How to Break Through the Lifting Plateau
When you start exercising, those first few weeks bring you happiness. Sure, maybe you get sick sometimes and don’t understand how to do each new exercise, but you can add weight to the bar every week, maybe every workout, and you feel unstoppable. Strengthening workouts don’t last forever, though, so what do you do when the weights stop growing?
This phenomenon is often referred to as a “plateau,” and while it seems hopeless, there are many ways to overcome it. Unless you are an advanced lifter approaching the end of your athletic career (in which case you are not reading this article because you now know how it works), there is always a way forward. Here are a few possibilities to consider.
Do more instead of taking a break.
While sometimes people suggest taking a break to see your performance rise temporarily, this is just a short-term illusion (we all raise a little more when we just took a break) and not an investment in your long-term goals. term of winning. To get better, we usually need to do more .
More than what? Well, if you’ve been sticking to the same light weights for too long, just grab the next heavier dumbbell. If you’ve done home bodyweight workouts that get too light, you’ll need to find more challenging moves, buy dumbbells, or even head to the gym. Any exercise is better than nothing, and this may be the ideal you started with. But when you want to get better, you have to ask yourself (as running coach Jason Fitzgerald wisely put it ) what the next logical step is.
If you have already set yourself the appropriate goals, then you probably need more volume. Think about it in terms of weekly sets. If you are doing a bench press once a week, doing three sets of 10 reps, this is a small volume. Do five sets of bench presses twice a week and you can now do up to 10 sets in a week. Even if you are already doing 10-15 sets per week (typical recommendation), more may be better . When I was preparing for a powerlifting competition, in my program, I did the bench press or bench press variation six times a week for at least five sets each time. Didn’t you know, my bench flew up.
Dial your technique
If you want to improve on a particular exercise, correcting your technique can go a long way towards restoring results. Hire a coach if you can, or ask a trusted friend’s profile. (Don’t just ask some old internet forum; be picky about where your advice comes from.)
You can also watch videos in which trainers or experienced lifters demonstrate the intricacies of technique in the exercise of your choice. Juggernaut has a series of “Pillars …” on squat technique, bench press and deadlift; Catalyst has tons of articles and videos on snatch, clean and jerk techniques.
Get more variety in your workouts
Have you done the same exercises over and over and nothing else? You may have become too specialized. Coaches across all sports will talk about dividing your workout between things that are specific to your sport or your mainstream, as opposed to building a base with GPP, which means general fitness.
For a runner, GPP can include strength training and mobility exercises. As an athlete, you may need to do (and I’m sorry) cardio, conditioning, mobility, and lifting at different rep ranges.
So, if you only did a few exercises, and they are always five sets, you will significantly improve your fitness if you do some or all of the following:
- Some work harder (heavy singles or threes)
- Some work easier (sets of 10 or even 20)
- Various lifts (not only squats, but also leg presses and lunges)
- Cardio (like exercising on a stationary bike)
- Conditioning (workouts where you do lifts or bodyweight movements at a pace where you breathe heavily – Crossfit workouts are one example)
- Activities that you usually skip (for example, main work)
- Mobility (including but not limited to stretching)
It may not immediately improve your performance, but it will definitely make you a more versatile athlete. Think of it as an investment in your future, no matter what happens to your numbers this week.
Get a new workout program
Are you following an up-to-date program? This is one of the main reasons for the plateau (I’m just making this up, but I’m also sure it’s true). Instead of just bringing up what you feel every day, choose a pre-written program, or pay a coach or coach to write it for you.
The program is a roadmap to help you achieve your goal . It tells you what exercises to do, with what weight, with what rep range, and what else you need to do (that’s GPP) to improve. You also need to stick with it long enough to see results. If you skip a lot of workouts or “accidentally” “forget” to do certain exercises, all you need to do is actually follow the program you are supposed to be doing.
If you have participated in the program for some time, but it does not suit you, you may need another one. Again, a coach or an experienced friend can help you here.
Eat more
If your fitness goals were about combining strength and appearance – for example, if you’ve been trying to lose weight or get leaner – you may need to take some time to prioritize each other.
Your body needs fuel (calories) for hard workouts and protein to build muscle. When you are dieting at the same time, you are not giving your body much fuel. If your diet is a priority, you need to admit that your gym results may not be perfect. But if you’re ready to get stronger, experiment with eating more food, especially protein, and see where that gets you.
While you are doing this, try to get as much sleep as possible. Food and sleep are two important things you can change to better recover from heavy lifting.