17 Fitness Misconceptions Busted

5. Deep Squats Are Not bad for Your Knees

There is not a lot of evidence that links squats and knee pain.

When squatting, you should keep the weight light enough so you can work through a full range of motion. The best squat is one in which you can sit your butt to your heels without weight.

Have you ever seen a baby bend down to pick something up? They go all the way down until their diaper touches their heels. We lose that ability as we age and stiffen up. Work towards getting back to that deep squat, then squat deeply with moderate weight. This won't hurt you so long as you maintain proper technique.

More: 4 Workouts to Sculpt Your Abs

6. Deadlifts Do Not Hurt Backs

People hurt their own backs when they sacrifice technique to move weight. There are ways to compromise your form to get the weight up, but they are not gainful.

More: How to Do a Deadlift Safely

7. Touching Your Toes Is Not a Hamstring Stretch

It's impossible to fully stretch a muscle that supports your body weight. If your hamstrings were really relaxed while doing this, as most muscles are when stretching, you would fall over.

8. Lifting Heavy Weight Will Not Produce Bulk for Females

Females have 1/20th to 1/30th of the testosterone levels that men have. So even by lifting more weight, they don't have the testosterone to support that muscle mass. Now, eating 10,000 calories a day will bulk a female up, but that should be avoidable.

People also commonly think that the average female doesn't need to lift heavy weight, but then you see them trying to haul 50-pound bags of dog food in one hand and a full-sized child in the other. Lifting heavy will benefit women in many areas of their lives.

9. You Don't Need to Load up on 30 Grams of Protein After Lifting

Your body can only digest about 12 to 15 grams of protein in a meal. With a good diet, you shouldn't have to supplement protein unless you're a serious body builder. Any extra protein will either be excreted or just hang around your waist line as extra calories.

More: The Whole Story on Protein

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