Myth No. 1: Doing crunches or working on an "ab machine" will get rid of belly fat.

Don't believe everything you hear on those late-night infomercials! while an ab-crunching device might "help strengthen the muscles around your midsection and improve your posture," being able to "see" your abdominal muscles has to do with your overall percentage of body fat. If you don't lose the belly fat, you won't see the ab muscles.

But can doing ab crunches help you to lose that belly fat? Experts say no.

"You can’t pick and choose areas where you’d like to burn fat," says Avinash Jayan, CEO of of X Attack and the brains behind the dynamic X Attack workout routines. So crunches aren't going to target weight loss in that area.

"In order to burn fat, you should create a workout that includes both cardiovascular and strength-training elements. This will decrease your overall body fat content," including the area around your midsection, he says.

Myth No. 2: An aerobic workout will boost your metabolism for hours after you stop working out.

This statement is actually true -- but the calorie burn is probably not nearly as much as you think!

While your metabolism will continue to burn at a slightly higher rate after you finish an aerobic workout, the amount is not statistically significant. In fact, it allows you to burn only about 20 extra calories for the day. While there's a little bit more of a metabolic boost after strength training, he says, it's still marginal.

"It doesn't really count towards your caloric burn," he says.

Myth No. 3: Swimming is a great weight loss activity.

While swimming is great for increasing lung capacity, toning muscles, and even helping to burn off excess tension, The truth is that unless you are swimming for hours a day, it may not help you lose much weight.

"Because the buoyancy of the water is supporting your body, you're not working as hard as it would if, say, you were moving on your own steam -- like you do when you run,"

Further, he says, it's not uncommon to feel ravenous when you come out of the water.

"It may actually cause you to eat more than you normally would, so it can make it harder to stay with an eating plan," he says.

Myth No. 4: If you're not working up a sweat, you're not working hard enough.

"Sweating is not necessarily an indicator of exertion, sweating is your body’s way of cooling itself."

It's possible to burn a significant number of calories without breaking a sweat: Try taking a walk or doing some lightweight training.

Myth No. 5: I need exercises to work my 'lower abs' and reduce my pot belly.

Doing crunches 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. 6: Strength training will make me "bulk up"

Some women avoid weight training because they don't want to bulk up. However, strength training is a critical element to maintain a healthy weight and strengthen your body. What researchers know is the average woman doesn't typically gain size from strength training because she doesn't have the amount of hormones necessary to build massive amounts of muscle. Even men have a tough time gaining muscle and it's something you have to work very hard to achieve, male or female.

Myth No. 7: If I eat more protein, I can build big muscles.

Building muscle mass involves two things: Using enough weight to challenge muscles beyond their normal levels of resistance and eating more calories than you burn. With all the hype about high protein diets lately, it's easy to believe that protein is the best fuel for building muscle but, according to the American Dietetic Association, muscles work on calories so you need all three types of nutrients - carbs, protein and fat.

If you consume too much protein, you run the risk of creating nutrient imbalance, kidney strain, or dehydration. Plus, excess protein results in extra calories that are either burned or stored. For muscle mass, you should incorporate a healthy eating plan, as well as a workout that combines cardio exercise as well as consistent weight training.

Myth No. 8: You should never drink water when you're over-heated.

Wrong! You should drink water continuously before, during and after exercising to replace the fluid you've lost. On a hot day, you can lose as much as a quart of water an hour while exercising. When you work out, your muscles generate heat that causes your body temperature to rise. Heat from muscles is carried away by water in the bloodstream and brought to the surface as perspiration. As this continues, unless water is replaced, you can become dangerously dehydrated. By the way, don't rely on thirst as an indicator of water need. By the time you feel thirsty, you're probably already dehydrated. Drink before you get thirsty.

Myth No. 9: Eventually, your weight and fitness level will plateau.

Sure, but it's temporary. Just keep at it and periodically (every two to three weeks) "up the ante" by changing the frequency, duration and intensity of your exercise. You should continue to see results if you continue to challenge yourself.

Myth No. 10: If you are experiencing joint pains, you shouldn't exercise.

Wrong! People with joint pains and osteoarthritis can improve their condition by keeping joints mobile and active. Fitness training will also help keep bones dense and strong, increase blood circulation, relieve stress, increase immunity and protect the heart and other muscles from atrophy. A good exercise to try might be swimming. Because the water supports your weight, exercising in water allows you to get strong without putting stress on arthritic joints.

Myth No. 11: If all you're doing is walking, you don't have to worry about warming up,stretching and cooling down.

Sorry, you still have to worry. Soft tissue injury is a possibility even if you're "just" walking -- an exercise that can be every bit as intense as running. The best way to avoid injury is to spend five minutes moving at a steady, comfortable pace until your muscles are warmed up and you break a sweat. Then, either move on to your exercise of the day or walk at the right pace for elevating your heart rate to the proper level. When you're done, cool down by tapering off the pace gradually. Walk or train slowly for three to five minutes. Then, stretch, breathe and drink more water. Because your muscles are warm, this is a great time to stretch. Warm muscles are more flexible, and you're unlikely to hurt yourself.

Myth No. 12: Each workout should be devoted to one specific muscle group

Are you devoting an entire day of your workout program to biceps and triceps? Do you have a separate day for hamstrings and quads? What some guys don't realize is that compound lifts work many muscles indirectly.

Take the bench press: If you perform this exercise on your "chest day," you will also stimulate your triceps fairly heavily. This means that by carefully choosing your exercises, you can incorporate more muscle groups into every workout, which will provide better results in less time.

Keep in mind that you don't always have to do very specific exercises to target certain smaller muscles; by simply working them indirectly, you will see improvements in your strength and size.

Myth No. 13: Food eaten after 8 p.m. will turn into body fat

Do you think your metabolism knows what time it is? While your body does run according to a circadian rhythm, your metabolism does not shut down at night. You still need to provide your body with fuel to repair and rebuild while you sleep, and to prevent it from going into a catabolic state brought on by a long period of fasting. This is especially important if you work out later in the day.

After a workout, your body is crying for a good source of carbohydrates, so don't skimp because you think eating at this time will make you gain fat.
It is important to make sure you are eating healthy foods later in the day -- such as lean meat, healthy fats, plenty of vegetables, and even some complex carbohydrates if you are really active later in the day -- to reduce your risk of adding unwanted body fat, but there is no need to avoid eating altogether.

Myth No. 14: If You Stop Exercising, Your Muscles Will Turn to Fat

Fat and muscles are two different tissue types. One cannot convert to the other. The truth is that muscles atrophy when not used. Therefore, if you continue to eat as you always have, but stop exercising, you will see an increase in body fat and a loss of muscle mass. Of course, the real question is why are you stopping exercise in the first place?

Myth No. 15: If You Exercise, You Can Eat Anything

If you try to make up for poor nutrition by exercising, you are going to be disappointed. While eating poorly and not exercising is far worse for your health that eating poorly and exercising, you will get the most out of your workouts if you fuel them with high quality foods.

Myth No. 16: To Lose Weight, You Need to Eat Less

The key to weight loss through diet is to eat 5 to 6 small meals throughout the day. The three squares a day is a very American tradition, which is why many other countries are still not facing the climbing rates of obesity and heart disease that we are (although, a few of them are starting to catch up). So, the opposite of this myth is actually true: To Lose Weight, You Need to Eat More (frequently). And, just in case you didn't know, it's eating more healthy foods -- not Value Meals from McDonalds.

Myth No. 17: Carbs Make You Gain Weight

True and false. Simple, fast-acting carbohydrates that ring in high on the glycemic index (such as white rice and white bread, fruit juices, candy, etc.) lead to weight gain. But, complex, slower-acting carbs (such as whole grains and vegetables) are very rich in fiber, thereby aiding in proper digestion and the breaking down of nutritional essentials. In short, carbs should not be avoided altogether, just those that are high in refined sugars.

Myth No. 18: The best way to lose fat is to do cardio.

Screw cardio! Now don’t get me wrong, walking or jogging around the block or on a treadmill is better than nothing. But I’m not -- and you shouldn’t be -- concerned with what’s better than nothing. I personally am not concerned about being average. If you’re going to put the time in, use it wisely.

Have you been to any one of the gyms across this country? What percentage of people who perform cardio are lean? How many people that you see performing cardio on a regular basis make gains, and better still, keep them?

There are three things to keep in mind about cardio when trying to get leaner. One is that it doesn’t build muscle. Two, it doesn’t preserve muscle while losing weight. Both are extremely important if your goal is not only to get leaner, but to stay that way. As we lose weight the body does not discriminate where the weight comes from. We lose muscle along with fat, especially on a low calorie diet. And performing cardio accentuates this phenomenon.

Lastly, unless you enjoy cardiovascular training, it’s just not worth the time. The work to benefit ratio is dismal to say the least. Unless you’re willing to bust your butt and perform 60 to 90 minutes of cardio a day, which will hinder your muscle building capacity, cardio is not worth it.

If you do nothing but diet and cardio, you may lose some weight, but your results will be less than expected. Your appearance and overall shape will stay the same. If you have excess fat around your butt and narrow shoulders, your proportion will remain. This is not improvement to me, and if it is to you, you’re going down the wrong road.

The best and only form of exercise for reshaping and improving your health is progressive weight training.