“You give me the next three weeks, and I’ll give you the body you’ve always wanted,” promises the twig of a fitness instructor leading the upper body workout I’m streaming this morning. In sixty-one years, I’ve never had the body I’ve always wanted, so I have serious doubts anything this video Barbie is going to throw at me in the next 21 days will get me there.
Myth #1: Habits are formed by completing a task for 21 days in a row.
Have you ever noticed how many diet plans or workout programs seem to latch onto the 21-day timeframe for success? It appears the roots are in the belief that it takes 21 days of repetition to form a habit. It’s a common theory prompted by the work of Maxwell Maltz in the 1950s and advanced by self-help gurus ever since; but it’s a myth.
I’m sure some tasks can become habit in 21 days, so it may be true on occasion. But there are way too many variables for one-size-fits-all habit attainment to hold true in every situation. How many things are you changing? How complex is the new activity? How ingrained is the old behavior? Is it physical or emotional, or both? And on and on. . .
And most certainly, the 21-day claim is way too optimistic when it comes to major life-changing shifts like adopting a whole new way of eating and exercising. It took me a few weeks just to grasp all the concepts of this crazy new clean eating, portion controlled diet I started in January. And my body was still screaming at me after working out for 21 days. Even weeks later, this new lifestyle was far from a normal routine. And results are just now showing up months later.
The truth is there’s no magic timeframe for forming new habits; it takes as long as it takes. Best advice is stick with it, and your new habits will eventually become automatic. Or maybe you’ll decide it’s not worth going there after all. My fitness journey this year has included some of each.
Myth #2: Crunches will get rid of belly fat.
As handy as it would be, the truth is we can’t choose where we want to burn fat. We can however, target muscles for strengthening. So, crunches can do wonderful job of building muscle under our fat.
Not what you were hoping for? What I’m learning is the best results are usually achieved by reducing overall body fat through proper diet and exercise, then adding targeted core training to build those six-packs.
Myth #3: Running is a better workout than walking.
The truth is both activities target the same muscles, just at a different intensity, so the energy burn is similar for the same distance. The distance being the key; a three-mile run will yield the same benefit as a three-mile walk.
The confusion is because generally it takes longer to walk than to run – although, I’m a proficient walker and have on occasion passed people that appear to be posing as runners – but, as a rule I’ll concede that runners are faster. Which means a twenty-minute run will take you farther than a twenty-minute walk, and therefore burn more calories. That’s the plus for running: achieving the benefit takes less time. In the pro column for walking is that it’s low-impact and a little easier on the joints.
Myth #4: You can eat what you want if you train hard.
Wouldn’t that be great. But the truth is no amount of exercise can compensate for an out-of-control diet. The old adage, you are what you eat, is probably truer than we thought.
When trying to lose weight, most experts say 80% of the results come from improved diet and only 20% from exercise. Best advice, put the effort into establishing good eating habits and add in exercise to boost the results.
Myth #5: You can’t gain muscle after 50.
The truth is you can gain muscle at any age if you’re challenging your muscles and fueling your body properly. And you have a little patience. As I’ve found with most healthy living related things, diet is key so start there and make sure what you eat each day is balanced and nutritious.
One of my main fitness goals this spring has been to get stronger. With that in mind I have incorporated weight training into my exercise routine for the first time in many years. It has been slow going, mostly because I was pitifully weak, but also because I was afraid of hurting myself. I keep reminding myself strength training should be hard; the whole point is to make our bodies work. I’m finally starting to see some results; consistency and lifting progressively heavier weights seems to be taking me in the right direction.
It’s also a simple fact that we must use muscles to keep them. It shouldn’t just be about adding in some exercise, we need to move more and lift heavier things in everyday life. As our civilization has become ruled by convenience, our bodies work less and less. I’m constantly looking for small ways throughout the day to make my body work a little harder, like avoiding drive-thru windows and carrying my groceries rather than pushing the cart to my car. I make sure I walk the hilly routes, not just the flats. I’m trying to avoid elevators and taking the stairs as often as I can, and now I’m easily refilling the water cooler with those 5-gallon water bottles that I couldn’t lift a couple of months ago. Whatever I can do myself, I’m doing.
Of course, the older you are and the laxer your muscles are when you start, the more effort it will take to whip them into shape . . . so, don’t expect that new buff body in 21 days.
