Muscle Myths: 50 Health & Fitness Mistakes You Don't Know You're Making

By: Michael Matthews

Narrated by: Jeff Justus

Length: 4 hrs and 6 mins

Publisher's Summary

Do any of the following claims sound familiar?

"I have bad genetics - I just can't build muscle or lose fat easily."

"You have to work your abs more to get a six-pack."

"When doing cardio, you want your heart rate in the 'fat burning zone'."

"Don't eat carbohydrates - they make you fat."

"Don't eat at night if you want to lose weight."

"If you wait too long between meals, your body goes into 'starvation mode' and you will mess up your metabolism."

"I'm overweight because I have a slow metabolism."

You've probably heard one or more of these statements before, and the sad truth is lies like these have ruined many people's fitness ambitions.

Muscle Myths was written to debunk the most commonplace and harmful gimmicks, fads, myths, and misinformation in the health and fitness industry.

Here are just some of the things you'll learn in this book:

• Why you don't have to completely cut out carbs or fat, or eat weird combinations of food to lose weight.
• The truth about supplements.
• The truth about the effects of fasting and the "starvation mode" myth.
• Why eating a substantial amount of carbohydrates every day won't make you fat as some "experts" claim, but why going low-carb can be beneficial for some.
• The scientific secrets of getting a six-pack.
• Training and diet methods that will completely shatter any perceived "genetic barriers" that you think are holding you back.
• What you need to know about alcohol and its effects on your fat loss and muscle growth. (Hint: It's not nearly as bad as some people claim, and you don't have to totally abstain if you know what you're doing!)
• And much more.

Special Bonus! With this book you'll also get a free 31-page bonus report from the author called "The No-BS Truth about Building Muscle, Getting Shredded, and Staying Healthy".

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©2013 Mike Matthews (P)2013 Mike Matthews

Another great one by Michael Matthews

This book does an excellent job filling in the gaps you may have in you fitness and nutrition knowledge. It is the perfect book to listen to after you finish "Bigger Leaner Stronger: The Simple Science of Building the Ultimate Male Body." I highly recommend it. The content, writing style, and narration are all top notch.

5 people found this helpful

Decent material, but the reader sounds like a punk

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

If I had a friend who was dedicated to body-building, then I might recommend this book. My hesitation comes from the fact that the "science" the author keeps talking about is never cited.

Who was your favorite character and why?

N/A

How could the performance have been better?

The reader is very, very annoying. He sounds like a muscle-head and the entire time I kept thinking that there was something... condescending about his voice.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Not really/

9 people found this helpful

My encyclopedia of MUSCLE

This is the 2nd book I've bought by Mike Matthews. I also bought Bigger Leaner Stronger, and bought both of them on Audible so I could listen as I workout, mow the lawn, or drive in the car. I was such a huge fan of Bigger Leaner Stronger, I had to get another of his books.
Much of the information is the same here, but not all of it. I definitely learned things in the book that weren't covered in Bigger Leaner Stronger. What I like best about this book is the way it is organized into the 50 myths, and they are broken down into cardio myths, muscle myths, nutrition myths, etc. So it's easy to reference a certain section for review. That is why I call this my Encyclopedia of Muscle. A truly great reference. Had I read this in college, I'd probably look as good as Mike does now (maybe). Thanks Mike.

4 people found this helpful

Good, but not Bulletproof

Any additional comments?

I picked this up in audiobook form shortly after listening to Dave Asprey's "Bulletproof Diet". It is a good book and I don't regret getting it at all. However, I think there is more information now than what was available when this book was written.

The author, Michael Matthews, is certainly a "calorie is a calorie" guy. And I will admit on some level that he may be right. There is new research now that certain foods heavily influence your gut bacteria, and that the type of gut bacteria you have has a lot to do with your weight.

Actual scientific studies, published in Nature, show that the obese patients in the study (about 80% of the group studied) had lower counts of gut microbiota. These people were more obese than those with higher counts of gut bacteria. They also tended to put on weight faster.

If a calorie is just a calorie, then nobody in the groups should have put on weight unless they were eating more calories than they were burning. So it seems that there is more to it than just calories in vs. energy expended. Hmmm.

I highly recommend getting a copy of Dave Asprey's "Bulletproof Diet" and "Go Wild: Free Your Body and Mind from the Afflictions of Civilization," by John J. Ratey and Richard Manning. Both books go beyond the calorie. The types of food you eat do influence gut bacteria, and these books explain that very well.

I do like that Matthews isn't afraid to count calories. I guess I understand, but I don't know why everyone is so against counting calories. Even if there is more to it than calories, in 2014 I dropped 65 pounds, and I did so after joining MyFitnessPal and by eating a lot better. It is very possible to eat healthy, but still overeat. It was only by logging for a while on MFP that I was able to see exactly what was sabotaging me.

Also, I take issues with a few of his busted myths. For example: Myth #41: Eating a lot of protein is bad for your kidneys.

The one study he produced was hardly the be all and end all of the matter. High protein diets increase the amount of acid in your body. See the study, "Excess Dietary Protein Can Adversely Affect Bone1,2" by Uriel S. Barzel and Linda K. Massey. In it they note that the effects of dietary protein may be greater as we age: aging kidneys cannot generate ammonium ions and excrete hydrogen ions as well as young kidneys do. It also points out that when the body is challenged with a dietary acid load, "the kidneys excrete more acidic urine, and the organism also turns to the skeleton for additional buffer. " In other words, a high protein diet can leach calcium from the bones.

So he may technically be right that the study he produced didn't show any kidney damage from a high protein diet, there is plenty of evidence that a high protein diet may have negative effects over time.

The "Bulletproof Diet" is one of the few books I have read where the author actually understands the dangers of too much or too little protein. Yes, like Goldilocks, Asprey gets it just right, and gets my vote for a book that should be read along with Muscle Myths.

6 people found this helpful

Disappointing

This meathead knocks other authors, whose books I have read, for their "scientifically bankrupt" claims, but doesn't address any of the mountain of scientific evidence carefully presented by the likes of, for example, science writer Gary Taubes and endocrinologist Dr. Robert Lustig.

5 people found this helpful

Great motivational book

If you could sum up Muscle Myths: 50 Health & Fitness Mistakes You Don't Know You're Making in three words, what would they be?

motivational, informative, interesting

Any additional comments?

I am almost done with this book, and I am really loving it. It helps to clarify so many myths in the fitness industry, and gives great tips for someone who is serious (or even curious) about improving ones capabilities to get lean and build muscle. Great book, and I look forward to reading more work by this author.

3 people found this helpful

Another Great Book!

I love Mike’s books! Easy to understand and follow with loads of great information and inspiration.

good knowledge

very informative it's a must-read I learned a lot you can tell he put a lot of time and effort in this book

Another Great Book

After listening to Bigger Leaner Stronger I ordered Muscle Myths from Amazon and powered through it in one day. Lots of great info and fascinating debunking a lot of the things I always thought were true. Also the same narrator and he is really good! Love the book and now I'm going to get Cardio Sucks.

An Author You Can Trust

This is a book every gym rat needs to get his hands on. Before you spend another nickel on bodybuilding supplements, you need to listen to this book.

Excellent and informative

Very useful information that reveals the truth about muscle and gets rid of all the fads!

1 person found this helpful

Great book once again.

felt like it took no time at all to get through. If you're interested in fitness it's a must read. It guides you in the direction of sound advise whilst supported by studies.

3 people found this helpful

Worthy Book 📙

Valuable information gathered by author.
Thank you. I learned a lot of secrets from this book.

life changing book,amazing

loved it,wish i had it before but its ok now is good too.mike congrats dude