Strength gains have never come easy to anyone. They take time, patience, hard work, dedication to the basics, sound training plans and intelligence. Maybe you’ve hit a plateau recently, maybe you haven’t hit a PR in what feels like years, maybe you even feel like you are getting weaker, but whatever has happened to your strength we can right that ship and get that PR Train rolling again.  Below you will find some simple strategies to get yourself back on track. Some of them may seem super simple, but it’s often those things that people forget about. So read on, take a look in the mirror and lets get that train rolling again. All aboard!

“That’s the classic nature of people, though. We’ll skip the basics and get pissed when the sexy stuff doesn’t work.” – Martin Rooney 

What do your goals look like?

I’ve talked about goals before at length, but it’s always good for a refresher (SMART Goals). If you aren’t setting specific goals with actual dates and measures, how will you ever know if you are making any progress. A goal that is unspecific like “to lose weight or to get stronger” are impossible for you to truly quantify, thus you most likely won’t accomplish them. Saying you want to get strong and do some pull-ups isn’t a good goal. Saying you want to do 5 strict pull-ups by May 4 is. Saying you want to squat 400 lbs someday is bad. Saying you want to squat 400 lbs before Dec 12 is better. Once you have them in writing, be sure to plan little tests along the way to measure your progress. Don’t try to max out every week. Every 8-12 weeks is a better plan. And if you have one of those days in the gym and everything feels great, then give it a go. That’s typically when I’ll hit a PR myself, on some random Monday when I least expect it. Be sure to record all of your workouts too, make notes about anything and everything and most importantly enjoy the ride! This is a journey not a sprint.

“If you want something you’ve never had, you must be willing to do something you’ve never done.” – Thomas Jefferson

Is your training program not working anymore?

Programming plays a large part in gaining and maintaining strength. A lot of people new to training see rapid bursts of strength initially when they start out. They keep hitting PR’s every time they set foot in the gym. The truth of the matter is most anyone can get someone off the coach and make him or her stronger by doing just about anything.  But they eventually will plateau and it can be demoralizing to someone if they didn’t know it was going to happen. The great coaches are those that can keep the PR’s coming even when the person is becoming more and more adapted to the training stimulus. Everyone will plateau, but it’s those that understand that it will happen, not get frustrated, stay focused on their goals and typically will get off of it faster. Something as simple as adjusting the sets and reps or percentages can do wonders to boost people’s strength. Even swapping out 2 legged movements for single legged movements can do the trick. There is more than one way to skin the cat. In my life time of training, I’ve hit some plateaus and it has provided me the opportunity to take a look back at what I’ve been doing, adjust, and move forward. If you keep doing the exact same thing expecting it to eventually work you need help. If something isn’t working, it’s time to make a change and find someone who can help you. Believe me, I’ve been there myself.

“For me, life is continuously being hungry. The meaning of life is not simply to exist, to survive, but to move ahead, to go up, to achieve, to conquer.” – Arnold Schwarzenegger

Who are you training with?

Yes, where you train and who you train with can mean all the difference in the world. If your gym is filled with a lot of negativity and an unsupportive community you are probably in for a whole lot of stress and headaches. Which basically means no gains. If you’re in a gym that has 50 treadmills and has an alarm that will sound if you’re working too hard, you need to run, because you will get weaker! You don’t want to find yourself in a “Bucket of Crabs”. If you put one crab in a bucket it will find it’s way up and out on it’s own. But if you put a dozen in a bucket, 11 of them will fight like hell to keep pulling down the 1 that is trying to escape. They will hold back the 1 that has a goal to get out of that bucket. If you feel like that’s the situation you are in in your gym, it’s time to run! You want to be able to surround yourself with a supportive community filled with like-minded individuals that will push one another to be the best person they can. Think of your environment as the tide that raises all ships. You should do everything in your power to turn your environment into a place that will raise up everyone. One of the best parts of coaching people is getting to witness the smile and excitement that hits their faces when they achieve a goal and when they watch those around them achieve theirs.

“If you think lifting weights is dangerous, try being weak. Being weak is dangerous.” – Bret Contreras

How much sleep did you get last night?

Here is a little secret. Are you ready for it? You don’t get stronger in the gym. (Insert shocked face emoji) The majority of your strength gains will happen when you are at rest. I’m not just talking about taking a power nap everyday, though that is an awesome habit to form. I’m talking about getting enough sleep every night (7+ hours), fueling your recovery properly (think lean protein and high quality foods) and physically taking care of your body everyday (mobility/foam rolling etc.). It’s not rocket science, but it’s the one commonality I see the most. People are in a rush to fly out of the gym to get home. I get it, I know I’ve been there. But as I’ve gotten older I’ve gotten wiser about how important recovery really plays into the grand scheme of things.  Now if you can’t do it immediately after training, buy a foam roller for home, pickup some stretch bands and few lacrosse balls and do your recovery work at the house. You know you’ll be watching Netflix so you may as well be productive. Even try planning your post training meals ahead of time so you don’t stop at the gas station, drink a Monster and eat a Snickers. If sleep is your issue try powering down your electronics 30 mins before bed. If you establish a routine it will become automatic and make your life easier. What you do today sets you up for tomorrow. What you eat today fuels your tomorrow. Think about that the next time you want to stay up late but have an early training session the next morning.

“Discipline is doing what you hate to do, but nonetheless doing it like you love it.” – Mike Tyson

Do you move well?

So you’ve changed everything else, but still aren’t seeing any strength gains…you wouldn’t be the first person to hit a plateau and be stuck there for a while. Like most things in life, passion, desire, hard work, strength and perseverance can only get you so far. Often times technique or mobility can be the main culprits that are holding you back. There is a big push now to squat everyday, which is awesome. But if you don’t move efficiently or effectively it won’t matter. Simply performing more and more of the same exercise won’t guarantee you that the problem will be fixed. You might be stuck at certain weight because your form sucks and physiologically your body can’t accomplish what you want it to do. It’s like trying to jam a round peg in a square hole. Cliche or not, a chain is only as strong as it’s weakest link! Sometimes its important to unload the bar, work on your mobility, add some accessory exercises, shore up those weakness’ and patch up any power leaks you may have. All the cool fancy new gear in the world won’t necessarily make you any better.

“Don’t have $100.00 shoes and a 10 cent squat.” – Louie Simmons

 

Remember, getting strong takes time. Master the basics, be patient, surround yourself with like minded people, work your mobility when you don’t want too, get off Facebook and go to bed earlier, set some awesome goals, plan ahead, stay focused, diversify your training, enjoy the ride, and whatever you do don’t join Planet Fitness!

“At some point though you just have to shut-up & lift.” – Geoff Steinbacher

 

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