Okay, you've been working out for a year. For the 1st 3-4 months you saw awesome gains. You leaned up and packed on muscle. For the last 6 months you've been doing the same exercises and training just as hard but your progress has stopped. You my friend have hit your plateau.
Our bodies are great at adapting to stress. Say your chest routine is: Incline barbell press, flat barbell press, and dips. The 1st time you do that routine you're super sore for the next few days. The next time chest day rolls around you do the same routine. Again the next time and the next. After a month or so you're not getting sore, your pumps just aren't there, and you're not putting on any size. This is because by now your pecs know exactly whats expected of them. They have adapted and know that they don't need to grow any more.
If you make a few little changes to your routine it'll shock your muscles into breaking through your plateau.
Try this: Start with flat dumbbells instead of incline, incline dumbbell flys instead of flat bench, and decline beach press instead of dips. You'll notice your pumps are back, you'll be sore again, and you'll start seeing gains again. After a while though, the plateau will come back. That's when it's time to change up the routine again! This applies to all area of fitness.
You've got to keep your workouts new and fresh. I always say "Your workouts should be like snow flakes. Never the same one twice." This will keep you excited about training, keep the gains coming, and prevent repetitive stress injuries (RSI)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Repetitive_strain_injury .
So you run everyday. Great! Gotta be sure to keep your joints and ligaments healthy. Try cross training in the gym for a month. When you get back on the road all the areas that take a beating when you run will be well rested and stronger
So you lift every day. Awesome! Gotta be sure you don't sleep on the cardio. Try cycle/ run training for a month. You'll lean out a bit, and when you get back into the gym all the pings and pangs in your elbows, shoulders, and knees will be significantly better.
If this seem like too much to remember, find a trainer who knows what the hell he's talking about (I know a guy) to keep you motivated and moving in the right direction.
Our bodies are great at adapting to stress. Say your chest routine is: Incline barbell press, flat barbell press, and dips. The 1st time you do that routine you're super sore for the next few days. The next time chest day rolls around you do the same routine. Again the next time and the next. After a month or so you're not getting sore, your pumps just aren't there, and you're not putting on any size. This is because by now your pecs know exactly whats expected of them. They have adapted and know that they don't need to grow any more.
If you make a few little changes to your routine it'll shock your muscles into breaking through your plateau.
Try this: Start with flat dumbbells instead of incline, incline dumbbell flys instead of flat bench, and decline beach press instead of dips. You'll notice your pumps are back, you'll be sore again, and you'll start seeing gains again. After a while though, the plateau will come back. That's when it's time to change up the routine again! This applies to all area of fitness.
You've got to keep your workouts new and fresh. I always say "Your workouts should be like snow flakes. Never the same one twice." This will keep you excited about training, keep the gains coming, and prevent repetitive stress injuries (RSI)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Repetitive_strain_injury .
So you run everyday. Great! Gotta be sure to keep your joints and ligaments healthy. Try cross training in the gym for a month. When you get back on the road all the areas that take a beating when you run will be well rested and stronger
So you lift every day. Awesome! Gotta be sure you don't sleep on the cardio. Try cycle/ run training for a month. You'll lean out a bit, and when you get back into the gym all the pings and pangs in your elbows, shoulders, and knees will be significantly better.
If this seem like too much to remember, find a trainer who knows what the hell he's talking about (I know a guy) to keep you motivated and moving in the right direction.
your passion and energy totally translate, grab, and shake me through the black and white of a computer page! Thank you for inspirational words and for the fun and enthusiasm you add to them!
ReplyDeleteMy pleasure Gail. Thank you!
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