We all hit plateaus when it comes to fitness whether we’re losing weight, bulking up, working on definition, or even just maintaining. It seems like you’ve hit a wall and your biceps have stopped growing, the pounds have stopped shedding, the abs aren’t showing, whatever the case may be. Everybody goes through it. Truth be told, if you keep pushing you’ll eventually break through the wall. I mean, science is on your side on this one but there are a few likely reasons as to why you’ve reached a plateau. Here are the three top reasons you’re hitting a wall.
Consistency: When it comes to working out consistency is absolutely essential. Have you been skipping days more than usual? With the busy lives we all lead it can be easy to skip the gym without even realizing it. Between work, school, family obligations, and life in general things can get hectic. You can’t let up when it comes to your fitness goals. Everybody needs a day to chill but don’t let that day turn into a month. If you started off going hard and you begin to let up you’re not going to see the results you want. Not to mention, if you’re not being consistent in your workouts then even the smallest slip-ups in your diet will cause a much more pronounced negative effect.
Diet: This is always a very likely factor in why you’ve reached a plateau. When it comes to fitness, diet is huge. It’s hard to eat clean 100% of the time so pick your battles. Give yourself a day to eat whatever you want and then get back on the horse the very next day. Notice that I said to get back on the horse the next day. One day can easily turn into a month if you’re not careful. That one day should be able to get all the cravings out of your system and make the clean eating much easier. If you find that your weight loss is slowing down or the definition in your muscles isn’t showing as much as it was look at your diet and be honest with yourself. Have you been cheating often? Were you a lot more conscientious when you first started? Start watching what you eat closely again and say goodbye to the plateau.
No Change In Workout: You can do the same exact workout for 10 years and it will likely keep you in great shape but if you want to improve you’re likely going to have to shake things up. If your muscles have stopped growing you likely need to tweak your routine. Try new things, get crazy. Do sets to failure, super sets, drop weight and raise reps, drop reps and raise weight, do interval cardio training, try circuit training, just do something different. Your muscles aren’t being challenged so make them work. You need to work harder and go through a different range of motions. Shock the body. Shock the muscles. Don’t just go through the motions.
Article By: Jon DaBove
