It’s an all-too-familiar scenario: You’ve been hard at strength training, and you’ve hit a plateau.
First, congratulations – thanks to all of your hard work, it’s time to push it to the next level!
If you’re hesitant to increase your weight because you’re worried about getting bulky, stop that mind set. Increasing your weight is a natural progression in your routine that should be addressed to get off the plateau and start seeing results.
If you’ve been lifting the same weight for a while, you’re not challenging your muscles to work harder and eventually become stronger. The strength training principles state that in order to build strength, your muscles should work harder than what they’re used to. This overload results in increased strength as your body adapts to the stress it’s under.
In order to achieve those gains, you should regularly increase the weight or resistance so your muscles respond to the new demands by becoming stronger. This will eventually lead to better workout results like increased lean body mass and decrease fat.
We’ve determined that lifting heavier is a good thing, but let’s plan how to start.
First, start small. You’ve probably determined what weight works for you, but gradually increase your reps until you find a weight that challenges you to slow down.
As your body becomes accustomed to the reps and sets, you’ll know when a weight is too easy. For instance, if you do 3 sets of 10 and finish and realize you could have done more reps, it’s time to bump it up. If you’re struggling at the end, then you’re not ready.
Now that you’re ready to move up, how much weight should you add? If you’re using dumbbells it’s fairly simple to move up to the next weight, usually 5 lb increases are recommended. As a general rule, professionals advise not to increase the weight by more than 10% at a time.
Keeping a log of your progress can help you determine what area needs more work. If you’re stuck at a weight on a certain exercise, it might be time to add something to help boost you to the next level. For instance, if you’ve been bench pressing the same amount, introduce a new upper body exercise to get through the plateau.
The body is capable of amazing things, and if you’re stuck doing the same weight and reps every time, you’re wasting your time. Challenge yourself on the last reps of each set, and jump start your results.
Start integrating these tips into your workout routine today to step up to the next level and start seeing better results than you ever thought possible!
If you need help getting started or in reviewing your program click HERE for a complimentary session. Lets make this YOUR moment
Yours In Health,
Brian
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