Hitting a fitness plateau is one of the most frustrating yet common hiccup that people face. Countless hours in the gym and dieting lead to a stagnant point after some time but don’t get disheartened when your scale stops moving.
Here are 5 efficient ways to overcome a plateau and make your body a fat burning machine:
Switch Up Your Pre-existing Routine
Performing various sets of the same old movements like squats, chest press, lunges, pull ups, etc. make your body used to the movement after a certain time. One should shock their muscles with new movements and angles for overcoming the plateau.
There are various ways one can switch up their routine: For e.g., You can implement new movements like Bulgarian Split Squat, Turkish GetUp, Surya Namaskar, Spider Push-Ups, Dragon Fly Crunches to spice up your routine. You can also change the tempo of the exercises that you perform
Commit to your plan
Always be realistic when you’re setting up a plan to attain your desirable body. Over planning and failing to meet the required efforts will only set you up for disappointment. If your plan is too taxing on your body, bring your workout routine down a notch whereas if you barely feel exhaustion then you need to upgrade your routine. There are going to be days where you feel discouraged by the plateau but instead of focusing on the stagnant progress channelize that mental focus on keeping your chin up, following your routine and staying committed to your plan religiously because in the end it’s going to be worth it.
Push Yourself
“Muscles are built in the last 3 reps of the set when you can’t go on”
Scientifically, this is not 100% accurate but the key take from this is no matter what the movement always push yourself to your level best on each and every set as it leads to greater muscle growth. Breathe properly, concentrate fully on contracting your muscles and never compromise on your form. If you don’t push yourself hard enough it’s obvious you’re going to experience a plateau.
Find A Workout Partner
Going to the gym alone can get quite boring after a point and leads to lethargy at times. Find someone to partner up for your workouts as it’s found that people who workout with a buddy are more motivated and find their workouts more enjoyable. If there’s someone monitoring and motivating you to push harder then you can easily overcome your plateau.
Recovery
Recovery is an essential component of life be it in fitness, business or personal life. If you don’t recover well, it will lead to burnout. Muscles are built over micro-tears in our tissue; if we don’t take our recovery seriously, muscle growth is hindered to a great extent. Recovery doesn’t mean expensive Swedish massages or fancy cryotherapy; it means taking a long walk in the park, meditating, stretching your muscles, having a proper sleep schedule or carrying out activities that bring you joy. Proper recovery will help your body overcome a fitness plateau.