5 Fitness Topics You May Not Know

Read Up On the Latest Fitness Topics

There is so much information on the internet in regards to fitness that it’s hard to keep up. There is also so much new research coming out daily that makes what you thought you knew today obsolete tomorrow. Let’s take a look at five of the more interesting topics that we all should know more about.

New and interesting fitness topics

1. How many calories do I need to drop to lose weight?

5 Fitness Topics You May Not KnowWhen you break it down there are roughly 3500 calories in one pound of body weight. So if you were to have a 500 calorie a day deficit in your diet then you could potentially lose a pound a week.

I’ve discussed before that as you cut your calories to a certain extent your metabolism starts to slow down. Instead of automatically cutting 500 calories from your diet, try having a 200 calorie deficit in your daily diet (1800 daily calories).

Although this will take a little longer, it sets you up for a more sustainable weight loss that can take you further than quick severe diet restriction.

Bottom line: Having a 500 calories deficit a day can lead to losing a pound of weight a week.

2. Can I burn fat off my abs by only doing crunches?

Simply put, no. You cannot spot train fat reduction in certain areas of the body.

Doing 1000 crunches will not reduce the fat specifically from the abs but it will cause muscle hypertrophy and muscle growth there. Through your diet, you can decrease the fat throughout your body.

After losing fat from all over the body, those 1000 crunches can come in handy by making your muscles bigger and easier to see once the fat layer has been lost. That is exactly how you get toned.

Bottom line: You can spot train muscles, you can’t spot train fat loss.

3. Are all supplements the same?

While multivitamins have taken some flak in the recent news, multivitamins, in general, are great for overall well-being and immune function.

The problem is a lot of multivitamins are made of synthetics that are not absorbed very well by the digestive system (look for ones not made of synthetics).

When it comes to the vast price difference between name-brands and generics, a Consumer Report study indicated that almost all store-bought pill multivitamins were practically the same; buy the cheap stuff!

One alternative is liquid supplementation. For starters, they are easier to take for those that have problems swallowing pills but they have been found to be absorbed faster (already dissolved and ready to use) than pill multivitamins.

Bottom line: Most pill form multivitamins are the same, liquid supplements could offer faster and potentially more efficient absorption.

More Info:
Are All Multivitamins the Same

4. What is collagen protein?

We’ve all heard about whey protein and probably casein protein as well. One protein that you may not have heard of is collagen protein, usually called hydrolyzed collagen protein.

Collagen protein is the most abundant type of protein found in the human body and is important for joint, ligament, tendon, skin, and muscle health. Hydrolyzed collagen is collagen that has undergone a chemical process to break it down to smaller easier to absorb molecules.

These smaller molecules have been found to be 90% absorbed within 6 hours of ingestion (Oesser et al 1999)!

At its surface, collagen protein is an incomplete protein, lacking tryptophan and asparagine. To combat this manufacturers supplement tryptophan and other amino acids into the protein to make it a complete protein and help support joint health and muscle growth.

There is evidence that hydrolyzed collagen can support lean muscle mass but research is ongoing in this area! If whey is not giving you the results you want, maybe checkout hydrolyzed collagen protein!

Bottom line: Hydrolyzed collagen could be an alternative protein by potentially supporting lean muscle mass and healthy joints.

More Info:
LiveStrong: Hydrolyzed Collagen
Frog Performance, Frog Fuel

5. Should obese individuals start off with running to get in shape?

Frankly, obese individuals should not start off on a running routine, this can lead to injury and dropout from the exercise routine. I’m not talking about being 20 pounds overweight, I’m talking about being 50+ pounds overweight.

Being obese puts more pressure on your joints, especially when running on the pavement; the constant joint pounding can cause injury.

Likewise, starting out too hard too fast can cause the individual to be sore or just give up and quit the program. One way to begin is by briskly walking for 45 minutes each day until you build up your exercise capacity and lose body weight. Eventually, you can progress into a running routine.

Once you build up your exercise capacity you can move onto jogging or biking. If you need some help on finding the right bike, check out Fat Bike reviews.

Also, there are a lot of exercises you can do at home to help keep fit if you are a senior. Reach out to us or your doctor if interested.

Bottom line: You definitely need to start exercising but start with walking daily until you are ready to progress to a running routine.

More Info:
Active: Fitness Misconceptions

Wrap-Up

The constantly new research comes to light that shapes our views on fitness and nutrition. Stay alert and be aware of what you think you know might be ancient history a couple of years down the road.

Take the egg for instance. It went from being the “incredible, edible egg” to being proclaimed a major cholesterol contributor and the bad guy of nutrition.

These days it’s starting to make a comeback as science tells us that the egg is one of the healthiest foods you can eat!

Keep these five topics in mind next time you are trying to lose weight, choose a multivitamin, develop an exercise plan, or pick a protein!

References

Oesser S, Adam M, Babel W, Seifert J (1999) Oral administration of 14C labeled gelatine hydrolysate leads to an accumulation of radioactivity in cartilage of mice (C57/BL). Journal of Nutrition 129 (10): 1891–1895.

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