Have you heard about the latest exercise called the “flying burpee?” Apparently, you can get the equivalent of a high intense 30-minute workout, just by doing three minutes of this brand new exercise! I can’t tell you exactly what steps for success the flying burpee entails (I’ll need my first payment installment of $33.99 before that happens), but I am confident that it will change the way you approach working out!

Does this sound somewhat familiar?

Fictitious Workouts

Every year it seems someone in the fitness industry comes up with a “new” way of working out or eating that is supposed to radically change your life. Over the years we have been introduced to the Atkins Diet, the mythical fat burning zone, a hundred different ways to pursue at home spinal re-alignment with the latest abdominal machine, and of course, the “shake weight,” the latest way to exercise.

The most recent exercise gadget I saw on an infomercial clicks when you have reached the target area for a particular abdominal exercise. And my assumption is you are supposed to differentiate between the clicks on the machine announcing you have good form... and the clicking your spine makes as it attempts to suffer through another repetition.

Oh No, They Didn’t

It seems for every advancement in the industry, there are at least a hundred ideas that don’t endure, (the Thigh Master, and Sauna Pants are a few come to mind) but that doesn’t stop attention seekers in the fitness industry from making outrageous statements in an attempt to be the first to discover a new way of working out.

A month ago, I read that had a gym owner in New York claiming that the squat is dead, and nobody should be doing it. A power lifter (also in the same article) was claiming that form doesn’t matter at all when lifting weights (Oh yes, they did).

I think most of these statements should be taken with a grain of salt and my assumption is that what has known to be true for a long time and has worked is probably the best route for optimum well-being.

Sources Are Key

The first thing I always think of when hearing anything opinion based about a new way of exercising, is to question the source; who is giving me this information and where did it originally come from? The origin is usually hard to trace, and is often not founded in logic or science, but one individual’s opinion. It seems a lot of gym myths and misconceptions start this way.

What do you think, Anytime Healthers? Is there some truth in any of these statements, (or others you may have come across in the gym or muscle magazines) or are these just attempts by exercise charlatan’s seeking to make a name?

What’s your favorite (or least favorite) exercise gadget or mythical exercise statement?

While you’re thinking of a response to that question, watch this infomercial for the “Hawaiian Chair”:

Shake Weight image via and Thigh Master image via