drsp
:
The Internet (which is never wrong) talks a lot about this.
If you’re already strength training 4 or more times a week, and already giving yourself 2-3 days between each exercise group, you may want to try increasing weights in smaller smaller increments. That dopamine hit hits well when you can even just lift 1lbs more than 2 weeks ago. Those 1kg/2.5lbs or even 2kg/5lbs weights that seldom get used are great for that hahah. Giving yourself a bit more rest in between sets….or that very last set is another way to see if your body would benefit from it.
I have found too that sometimes, after going really hard for months, a single vacation from training leads to an incredibly fresh, satisfying mental AND physical restart. I’m not talking an all you can eat resort. Though I’ve done that too and tried to be conscious about my behaviour. I went to another Province for a week with the kids. Picked up jogging, came back and suddenly did a one rep deadlift max! You could try picking up a different sport. I went cycling to work for a week. That itself was terrible. However, upon my return, again, my body felt stronger and there were several records I achieved.
I’m going to try and take vacations more often this way…have them coincide with real vacations and yearly events (Christmas, Lent, family vacay etc). I look forward to the break and then again to coming back.
I am also getting on in years! Lol. Sometimes you have to admit to yourself that you’ve reached the limit of what your body was built to handle. You look like a tank…so you’ve been hitting the gym for a while already. It maybe time to ask your doc whether testosterone therapy is in the cards for you.
Double-A-Ron
:
So far as i can tell a real plateau is when your body is holding all the mass your brain feels your frame is meant to have and being as strong as that mass can be for your age/recoverability. The only real way past that is forcibly eating more quality building blocks of nutrition than your body wants while continuing to aim for progressive overload.
I’m forever bouncing off this limit where my body will recompose itself rather than gain mass.. so if i don’t work a muscle group it will quickly get smaller as whatever I’m working will get bigger. If i eat enough everything keeps growing… but my body is looking for certain equilibriums so sometimes to get a particular muscle to grow i have to target its opposing muscle and maybe some stabilizers and once there is growth in those the stubborn muscle will start growing again to find that equilibrium my body seems to try to hold on to. Im sure that works similarly for most people.
p.bxtrm
:
Micro plates. If you're recovered you should be able to progress most lifts with .5 lbs or more while maintaining reps each session. Arms and delts not gonna do that tho.
.5 lbs a week is 26 lbs in a year. Great progress
hilawesemma
:
Overcoming a plateau in strength or muscle growth requires strategic adjustments to your training, nutrition, and recovery. Here’s how you can break through
1. Change Training Stimulus: Adjust exercises, rep ranges, or intensity.
2. Progressive Overload: Increase weight, reps, or sets gradually.
3. Target Weak Points: Focus on lagging areas with isolation work or advanced techniques like drop sets or super-sets.
4. Deload: Take a lighter training week to recover.
5. Optimize Nutrition: Eat enough calories and protein (1.6–2.2 g/kg).
6. Improve Recovery: Prioritize sleep (7–9 hours) and active recovery.
9 comments
If you’re already strength training 4 or more times a week, and already giving yourself 2-3 days between each exercise group, you may want to try increasing weights in smaller smaller increments. That dopamine hit hits well when you can even just lift 1lbs more than 2 weeks ago. Those 1kg/2.5lbs or even 2kg/5lbs weights that seldom get used are great for that hahah. Giving yourself a bit more rest in between sets….or that very last set is another way to see if your body would benefit from it.
I have found too that sometimes, after going really hard for months, a single vacation from training leads to an incredibly fresh, satisfying mental AND physical restart. I’m not talking an all you can eat resort. Though I’ve done that too and tried to be conscious about my behaviour. I went to another Province for a week with the kids. Picked up jogging, came back and suddenly did a one rep deadlift max! You could try picking up a different sport. I went cycling to work for a week. That itself was terrible. However, upon my return, again, my body felt stronger and there were several records I achieved.
I’m going to try and take vacations more often this way…have them coincide with real vacations and yearly events (Christmas, Lent, family vacay etc). I look forward to the break and then again to coming back.
I am also getting on in years! Lol. Sometimes you have to admit to yourself that you’ve reached the limit of what your body was built to handle. You look like a tank…so you’ve been hitting the gym for a while already. It maybe time to ask your doc whether testosterone therapy is in the cards for you.
I’m forever bouncing off this limit where my body will recompose itself rather than gain mass.. so if i don’t work a muscle group it will quickly get smaller as whatever I’m working will get bigger. If i eat enough everything keeps growing… but my body is looking for certain equilibriums so sometimes to get a particular muscle to grow i have to target its opposing muscle and maybe some stabilizers and once there is growth in those the stubborn muscle will start growing again to find that equilibrium my body seems to try to hold on to. Im sure that works similarly for most people.
.5 lbs a week is 26 lbs in a year. Great progress
1. Change Training Stimulus: Adjust exercises, rep ranges, or intensity.
2. Progressive Overload: Increase weight, reps, or sets gradually.
3. Target Weak Points: Focus on lagging areas with isolation work or advanced techniques like drop sets or super-sets.
4. Deload: Take a lighter training week to recover.
5. Optimize Nutrition: Eat enough calories and protein (1.6–2.2 g/kg).
6. Improve Recovery: Prioritize sleep (7–9 hours) and active recovery.
Always remember Consistency is key!