mean your scalp can withstand the 12 tons!
You Can Mend Split Ends with the Right Product
Split ends are a common problem for women. Some suffer from them more than others but if you look closely you will see one or two.
There is a common belief that finding the right product will fix the split ends but that isn’t true.
Once the ends have split, that’s it – the only way to fix them is to have your hair trimmed!
Your Hair Will Grow Faster once Trimmed
Another false tale – your hair actually grows about half an inch per month.
The reason this myth seems true is because when short hair grows, it seems to happen much quicker than when longer hair grows. It is a trick to the eye but not real life.
Your Hair Falls Out If You Wash It Every Day
While washing your hair every day will do some damage, it doesn’t make the hair fall out quickly.
You will still lose about 100 strands on a daily basis, washed or not. The difference is that you can accidentally pull the strands out if you are tangled in knots while washing.
Stress Causes Your Hair to Fall Out
Yes, this one is true. Stress does terrible things to the body and the hair falling out is one of them.
It stops the growing cycle in its tracks and can cause the body to shed hair instead. Stress also changes the hormone levels, which can lead to hair loss.
The best thing to do is keep your stress levels under control!
The Ancient Greeks Used Hair Dye
Yes, really! They used a mixture of water, lead oxide and slaked lime to make their hair darker.
A similar recipes is used in today’s hair dye market too!
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