3 Fitness Myths TikTok Got Totally Wrong

 

Hey, hey beautiful human! Today we are diving into something I know you’ve seen all over your feed—fitness advice from TikTok.

 

And listen, I love a good scroll just like the next woman. TikTok has brought a lot of awareness to fitness and nutrition, which is great… but it’s also spread a lot of confusion. And honestly? Some of the most viral tips you’ve probably heard… are just plain wrong.

 

So in this episode of Embrace Your Real, I want to set the record straight on three major fitness trends that TikTok has gotten totally wrong. Because I don’t want you wasting time, energy, or mental stress following advice that’s not actually helping you build the body you want.

 

What I discuss:

  1. The importance of structured strength training.

  2. How Carbs can actually help with recovery and sleep.

  3. Why Spot targeting fat loss isn’t a thing.

  4. Progressive overload and rest are key.

 

If you loved this episode, I know you’ll also love episode 56: 7 Common Workout Mistakes You're Probably Making

 https://www.juliealedbetter.com/embrace-your-real/7-common-workout-mistakes-youre-probably-making

 

If you want more from me, be sure to check out...

Transcript

00:00 -

Hey there, beautiful human, you're listening to Embrace your Real with me, julie Ledbetter, a podcast where I empower you to just be you. With each episode, I dish you a dose of real talk and actionable advice for building your confidence, honoring your body and unconditionally loving your authentic self. Stay tuned. If you're ready to embrace your real, let's get in, let's go, let's get it, let's go. Hello, and welcome back to the Embrace your Real podcast. I'm so pumped that you're here with me today because we're going to be diving into something that I know you guys have seen all over your feed, your fitness advice from TikTok. And listen, I love a good scroll, just like the next woman. Tiktok has definitely brought a lot of awareness to fitness and nutrition, which is absolutely great, but it's also spread a lot of confusion and, honestly, some of the most viral tips you've probably heard are just plain wrong. And so, in today's episode, I want to kind of set the record straight on three major fitness trends that TikTok, in my opinion, has gotten completely wrong, because I don't want you to be wasting your time, your energy or your mental stress following advice that's not actually helping you build the body that you want. I am always here to bring you clarity, evidence and real life guidance that actually works. So if you've been second guessing your routine or falling for every trend that you scroll past, this episode is 100% for you, especially as we dive into the summer season. Because, I'm telling you, all of this fake and just wrong advice is ramping up, because summertime is typically when people are very body aware and they are looking for all of the advice. And people know that and they capture on that.

01:33

But before we dive in, I want to share this review. This one comes from RealFitnessJourney88. She gave a five-star review and said Julie is my go-to when I feel overwhelmed with fitness info. She breaks it down in a way that actually makes sense and reminds me to stop chasing quick fixes. Her podcast is my gym BFF. I love this so much. Thank you so so much for taking time out of your day to send in this review, and that's my goal. That is always. My goal is to help you just not feel so overwhelmed with fitness and nutrition, because it doesn't have to be overwhelming. It really doesn't have to be overwhelming, and so I want you to be able to come on, listen to a podcast and I want you to walk away feeling encouraged, inspired, educated, and so that is always my goal when you tune into these episodes. So thank you so much. Real Fitness Journey 88. I really appreciate you taking time out of your day to send in this review.

02:23

Okay, let's bust some TikTok myths. Myth number one the 12, 330 workout, is all you need to get fit. Okay, let's start with the one that has completely taken over TikTok, and that is 12, 330. If you haven't heard of it, let me kind of catch you up. It's the treadmill routine where you set the incline to 12%, you walk at three miles per hour for 30 minutes. That's it, and people all over the internet are swearing. It's the key to getting fit, losing weight and toning up.

02:48

No, don't get me wrong, I am all for walking. Truly walking is one of the most underrated forms of movement. It boosts your mood, it reduces cortisol, it supports that blood sugar regulation. It helps with digestion. That can seriously improve recovery from your workouts, can increase your non-exercise calorie burn. I recommend it all the time, especially as a low stress way to get in more daily movement.

03:10

But here's where I need to clear something up. The myth isn't that 12, 330 is good for you. You can definitely do it and it will provide you a lot of benefits. The myth is that that's all you need to get fit and let's kind of somehow, that's it somehow the best or only form of exercise required to build the body that you want, and I hate to break it to you, but that's just not the truth. Here is the truth Walking at any incline for any amount of time, that doesn't build muscle.

03:38

And if you're listening to this podcast, I'm guessing that you actually want to feel stronger, you actually want to get more toned, you want to get confident in your body, you want definition, you want curves in all the right places. You want to look and feel athletic. Walking absolutely can help you lose fat, but it's not going to help you look more toned. Those are two very different things. Walking is a great supplement, but in my opinion it should not be the main thing. You can walk for hours a day and sure, it's gonna burn calories, it's gonna improve your overall health, but if you're not progressively overloading your muscles through resistance training, you will not change your body composition in the way that you're likely hoping for. That tone look that everyone is chasing. That is not from cardio, it's from muscle, and building muscle requires lifting weights consistently and strategically.

04:27

Now let me be super clear again 12, 330 is not bad. If you enjoy it, keep doing it. It can absolutely be a part of a well-rounded fitness routine, but that's the key. It's a part of your routine, not the whole routine. It's one tool in the toolbox, it's not the full blueprint. If your only form of movement right now is 12 through 30 and you feel stuck or your body isn't changing or you're constantly hungry or you're not seeing results, that is your sign that it's time to add in strength training, and I get it.

04:55

Figuring out how to actually do that can feel so intimidating, like how many reps, which exercises, how much weight, how often. This is exactly why I created my Movement with Julie app. I wanted to take the guesswork out of it. So inside the app, I walk you through every single dumbbell workout with easy to follow videos. So there's video demonstrations for every single movement, progressions that actually build over time. You have the ability to log and track so you can see what weight you lifted last time, how many reps you lifted last time and you can really implement that progressive overload. There are also flexible options depending on how many days a week.

05:30

You want to train, whether that's two, three, four or even five days a week, whatever fits your life. You don't need a fancy gym or hours a day. You just need a structured, effective plan and a little bit of guidance along the way. If you want to learn more, you can go to SALE. That's S-A-L-E dot movementjuliecom. Again, that's SALE S-A-L-E dot movementjuliecom. I will also include it in the show notes for you as well. But please don't fall for that. One trendy treadmill routine is the secret, like it is the one secret. It's not. You deserve a full body strength focus program that's actually designed to help you see results and help you feel good doing it, and that is exactly why I'm here to help you do just that.

06:11

Myth number two don't eat carbs at night. They will make you gain weight. Oh, this one. I cannot even count how many times I've had to bust this myth and somehow it's still making the rounds on TikTok like it's brand new information. So let me say this loud and clear for the people in the back Eating carbs at night does not make you gain weight. Weight gain happens when you are constantly eating more calories than your body needs, also known as a caloric surplus. That's it. It's not about when you eat. It's about how much you're eating overall. So no, eating a banana or a bowl of rice after 7 pm isn't going to suddenly turn into fat. Your body doesn't have some kind of calorie curfew.

06:50

This whole don't eat after X time thing it's not based on science. It's rooted in diet culture and fear-mongering, and it completely in diet culture and fear-mongering, and it completely, completely ignores how your body actually works. Here's the real science. Your metabolism doesn't shut down at night. It continues to function 24-7. Even when you're sleeping, your body is using energy to fuel recovery, brain function, hormonal repair and more so.

07:15

The idea that food turns straight into fat just because it's eaten after dark totally false. In fact, eating carbs at night can actually be beneficial for many women, especially those who lift weights, struggle with sleep or feel just ravenous the next morning. And here's why Because carbs support serotonin production, which actually helps your body make melatonin, which is the hormone responsible for regulating your sleep-wake cycle. So having some carbs at dinner can actually help you fall asleep faster and sleep more soundly. Carbs also replenish glycogen stores in your muscle, which is critical for recovery and strength gains, especially if you train in the evening or haven't eaten earlier in the day. And, last but not least, carbs can actually help to regulate hunger by keeping your blood sugar stable throughout the night. This means that you're less likely to wake up starving or overeat the next morning out of pure desperation.

08:06

And, of course, context always matters. If you tend to emotionally overeat at night, or if your evening meals are your most chaotic, then, yes, some structure and mindfulness are important. But that's not about the carbs, that's about your habits. I don't want you to confuse the two. So, instead of fearing carbs at night, what I really want you to do is focus on your total intake across the day your protein, your fiber, your macros overall and making sure that you're eating enough to fuel your goals, because that's where real transformation happens. And if you're sitting there thinking, I honestly have no idea what I should be eating or how much I should be eating. You are not alone. That's exactly why I created the Macro County Made Simple Online Academy. I walk you through how to calculate your macros based on your body, how to adjust them as your goals change and how to actually enjoy food again without guilt, without rules and without TikTok myths getting in your head. So, yes, you absolutely can still eat carbs at night. They are not the enemy. Undereating and over-restricting and fearing food that's what's keeping you stuck.

09:13

You deserve to fuel your body with confidence, not confusion. Let me say that again. You deserve to fuel your body with confidence, not confusion. Let me say that again. You deserve to fuel your body with confidence, not confusion. And last but not least, myth number three do this one Pilates exercise daily to see results. You know those videos that I'm talking about. Do this one Pilates move every day for flat abs. Or this one three-minute exercise will lift your booty. Do this every week. Just do this daily and tone your thighs in a week.

09:39

Look, I'm all for movement and I'll never knock Pilates. It is actually a great low impact way to connect to your body. But I also want to give you the real, science-backed info so that you don't waste your time chasing trends that actually don't work. So let's kind of break this down together. First of all, training the same muscle group every single day, not it? Your muscles need rest to grow. Let me say that again your muscles need rest to grow.

10:04

I know it sounds counterintuitive, but if you're doing the same booty or the same ab movement day after day. You're not giving your muscles time to recover, and recovery is where the magic happens. That's the tone, look, that you're looking for. It doesn't come from burning out the same muscle group daily. It comes from strategy, training plus rest and inside that Movement, with Julie app, my dumbbell-only workouts, I guide you through the workouts that are split intentionally so I give you upper body, lower body, full body, shoulders and glutes, cardio and core. You can do two of those workouts, you can do all five of those workouts, but you can rest assured that you're hitting all those muscle groups with purpose and giving them space to recover and rebuild in between. And that's how we get stronger, without burning out.

10:46

And second of all, if you want real results, you need progressive overload, like I mentioned earlier in today's episode. Doing the same body weight exercise for the same amount of time every single day is not going to change your body. It might feel good and again, movement is always great, but if your goal is to get toned, which really just means building lean muscle and reducing body fat, okay. So if you ever see the term toned, just equate that to building lean muscle and reducing body fat so that you can see that lean muscle. You need to challenge your muscles over time and that's what we call progressive overload. It's the principle of gradually increasing resistance, reps or intensity so that your muscles are constantly adapting and growing, and that's how we actually sculpt the muscle, boost the metabolism and see visible changes.

11:32

You cannot spot target fat loss period. It doesn't matter how many times the internet tells you otherwise. There's zero scientific evidence to support the idea that you can actually target fat loss in one specific area of your body by exercising that area more. That's just not how our bodies work. Fat loss is systematic. This means that it happens across your entire body, not just where you want it to. And how your body holds and loses fat. That's actually influenced by a lot of things outside of your control, like genetics, hormone levels and even stress. That's actually influenced by a lot of things outside of your control, like genetics, hormone levels and even stress. So if you're only doing ab or core workouts because you want a flat stomach or endless glute bridges because you want a rounder butt, you're missing the bigger picture.

12:15

Here's what does work Building lean muscle through full body strength training. So breaking up those days. So doing upper body, lower body, full body strength training. So breaking up those days. So doing upper body, lower body, full body cardio and core, shoulders and glutes, depending on what your goals are, you need to break up those specific workouts. What does work is eating enough protein and whole nutrient dense foods. What does work is managing stress and getting quality sleep. That totally, totally matters, that not only are you just getting sleep, but you're actually getting quality sleep. And what does matter is staying consistent with movement, without going to extremes.

12:52

Because when you start focusing on the whole picture is when you actually stop trying to shrink just one part of your body and start taking care of your whole body as a whole. Because when you focus on the whole picture, that means when you stop trying to shrink just one part of your body and start taking care of your body as a whole. That's when the real transformation happens. That's when your energy shifts, that's when you start to feel stronger, more confident and more you. And if you want a done-for-you program that kind of walks you through this every step of the way again, come join me inside the Movement With Julie app.

13:27

It's my double only workout app for women. We train smart. We fuel our bodies through my macro counting made simple online academy, I teach you that and we stop wasting times on the things that don't work, so you can start to feel good in your body and be proud of the effort that you are putting in. You deserve that every single day. So what should you do instead? Well, I want you to ditch the one move a day trend and instead focus on a plan that actually supports your goals Strength train consistently two to five times per week. That's a great sweet spot, depending on your goals, depending on your schedule, what season of life you're in and, again, if you need help with that. That's exactly why I created the Movement.

14:02

With Julie app, you'll get intentional, dumbbell-only workouts that build real strength, boost confidence and fit into your real life, without the guesswork, without the gimmicks. You don't need a trend. You instead need a plan that respects your time, your body and your goals, and my macro counting made simple online academy will teach you every step of the way how to properly and intentionally fuel your body. So I will link again both of those in the show notes below. It's salesalemovementjulycom and macrocountingmadesimplecom. Again, that's macrocountingmadesimplecom. I've got you every step of the way, but you need to put in the work, but you need to do it intentionally. You need to have a plan, you need to stop the guesswork, you need to stop these trends, these gimmicks, because I'm telling you, it's not only wasting time, but it's wasting so much of your energy.

14:50

All right, let's kind of recap what we covered in today's episode. Number one the 12-3-30 is not a complete workout plan. Walking is great, absolutely. I will never, ever, ever, say that walking isn't something that I encourage you to do on a daily basis, but if you want to build muscle and change your body composition, you need a structured strength training plan. Number two eating carbs at night will not make you gain weight. Timing does not matter nearly as much as your total intake, and carbs can actually help with recovery and sleep. And last but not least, number three doing the same exercise daily won't lead you to the results that you want. Spot targeting fat loss isn't a thing. You instead need to implement progressive overload and you need to rest your muscles before working them out again.

15:35

You do not need to follow every trend or viral post. You need clarity, you need consistency and a plan that supports your real life, and that's what I'm here to help you with. If you love today's episode, I know you will also love episode 56, seven common workout mistakes you're probably making. I will go ahead and link that in the show notes below. And again, if you're tired of guessing or randomly trying every workout that you see online, check out my Movement with Julie app. It is my dumbbell only workout program for you Five brand new workouts every single week, whether you're ready to build strength, fuel your body through my macro academy made simple online academy or just finally, feel confident in your plan. These tools, these programs are made for you and I've linked all of that in the show notes below.

16:17

As always, I am cheering you on. You are strong, you are capable and you are one decision away from changing everything. I love you so dang much. I mean it, and I'll talk to you in the next one. All right, sister, that's all I got for you today, but I have two things that I need you to do. First thing if you are not already following me on the gram, be sure to do so. Julie A Ledbetter yes, it's with an A in the middle For that daily post-workout real talk, healthy tips and tricks and honest accountability to keep your mind and heart in check. The second thing be sure to subscribe to Apple Podcasts to never miss an episode. Thank you so much for joining me. It means the absolute world, and I'm going to leave you with one last thought. The most beautiful women that I have met in my life are the ones who are completely confident and secure in being authentically themselves. Remember that beauty goes so much deeper than the surface. So go out there and embrace your real, because you're worth it.

 
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