Weight Training Plateau: Tips To Break Through Your Weight Training Plateau

If you have been training for a while then you will more than likely have come across a weight training plateau. No matter how much you lift, or how often you go to the gym, you just don’t seem to be getting results. When you get to this point, then you know that you have hit your plateau. There are a few simple solutions to try to get yourself over the plateau as well as a few preventative measures that you can take.

One way that you can try to work past or avoid a weight training plateau is by adding variety to your workouts. What you should be doing for each workout, if you can, is switching something up. It is true that for the best results, no two workouts should ever be exactly the same. You don't necessarily have to do a major overhaul each session, but by adjusting one little factor, such as: how many reps you did on your last set, how much rest you took in between sets, or the actual exercise you performed, you can slightly switch your program up which will help ensure that you don't plateau. In order to overcome a plateau is going to involve making sure that the body never knows exactly what's going on and the only real way to do this is to make sure something is different each and every workout. Minor adjustments are small but will count towards avoiding a weight training plateau.

As you begin to increase your level of fitness, your body’s metabolism will increase and so will the amount of calories that your body needs. If you hit a weight training plateau, you should evaluate how much you are eating. You may need to eat more than you have in the past in order to continue to see muscle growth. If you find you are often hungry, this is one of the clearest signs that you need to eat more to sustain your exercise program. You should ensure that you are eating a balanced diet , with lots of protein and carbs, as well as fruits and vegetables. You want to keep taking in a healthy diet to keep yourself up to par as far as your diet goes even though you are not feeling like you usually do in the gym.

If after assessing your workout progress, you have not been able to lift the regular amount of weight that you usually would, have been experiencing sleepless nights, have a decreased desire to go to the gym, or have an inability to focus, you may be overtraining. This overtraining will contribute to a weight training plateau. By working your body past its comfort level, then you will be putting more stress on your muscles which can lead to muscle fatigue. You will also be causing yourself to get closer and closer to CNS failure. Muscle fatigue is when your muscles can’t perform anymore but you are mentally prepared to work out. CNS fatigue is when you are unable to mentally perform anymore exercises but your muscles are still able to.

Another thing that you should watch out for when you believe that you are at a weight training plateau is how much sleep you are getting. You should ensure that you are getting enough sleep. Having between 8-10 hours of sleep a night will allow time for your muscles to recover from the strenuous exercise that you put it to. Being well rested will allow you to come to your next weight training exercise session with adequate amounts of energy and at full strength to be able to take on a challenging workout.

To sum things up, when you notice that you are not making as many gains as you usually would in your weight training progress then you might be at a plateau. Some pointers that can tell you if you are at this point would be, increased hunger with no difference in weight used in the gym, CNS or muscle fatigue, or no desire to go to the gym. If you feel that you are at a weight training plateau then you should ensure that your diet is sufficient to supply you with the energy you need, you are getting enough sleep, and that your workouts include variety.