This week, I am going to cover a number of fitness myths. We all have been given advice on what to do when working out or heard a few things that seemed a bit off regarding fitness. Now let's cut through a few of these myths.

1. No pain no gain. We have all heard this going back to youth sports. The fact is, being active and working out should not hurt. The one obvious thing that you may feel after a great workout is muscle soreness, not pain.

2. Having an aggressive core workout will get you six-pack abs. False, a strong workout regimen is great, but that six pack will never show if you do not include a strict diet to lose the belly fat that typically covers your abdominal core area.

3. Running on a treadmill is easier on your knees and ankles than running on pavement. This one is both true and false. Running on a treadmill has more give then running on pavement. The bounce of a treadmill acts a bit like a shock absorber so knees and joints have less impact. But a constant incline on a treadmill and the fact that a treadmill can cause limited stride variations, can create problems for your knees.

4. Sweating is an indication you are burning more calories. Sweating is not an indicator that you are burning more calories. The type of exercise is really what defines the caloric burn. Your heart is working a bit harder to push extra blood to the surface of your skin to keep your body temperature cooler, but unfortunately, the calories being burned for that cooling are very few.

5. Lifting weights is bad for children. Most experts now agree that lifting moderate weights with good form and technique is not bad for children. In fact, lifting weights increases bone density, strengthens their musculoskeletal system which can help prevent injuries and increases metabolism which helps fight childhood obesity.

6. You can tone just one area of your body. The fact is when you work out, you are working various areas of the body or your kinetic chain, which means you cannot tone just one area only. This is not to say that you cannot over-build certain muscle groups more than others.We have all seen the guy with huge biceps and skinny sticks for legs.

7. Muscle weighs more than fat. If you place one pound of muscle on a scale and one pound of fat on a scale, they will both weigh one pound. The real difference between them is in total volume. One of the first things people notice when they start an exercise program is the loss of inches. Which means you're burning away bulky fats and firming up lean tight muscle.

8. It is a bad idea to exercise every day. This is both true and false and it is not necessary to exercise every single day. Your body needs time to heal. Most of your fitness gains are achieved while you are resting, giving your body a chance to recover. On the other hand, it is very good if you can perform some type of physical activity every day. Your body is designed to be active, not sedentary.

9. You should stretch before a run. The experts tend to say no, you should not stretch before your run. Although there is a mixed point of view on this, almost all research studies have shown there is no greater chance of getting injured for one group or the other.

10. Carrying weights during cardio will burn more calories. Studies have shown that the added weight during cardio does burn a few more calories, but not enough for any real results. Carrying weights while running or jogging can lead to elbow and shoulder injuries. The risks may outweigh any real benefits.

11. If you stop exercising, your muscles will turn to fat. This one is definitely false! Your muscles will just reduce in size. Fat and muscle are two very different types of body tissue. You can't turn one into the other.

12. Weight machines are safer than free weights. Exercise machines can give you a false sense of security. Whether you use machines or free weights, they both require proper form and technique. You can certainly injure yourself using both. The down side to solely using weight machines is it forces you into a plane of motion that is not natural and almost always reduces the opportunity to build stabilizing muscles, good posture and balance. The lack of stabilizing muscles, posture and balance can lead to other injuries in or out of the gym.

Judd Jones is a director for the Hagadone Corporation.