Silliest weight loss/fitness myth you've ever heard?

1234579

Replies

  • chandanista
    chandanista Posts: 986 Member
    Facebook friend has been posting about how she likes to burn more calories in exercise than she ate that day.
  • RollTideTri
    RollTideTri Posts: 116 Member

    A bucket of cement is considerably heavier than a bucket of cotton wool, which is the point.
    That a pound of anything weighs the same as a pound of anything else is not a useful piece of information and its certainly not worth the religious fanaticism its imbued with.

    For a given volume, muscle is some 18% heavier than body fat.

    Exactly. Saying muscle weighs more than fat...sure it's technically wrong from a strict scientific definition of weight vs mass blah blah blah. But in the context of weight loss and fitness, it's just a semantic nit pick, not worth all the teeth gnashing it causes. Then again without semantic nit picking, Internet message boards lose half their content :)

  • ASKyle
    ASKyle Posts: 1,475 Member
    People who say "a calorie is NOT a calorie".

    My response is "a calorie IS a calorie, but different calories can affect your feeling of fullness/etc"
  • Merkavar
    Merkavar Posts: 3,082 Member
    I had a friend once tell me that "If you eat carbs when they're cold your body won't digest them." Once. She was eating a plate of cold fries.

    My guess with this one it had more to do with cold junk food isn't as good, so if your willing to eat them cold you must really have wanted them.
  • Merkavar
    Merkavar Posts: 3,082 Member
    Facebook friend has been posting about how she likes to burn more calories in exercise than she ate that day.

    I have see that a bit too.

    Talk about burning 600 calories through exercise and eating 550 calories. Kind of sad, especially since it seems to young people who do this. And often the 500 calories are made up of teas and soups etc
  • cJOYv6881
    cJOYv6881 Posts: 72 Member
    My mom is really into a book right now that says something along the lines of having to eat certain foods in certain quantities depending on your blood type. She's seen my progress and wants to lose weight too, refuses to count calories, and thinks this might finally be the answer. smh.
  • shinycrazy
    shinycrazy Posts: 1,081 Member
    I posted on Facebook about figuring out if I needed to eat more or less and got a swarm of responses telling me crap like "cut out carbs", "eventually calorie counting just stops working", "when you drink coffee it stops you from losing any weight" (?!), "eating late at night slows your metabolism" etc etc etc

    Lol, maybe the melted ice cream version of coffee dozen concoctions. Mmmm coffee.
  • JordisTSM
    JordisTSM Posts: 359 Member
    bo2gr9y2k8ud.jpeg
  • natalialikescookies
    natalialikescookies Posts: 72 Member

    Byrekyla wrote: »
    "All that grease in "X" food sends me immediately to the toilet". C'mon your digestive tract doesn't just squish out grease immediately!


    I have actually experienced this. For a while my husband and I would get lunch at Pizza Hut, each of us eating a personal pan pizza -Hawaiian for me. Every single time I had to go to the bathroom within just a few minutes. Their pan pizzas are way greasier than the other styles and I actually don't even prefer deep dish but that's what was ready to be eaten so that's what we'd get.

    I don't know if it was the fat or not but no other food has ever sent me to the bathroom right away, especially not every single time.
    (I've also had their Hawaiian pizza on different crusts so I don't think it was the pizza in general)


    That being said, my "favorite" diet myth: a friend told me that "fruit pizza desert" is healthy and the calories don't count because of the fruit.
    Erm, no. You're topping a sugar cookie with cream cheese frosting and then a teaspoon of fruit lol. The calories do count! Lol
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    Running will make your uterus fall out.
  • eldamiano
    eldamiano Posts: 2,667 Member
    The one about Weight Watchers being a good idea....
  • missjessau
    missjessau Posts: 17 Member
    Running will make your uterus fall out.

    Some friends of mine have said they feel like that will happen if they run too soon after having a baby :dizzy:

    My only problem is the back passage LOL. I love immodium before going for a run.

  • Snipsa
    Snipsa Posts: 172 Member
    Myth: Some people just cannot physically lose weight, even though there is no medical reason for this phenomenon. A friend of mine has had multiple blood tests performed (BG and Thyroid levels are fine), but she just CANNOT lose weight... This being said as she is eating an extra large plate of rice, meat and veggies - because, Healthy!

    I've recommended calorie counting time and time again, but for now she loves being that one person who cannot lose weight, no matter what!
  • MommyL2015
    MommyL2015 Posts: 1,411 Member
    Snipsa wrote: »
    Myth: Some people just cannot physically lose weight, even though there is no medical reason for this phenomenon. A friend of mine has had multiple blood tests performed (BG and Thyroid levels are fine), but she just CANNOT lose weight... This being said as she is eating an extra large plate of rice, meat and veggies - because, Healthy!

    I've recommended calorie counting time and time again, but for now she loves being that one person who cannot lose weight, no matter what!

    I have a neighbor friend like that. First it was her hormones, then she got tested and everything came back normal. Now, she's blaming her lack of weight loss on an autoimmune disorder, even though she's not been diagnosed with one. It has to be something other than her eating too much. My mother is another one with her, "It's genetic and there's nothing you can do. You're female, and when you go through menopause, you just get wider. Fact of life, dear, just deal with it." Sure, mom.
  • YalithKBK
    YalithKBK Posts: 317 Member
    Anything ever written in "Health Magazines" by "Doctors".
  • YalithKBK
    YalithKBK Posts: 317 Member
    I knew a guy who was convinced he could drink as much vodka as he wanted and not absorb any calories as long as he followed it with a glass of water.

    My sister apparently read somewhere (and now believes) that tequila helps you lose weight... somehow... :|

    Maybe after you barf from drinking too much? :p
  • nfpswife
    nfpswife Posts: 63 Member
    Drink your own urine.

    No thanks, dude. I'll stay fat.
  • nfpswife
    nfpswife Posts: 63 Member
    senecarr wrote: »
    That you can have a TDEE of 2500-3000 calories / day walking 1/4 a mile so long as you drink bullet proof coffee.

    I see no flaws in this idea. None. And I want some of that coffee.
  • Cindy01Louisiana
    Cindy01Louisiana Posts: 302 Member
    RaeBeeBaby wrote: »
    That muscle weighs more than fat. Grrrrrrr! Can't count the number of times I've read that on MFP threads.

    I can't count the number of times that I've seen it corrected. When I see it written, I assume the reader really is thinking that muscle takes up less room than fat, so it doesn't bother me so much.
  • Stevo_Ra
    Stevo_Ra Posts: 21 Member
    Erik8484 wrote: »
    RaeBeeBaby wrote: »
    That muscle weighs more than fat. Grrrrrrr! Can't count the number of times I've read that on MFP threads.

    It does, in the same way that brick weighs more than water (and sinks) and pine wood weighs less than water (and floats).

    Its denser than fat not heavier, big difference.
  • CricketClover
    CricketClover Posts: 388 Member
    hCG diet, it has hit my facebook friends hard. And it is hard for me to keep my mouth shut.
  • CooCooPuff
    CooCooPuff Posts: 4,374 Member
    nfpswife wrote: »
    Drink your own urine.

    No thanks, dude. I'll stay fat.
    I can see this working. Youre left too disgusted to be able to eat anything.

    wasn't there a thread about eating poop a while back
  • Naptownbabi
    Naptownbabi Posts: 256 Member
    becbo22 wrote: »
    Itworks products.
    This!!! OMG my cousin and aunt(both overweight) are sales reps. They keep asking me to join their team and its so great. No thanks I don't want to dehydrate today. thanks though.

  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    RaeBeeBaby wrote: »
    That muscle weighs more than fat. Grrrrrrr! Can't count the number of times I've read that on MFP threads.

    It's a semantic issue that never bothers me. This is the same as saying "muscle weighs more than fat per unit of volume" and is not really a myth. People who say it know exactly what they are saying, just like a bag of rocks weighs more than the same bag filled with cotton candy without having to specify "per unit of volume". If you want to be pedantic you could similarly scrutinize people for not using newtons when they tell you about their weight and tell them they are actually measuring mass not weight.
  • stevencloser
    stevencloser Posts: 8,911 Member
    Stevo_Ra wrote: »
    Erik8484 wrote: »
    RaeBeeBaby wrote: »
    That muscle weighs more than fat. Grrrrrrr! Can't count the number of times I've read that on MFP threads.

    It does, in the same way that brick weighs more than water (and sinks) and pine wood weighs less than water (and floats).

    Its denser than fat not heavier, big difference.

    And if something is denser than another thing and you have two pieces of equal volume, what does that lead to?
  • stevencloser
    stevencloser Posts: 8,911 Member
    RaeBeeBaby wrote: »
    That muscle weighs more than fat. Grrrrrrr! Can't count the number of times I've read that on MFP threads.

    It's a semantic issue that never bothers me. This is the same as saying "muscle weighs more than fat per unit of volume" and is not really a myth. People who say it know exactly what they are saying, just like a bag of rocks weighs more than the same bag filled with cotton candy without having to specify "per unit of volume". If you want to be pedantic you could similarly scrutinize people for not using newtons when they tell you about their weight and tell them they are actually measuring mass not weight.

    Yeah, the corrections always sound like they think the person who posted it is an idiot.
  • janderson19_1
    janderson19_1 Posts: 20 Member
    I knew a trainer that told me she ate a banana on Thanksgiving and felt so bad because they're so bad for you. I always looked at her a little funny after that. If that's her idea of relaxing a bit for the holidays, she'd be appalled by my noodles and potatoes.

  • RogerToo
    RogerToo Posts: 16,157 Member
    senecarr wrote: »
    Erik8484 wrote: »
    RaeBeeBaby wrote: »
    That muscle weighs more than fat. Grrrrrrr! Can't count the number of times I've read that on MFP threads.

    It does, in the same way that brick weighs more than water (and sinks) and pine wood weighs less than water (and floats).

    A brick weighs more than the ocean?

    Hi
    Just in case a You are not kidding, a Pound is a pound, a Pound of feathers weighs the same as a pound of lead :)

    Wood floats because it displaces more water weight than it weighs.

    Good Luck
    Roger
  • RogerToo
    RogerToo Posts: 16,157 Member
    I was told that eating more than half a banana a week would lead to weight gain and cause diabetes. Seriously.

    (I probably eat a banana a day. Yes, a whole banana!!)

    Hi
    I do not believe that one. I eat a banana a day too. And with the weight reduction and lower caloric input my weight and my A1C and FBS are now all good.
  • Cindy01Louisiana
    Cindy01Louisiana Posts: 302 Member
    RaeBeeBaby wrote: »
    That muscle weighs more than fat. Grrrrrrr! Can't count the number of times I've read that on MFP threads.

    It's a semantic issue that never bothers me. This is the same as saying "muscle weighs more than fat per unit of volume" and is not really a myth. People who say it know exactly what they are saying, just like a bag of rocks weighs more than the same bag filled with cotton candy without having to specify "per unit of volume". If you want to be pedantic you could similarly scrutinize people for not using newtons when they tell you about their weight and tell them they are actually measuring mass not weight.

    Yeah, the corrections always sound like they think the person who posted it is an idiot.

    Yup!!!
This discussion has been closed.