Why Have I Hit a Strength Plateau in the Gym?

Why Have I Hit a Strength Plateau in the Gym?

Jan 30, 2023 mindpump

Adapting to resistance training has numerous benefits: it increases bone density, lean body mass, power, tissue tensile strength, and metabolic efficiency. But what happens when you’ve hit a wall, and you can’t seem to break the barrier into heavier lifts?

Just like with weight loss plateaus, strength plateaus are common. As frustrating as they can be, it happens. As we get stronger and more efficient with our lifts, we steadily adapt to the movement and use less motor units. Fortunately, there are ways to break that plateau and start seeing strength improvements again.

Lack of Consistency

It’s easy to become compliant after hitting certain standards in strength training. But the moment we start decreasing the volume and frequency of our workouts, without adjusting intensity or resistance, you will likely hit a strength plateau. There may be a time in your life when your schedule only allows you to work out two days a week instead of your usual four; if this happens, adjust your workouts accordingly to make sure the exercises are harder and more intense. If you work out with the same intensity when you go from four days a week to two, don’t be surprised if strength gains remain stagnant.

Monotonous Routines

Do you find yourself doing the same exercises, all the time? It’s really easy to get into a routine, until you realize that nothing has changed (including strength and body composition) in a year. Fortunately, Mindpump offers tons of exercise programs that can help break your workout rut and recruit muscles you’ve probably been neglecting! Adding new exercises can help promote new motor unit patterns; something as simple as changing the environment can improve overall strength as well. By adding a level of instability to the exercise, like RDLs on a balance pad, you create a new stimulus the body must adapt to. In this case, more motor units are being utilized, therefore increasing the number of muscle fibers being used; the end result is a greater potential for growth.

No Variability

We sometimes see improvements in strength when we change up our exercises, but you may need to take it a step further. By this, I mean playing around with exercise variables that can create a new stimulus for the body. If you’re using a 3010 tempo, try slowing down the exercise during the concentric portion of the movement; you might want to implement a 3130 tempo, or even slow down the time between the eccentric and concentric movements by using a 3330 tempo for an extra challenge. Another way to add some variability to your exercises is doing something as simple as adjusting the number of sets and reps during your routine. This may require adjustments in your resistance, but even lowering the resistance and adding volume can help improve strength for someone who has maintained the same, low-rep format for an extended period of time.

Intramuscular vs. Intermuscular Coordination

Sometimes, it takes a shift in how you train the muscle to start to see improvements in strength. Leg extensions and leg curls are perfectly appropriate exercises to build strength in those muscle groups; in this case, your body is relying on intramuscular coordination to allow optimum levels of motor unit recruitment within a single muscle using single joint exercises. But if we take an intermuscular approach, and start doing more squats and deadlifts, you’re forcing all muscles to work together in a multijoint movement. By implementing exercises that require multiple joints, you add a greater stimulus to your routine.

Mindset Setbacks

Oftentimes, it is the person’s mindset or lack of confidence in executing the movement that could be preventing them from increasing strength. Adding more weight to the barbell can be intimidating, but if you’re not challenging yourself to push the amount of resistance you know that you’re capable of, you’re limiting yourself and the amount of strength and work you can create. Even just adding 2 ½ pound plates is an improvement in the right direction. You can recruit a spotter to give yourself a sense of security, and in some situations, absolutely take advantage of one for your safety. Or maybe, you just feel uninspired by your current routine and goals. It happens to the best of us. If you need some inspiration to take your workouts to the next level, MAPS Strong includes nontraditional exercises that can help bring more excitement to your workouts, while also gaining strength and building a muscular physique.