We’ve all been there.
Things were going great with this exercise routine for the first couple of weeks, but now I’ve plateaued.
Believe it or not, plateauing is not necessary.
If you’re working out, you should be progressing. If you’re not, there’s something wrong. Simple.
Here are the top five reasons most people don’t make progress as quickly as they’d like:
1. You Fixate On Outcomes
There is no strength in numbers – at least not on the scale.
They say there’s strength in numbers, but they clearly did not know much about exercise progression. The bottom line is, if you want to get results, you’re going to have to stop obsessing over numbers – on the scale or in your notebook – and instead, pay more attention to improving your exercise form.
Don’t get me wrong – results are really important. But when all you focus on is losing a certain amount of weight, or getting a certain number of reps, you lose sight of what’s important: building proper form and better strength.
2. You Aren’t Recovering
People mistakenly think “more equals more.” In other words, more exercise = more results.
WRONG.
It’s true that you need to work hard if you want to see results, but if you don’t give yourself adequate rest, you will get nowhere. Make sure you take one or two days a week to really let your body recover from your hard work. It will pay off.
3. You’re Doing Too Much
The biggest issue people run into with training is they feel they need to be doing multiple things at once to get “varied training”. The problem with this idea, however, is it prevents you from getting good at any one of the things you are working on.
If you’re having trouble progressing with a particular movement or routine, chances are you’re focusing on too many things at once. If you really want to improve your gymnastic rings skills, you need to focus on rings – and only rings – for awhile before moving on.
Make targeted goals for yourself and stick to those instead of confusing your body with multiple programs at once.
4. You’re Flying Solo And Blind
A little help with your exercise can go a long way.
Listen, I understand that some people work better alone, but everyone needs help. Especially when it comes to proper training.
That’s why we always tell people to take video of their training sessions so that they can not only see their own mistakes, but also get feedback from others (including the GMB team if you’re a member of the Alpha Posse). The only way you’re going to continually improve your form is by continually correcting and learning from your previous mistakes.
5. You’re Moving Too Fast
A couple of weeks ago, my friend told me her trainer’s rule: if you can do 5 reps of a particular exercise, you’re ready to move on to the next progression. This is a BIG mistake people make with exercise.
Just because you can do a movement does NOT mean that you can do it well enough to move on to the next progression.
Remember: form is key.
You may be able to do 5 pushups, but how’s your form? Do you feel strong enough to move on to the next progression. You need to pay attention to what your body is telling you.
If you move faster than you’re ready to, your body is not going to be happy with you, and you won’t be happy with your progress.
Here’s a some posts that will help you break through your plateaus:
Photo via gillicious
