Tuesday Topics | Funny Fitness + Running Myths

July 13, 2021

It’s Tuesday and I am linking up with Kookyrunner and Zenaida for Tuesday Topics. Today we’re talking about funny fitness + running myths. You know, the things you hear about fitness and working out that people believe but are not true. Let’s hear a few of them.

“Sport ist Mord” (sport is murder).

In German, people (who don’t work out) usually say “Sport ist Mord” (sport is murder) to justify their aversion to moving their bodies. It’s the funniest thing I’ve ever heard, because regularly moving your body will actually help you to stay fit and healthy well into older age!

Runners don’t walk.

Well, actually, they do. And they should. And there is no shame in taking walking breaks. There, I said it. Even more experienced runners walk. In fact, marathon runners can improve their times by an average of 13-plus minutes if they walk-run, and half marathoners are on average seven minutes faster if they walk-run rather than run the whole way, according to Olympian Jeff Galloway. Who knew!

More is always better.

I know this all too well, that feeling of more, more, more: more miles, faster paces, more running days per week. But this is not what running is about (unless you’re in a specific training cycle and are preparing for a race, of course). Consistency and variety is key to your successful running career, but slower paces have their place. So do low mileage and rest days.

Running is supposed to be hard.

No, it’s not. Of course, running is a more intense activity than, let’s say, walking and when you just start out, running may feel hard, but it’s not supposed to be torture. In fact, many of your runs should be ‘easy runs’ at a low, comfortable intensity where you feel good and that make you want to run “forever”. If every run feels hard, chances are, you’re starting out too fast and you need to slow down.

If you want to run fast on race day, you have to run as fast as you can every day of your training.

Haha, ahm, no. That’s the LAST thing you want to do. Speed work is important to get to faster paces, but if you run fast every day of your training, you’ll crash and burn on race day.

If you don’t sweat, you’re not working hard enough.

Listen, I love a good sweat and definitely feel like I “accomplished” more when I am soaking wet after a training session, but sweat rate is highly personal and not every effective training will leave you in a puddle. That’s ok. It doesn’t mean you didn’t work hard enough.

Running is boring.

I’d like to politely disagree. I do my best thinking when I run. I can listen to music and podcasts. I also try to pick running routes that make me want to get out the door. This is a bullshit excuse not to run. ;)

What’s one fitness myth you find particularly funny?

Kimberly Hatting
July 13, 2021 at 11:03 am

Ha ha…I think all of the silly myths are BS, but they’re perpetuated by those who would rather make an excuse than give it a go. I think many have the fear of failure, and it’s easier to NOT do it than to risk not doing it perfectly the first time. I’m glad I got over all that crap (pun intended) years ago ;-) And those purple/blue flower tights in the pic…I assume that’s you? Those are H.O.T!!
1. San
  July 14, 2021 at 4:58 pm
  
  Thanks Kim. I love those tights! :)
Deborah Brooks
July 13, 2021 at 5:10 pm

yes to all of these! More is not better-have learned that the hard way. There is no shame at all in walking. I love to use run/walk itervals
1. San
  July 14, 2021 at 4:59 pm
  
  Run/walk intervals are awesome.
Kim G
July 13, 2021 at 5:19 pm

I’ve never heard sport is murder – yikes! That’s definitely one extreme way to look at exercise, lol.

I have also learned the hard way that more is not always better. In fact, doing too much has resulted in a few injuries for me.
1. San
  July 14, 2021 at 4:59 pm
  
  Yep, over-training usually causes injuries. Do take those rest days! :)
Catrina
July 14, 2021 at 12:40 am

Yes to walking breaks! I’m following Jeff Galloway’s training plan for a 10k and that’s in my schedule. At first, I thought it was a little odd, but now I really like it.

Haha, and yes to hearing the “Sport ist Mord” saying. I think it’s a quote from Winston Churchill – which is quite fitting considering his lifestyle. ;-)
1. San
  July 14, 2021 at 5:02 pm
  
  So glad you’re also liking Jeff Galloway’s run/walk training plan!
Nicole MacPherson
July 14, 2021 at 3:50 am

The myth I don’t like is “You have to be flexible to do yoga.” You do NOT. Yoga is beneficial to everyone! I’ve taught seniors and people who have had strokes, as well as very flexible people – there are benefits to be had for all!
1. San
  July 14, 2021 at 5:03 pm
  
  Oh, I agree, yoga is beneficial to everyone and it’s not at all about how bendy you are!
Jenny
July 14, 2021 at 12:29 pm

Ha ha, the “sport is murder” one reminds me of Donald Trump- didn’t he say something about how you have a finite amount of energy so you shouldn’t use it up by exercising? Something brilliant like that.
I don’t think I’ve ever been bored on a run, not once. Tired, yes. Sore, yes. Feel like stopping, yes. But never bored.
1. San
  July 14, 2021 at 5:04 pm
  
  OMG, yes, Trump said something equally stupid…. SMH.
  
  Yeah, definitely never bored on a run – tired and sore, yes :)
Lisa of Lisa's Yarns
July 15, 2021 at 6:54 am

Yep, I agree with all these myths. Another one is that you have to run high mileage or 5+ days/week to achieve your race goals. A lot of training plans, like the Hal Higdon ones I used back in the day, had you running 5 days a week. That was just TOO MUCH for me. I ended up kind of hating running by the end. When I ran with a running club, we ran 3 days/week and then I would try to strength train 2 other days and had 2 rest days. It was perfect and I still achieved my goals – or almost. I didn’t quite run a sub-4 marathon. I think my time was 4:02. So I came close! But my first marathon when I was running 5 days/week was 4:50!
1. San
  July 15, 2021 at 5:24 pm
  
  Oh, that’s a “good” one… I also don’t believe in super-high mileage or 5+ days/week training plans. So far, I have reached all my goals by running 3-4 days and cross-training and I wouldn’t change my approach. Sounds like that also worked for you! I am sure you could get the sub-4-marathon if you trained again.
Zenaida Arroyo
July 15, 2021 at 6:04 pm

I love taking walking breaks. Nothing wrong with it. :-) It took me a few years to realize that my long runs on Saturday had to be slower than my other runs.
Tanja Jordan
July 19, 2021 at 11:45 am

I feel some of these are addressed to me …. :)
1. San
  July 19, 2021 at 4:45 pm
  
  Hahaha,… wenn du dich angesprochen fühlst :)
Stephany
July 21, 2021 at 5:47 am

I think one of the myths that really grinds my gears is people who don’t consider walking to be exercise. Walking is FANTASTIC exercise, and you can make it as leisurely or intense as you want it to be! And it’s just a good mental health break, too.
anne
August 1, 2021 at 10:17 am

These are all so true – although I (not being German, presumably) have never heard that “Sport is murder”! Yikes! thanks for sharing – you really do learn something every day! :)

I sweat a ton in the summer, of course, but especially when I am biking , for some reason. More so than when I am running (although that is not happening right now, and I’m a bit worried it may never come back… sigh…). But in the winter, I rarely if ever sweat, even when working out inside.