One of the main reasons people engage in strength training is obviously to gain strength. And, when you start a strength training regime, you may see initial gains fairly quickly. The human body is amazing – once you start adding a load to your body, your body will learn to deal with that load. The downside if this is – after those initial gains, your body can become accustomed to that workout – and you’ll see your gains start to plateau. Here’s some strength training tips for your strength program that can help minimize that plateau, and keep strength gains coming your way!
1. Change your exercise selection. If you’re used to doing bench press, take a week or two and switch it up with an incline bench. This works the same muscle groups in a different way, altering the stress put on your body, and may produce faster adaptations for those muscles. Then, when you go back to a regular bench press, you may find you will need to increase the weight your lifting!
2. Do a warm up set. Warming up with a light set before your normal workout pumps your muscles full of blood – which brings additional oxygen and nutrients into your muscle cells. This can help delay fatigue, allowing you to have a stronger workout, adding you your long-term gains.
3. Make sure you’re fueled! Eat properly before your workout. If you don’t have energy, your workout will be less effective – so make sure you’ve had complex carbs and protein prior to your workout to fuel your mucles!
4. Don’t Overtrain! Your biggest muscle gains don’t happen while you’re working out – they happen as your body rebuilds after your workout. Take a two day break from strength training. And you may want to have a day or two every couple of weeks where you just do light weights for a week.
5. Stretch between sets. This can help joint mobility – and increase your overall flexibility. Don’t stretch the same muscle group your working on during those sets – stretch the “opposite “ muscles. For example, if you’re working your chest, stretch your lats and middle back.
And, if you’re looking for the best equipment for your home strength training sessions, come visit one of Fitness 4 Home Superstore’s 3 Valley locations. Whether you’re looking for a home gym, functional trainers, or weights & bars, we can help you find the best strength training equipment for your workout needs!
