Like any industry, fitness carries many myths and I have heard them all, for men it usually goes something like this “I just want to loose my belly, so tell me what are the best exercises for that?” and for woman “no I don’t want to use weights I don’t want big muscles” By believing many of the myths your progress will be slow, below is a list of myths busted avoid some common mistakes and get better results faster.

Myth No. 1: I need exercises to work my 'lower abs' and reduce my belly.

Truth: First, there is no such thing as 'lower abs.' The six-pack you're going for is actually one long muscle, called the Rectus Abdominis, that extends from below your chest to your pelvis. To work your abs, you should do exercises to target all four muscles: the rectus abdominis, internal and external oblique and the transverse abdominis.
Second, doing a thousand sit ups will not help you get a 'six-pack' if you have a layer of fat over your abdominal area. In order the see the muscles you must reduce your body fat

Myth No. 2: You can loose fat off of specific body parts by doing exercises that target those areas.

Truth: This concept is called "spot training" and unfortunately, it doesn’t burn fat. Big companies prey on this myth and regrettably many people still believe in this. When you want to lose fat, you are unable to choose the area in which the reduction will occur. Your body predetermines which fat stores it will use. For example, doing sit-ups will strengthen you abs but will not take the fat off of your stomach. equally, an activity like running burns fat all over your body, not just your legs. Diet is the key, combine this with exercise and you will see your six-pack.

Myth No. 3: Women who lift weights will look like Mr. Universe.

Truth: this is my favorite there is probably 1 in 1 million women who can grow muscle fast and I have met them all, well according to the woman that I have spoken too. In order to grow big muscles you need the right hormones (testosterone) are necessary in order to bulk up. Women’s testosterone levels are much lower than men’s, so in most cases, they are not capable of building large muscles. In fact, since muscle takes up less room than fat, women tend to lose inches when they lift weights. Lifting weights you gain other benefits increased metabolism, decreased risk of osteoporosis, increased strength,

Myth No. 4: Performing abdominal exercises will give you a flat stomach.

Truth: This is related to Myth No.1. The fact is the only way to see a six-pack is to remove the layer of fat covering it. This is achieved by combing cardio/aerobic exercise (to burn calories), strength training (to increase metabolism) and following a proper diet. Abdominal exercises will help to build muscle in your midsection, but you will never see the muscle definition unless the fat in this area is stripped away.

Myth No. 5: Eating after 7pm will make you fat.

Truth: It all depends on whether or not the body needs that amount of calories at that time. Keep in mind your body is constantly burning calories, 24 hours per day, just the amount varies. Eating a big Mac is not a good idea, eating nuts, seeds and some lite protein is a good idea.

Myth No. 6:Pilates will give you a toned body.

Truth: It will do little to improve your cardiovascular fitness or lower-body fat, a beginner classes, you burn approximately 175 calories. Even an advanced class fails to raise your heart rate and burn only 250 calories, the same benefits gained from walking at a slow pace. Pilates has a long list of benefits including improved body mechanics, balance, co-ordination, strength and flexibility, Pilate’s session burns a relatively small amount of calories

Myth No. 7: To get the fastest results you need the latest equipment.

Truth : If you ask me some of the latest equipment makes you lazier, treadmills with built in TV, memory key card, weight assisted chin ups machines. Give me some dumbbells, with a pair of dumbbells I can target the entire core muscles offer the most variety of exercises and a third of the price I can even do this at home.

Myth No. 8: If I look skinny, then I’m not fat.

Truth: Even if you look skinny you can still be fat meaning that that your body fat in relation to your muscle mass is high. High body fat has been associated with a number of medical problems including diabetes, heart disease, stroke, cancer and the list goes on. You don’t need your belly to be bulging over your jeans to be fat.

Myth No. 9: Muscle weighs more then fat.

Truth: Question what weighs more a kilo of feathers or a kilo of steel? A kilo is a kilo, so a pond of muscle weighs the same as a pond of fat, but like the feathers and the steel, fat takes up more room about three times as much volume.

Myth No.10: The more I train the faster the results.

Truth: Like with so many things we do, we believe more is better, ok its much better to workout 4 times a week then it is to workout once, that’s not the myth, the problem is there is no limit to how much you should workout and that leads to over training, overtraining leads to injury and plateaus your progress. Train smarter not longer, its not how long you train that gives you results it’s the intensity at which you train.

Myth No.11: Women need to train differently than men.

Truth: there is practically no difference between the muscle tissue of men and the muscle tissue of women. Men and women have different levels of the same hormones, and that's what is the difference is in the amount of muscle a man can typically put on and the amount of muscle a woman can typically gain. There is absolutely no reason why either should train differently.

Myth No. 12: Training with weights hinders flexibility. Makes you muscle bound

Truth: In the 1930s companies that were selling isometric exercise programmes by mail were trying to convince people _not_ to exercise with barbells, simply because it wasn't practical to send weights through the mail. So they made up the 'muscle-bound' lie. (Source: Bill Philips)

When done properly (slowly and using a complete range of motion), weight training increases flexibility. Many athletes now engage in weight training in order to improve their performance This lie might have been fueled from the feeling of 'tightness' that accompanies an intense workout. If the workout was intense and a sufficient number of muscle fibers were recruited and microscopically damaged, then even the normal tonus (the normal amount of contraction experienced by a relaxed muscle) is more than enough to cause a feeling of pain and tightness. The tightness is compounded by the 'tugging' of the tendons on the muscles. Stretching, however, would do much to alleviate this tightness, and stretching is a recommended part of any athletic pursuit.