The unfortunate truth is - no matter how hard we are working, if we are doing the SAME things....we can ultimately plateau. This can occur because the body gets used to the training and goes through an adaptation period. To avoid adaptation - keeping a variety in your routine is very important. Maybe switch to a different type of program if you've been doing the same one for quite a while. Switching it up will not only be good for your results, but it will be fun to try something new.
Other ways to add variety / change things up to avoid the dreaded plateau:
Sets & Reps: If muscle growth is what you're looking for, then routines with exercises in the 1-3 rep range are definitely not the best. But if you are always trying to perform 3 sets of 8-12 reps for each muscle group and you have reached a plateau, try doing 10 sets with 3 reps. Just by adding a variety to the sets and reps, you could see a significant difference in your muscle gain because you're tricking your body into thinking it's doing something new and it could easily break you out of your plateau.
Variety in Exercises: If you're doing a specific program (like I'm doing ChaLEAN Extreme right now) - there is usually a good variety of workouts to keep things changing and to work different muscle groups. But if you're working out on your own or at the gym - try to make sure you're not always working the same muscle groups every time and add some variety so that your body can keep changing. As much as you might love running - ONLY doing that will not make your body change any more once you have plateaued. I was there before. I ran every single day...I did lose weight, but I got to a point where I couldn't lose any more and I definitely wasn't gaining any muscle or getting toned like I wanted.
Intensity Levels: Just by switching up the intensity of your workouts during the week can have a huge impact. This is why a lot of programs will come with a specific workout calender. They actually spend a lot of time making the calender of workouts the way they are so that some days you have more intense workouts, some days you are doing more of an active recovery workout, and you're definitely working different muscle groups in various ways throughout the week. If you are strength training and using weights and you feel like you've stopped seeing results - try UPPING your weights. If you don't have any heavier weights, trick your brain into thinking the weights are heavier than they are. SLOW your reps down....really focus on the muscle that you're trying to work and don't rush through the workout. Focus heavily on your form.
And as always - one of the most important things to remember....abs are made in the kitchen. You can work out all you want but if you're feeding your body with crap, you're not going to see the results you're longing for. You have to think of food as fuel and know what and when to eat so that your body can continue to change like you want it to. If you're trying to lose weight and you are working out every day but not changing a thing about your diet (or maybe you're eating more because you think you "deserve" it after your hard work).... you're not going to see the changes you desire. You can burn 400 calories in a workout - but do you know how fast you can eat those calories back and completely derail your progress?
Need help in any of these areas? Let me know! I run health and fitness support and accountability groups where we go through so much of this together. We support one another, provide meal plans, recipe ideas, motivate to help with fitness goals...and so much more. To read more about my groups, click here! I'm starting a new "Holiday Survival" group that begins December 1st. I refuse to let the temptations of the holidays take away all of my hard work and I want to go into the new year feeling my best EVER! Would you?
