Muscle Building Pet peeves

[bamazav]

You can't get an aerobic workout lifting weights.

My heart and circulation system can't tell the difference between my running up stairs and doing high rep squats.

[bigtim27]

Originally Posted by bamazav

You can't get an aerobic workout lifting weights.

My heart and circulation system can't tell the difference between my running up stairs and doing high rep squats.

Amen to that. My wife has that train of thought. Unless you are running wind sprints you aren't really doing cardio.

[BendtheBar]

Originally Posted by bamazav

You can't get an aerobic workout lifting weights.

My heart and circulation system can't tell the difference between my running up stairs and doing high rep squats.

You must have a spy microphone in my home gym. I am always talking to my wife about this myth. I usually mention it 7 minutes after a 20 rep squat or deadlift set when I still can't breath...

[MC]

You shouldn't do cardio while bulking.

Look, I know you are looking for every ounce you can get, but when would it ever be a good idea to pack on 15-25 pounds and not train your circulatory system to effectively work with the new mass?

[BendtheBar]

Originally Posted by *MC*

You shouldn't do cardio while bulking.

Look, I know you are looking for every ounce you can get, but when would it ever be a good idea to pack on 15-25 pounds and not train your circulatory system to effectively work with the new mass?

That's another good one.

I played basketball for 4 to 6 hours a week while making my largest gains in college. As long as you're eating enough you're good to go.

Cardio is rarely the issue, in my opinion. I think 9 times out of 10 someone who isn't gaining isn't training hard enough or eating properly.

[5kgLifter]

The myth that women will develop BIG muscles if they lift anything that looks remotely heavier than a powder puff.

[MC]

Originally Posted by BendtheBar

I think 9 times out of 10 someone who isn't gaining isn't training hard enough or eating properly.

The more I think about it, the more I think nutrition is the hardest part.

Some foods are deceptively nutritionally dense, while others are not. Examples would be nuts (dense) and spinach (not dense).

The idea that 1/3 cup of mixed nuts or a tablespoon of olive oil have more calories than a large bag of spinach can be really hard to grasp.

I chuckle when I co-worker says, "Oh, have one cookie. It's only ONE." and I say, yeah, but its 250 calories.

[BendtheBar]

Originally Posted by 5kgLifter

The myth that women will develop BIG muscles if they lift anything that looks remotely heavier than a powder puff.

I just dealt with this question about 10 minutes ago. As I say to my wife, many women fear that if they lift once they will wake up looking like Arnold, and many men fear that if they eat one calorie more than maintenance they will wake up weighing 300 pounds.

[BendtheBar]

Originally Posted by *MC*

The more I think about it, the more I think nutrition is the hardest part.

Some foods are deceptively nutritionally dense, while others are not. Examples would be nuts (dense) and spinach (not dense).

The idea that 1/3 cup of mixed nuts or a tablespoon of olive oil have more calories than a large bag of spinach can be really hard to grasp.

I chuckle when I co-worker says, "Oh, have one cookie. It's only ONE." and I say, yeah, but its 250 calories.

Along with this many people believe that "eating healthy" is good enough when trying to build muscle. "Eating healthy" is such a vaporous and generic phrase and usually implies a McDonald's salad for lunch, or something similar. It also usually involves purchasing products at the store that are "fat free" or "sugar free" or "10% lower whatever.".

I don't think most people understand how to eat healthy and eat enough to gain. And I don't think "eating healthy" is really healthy eating, 9 times out of 10...

[MC]

Originally Posted by BendtheBar

Along with this many people believe that "eating healthy" is good enough when trying to build muscle. "Eating healthy" is such a vaporous and generic phrase and usually implies a McDonald's salad for lunch, or something similar. It also usually involves purchasing products at the store that are "fat free" or "sugar free" or "10% lower whatever.".

I don't think most people understand how to eat healthy and eat enough to gain. And I don't think "eating healthy" is really healthy eating, 9 times out of 10...

The other hard part for me is lack of variety. I have literally eaten the same things wake-up to leaving work, Monday-Friday since November. I have a little variety with meat choice for dinner, its basically steak/fish/chicken with fresh green veggies and a baked sweet potato.

This is boring, but it's a way to make sure that I am eating the same amount of calories most of the time. It also makes it easier to cut or adjust calories, as I just swap in/out entire meals.

So, I guess that myth would be that you can eat whatever you want with tons of variety and gain/lose weight.

I no longer believe this. The people I know who have gotten massive or leaned the heck out eat the same thing OVER and OVER.