Plateau-ing

Plateau-ing

           

             Plateauing is a very common thing to happen in the gym.  I can happen to anyone but is very easy to avoid and control.  Plateauing I when you work on one muscle group with the same workout plan and exercises for too long.  By doing this you cause your muscles to gain muscle memory and get bored with the lifts you are doing.  This means that you will get no gains from you workouts and your muscles will be getting bored. 

            Everyone has done this at some point in their lifting experience.  The best way to stop this is by changing the workouts you do for that muscle group.  You can also just change the weight and reps you have done for that workout and you should see the same results.  This will keep your muscles working and get you back on your gains.  Although you must prevent this from happening again and the way to do that is to be on a schedule of constantly changing your workouts every three to four weeks to keep yourself busy and to help yourself from getting bored with your workout routine. 

            If you are starting out with working out you should set up two to three different routines for each muscle group and switch between these routines every few weeks so you are already gaining the habit of changing your routines.  If you want to know how to make a workout routine see my “How to Make a Good Workout Plan” post to understand and make the best routine to get on your way to becoming the best you can be.   

How to Make a Good Workout Plan

How to Make a Good Workout Plan

            

            It’s very important to make and keep an organized and easy to follow workout plan for about 5-6 days of the week, every week.  When making a workout plan for yourself you need to concentrate on a certain muscle group for each day that you are exercising.  For that day you should do about six exercises for that one muscle group in that day.  Only work on that muscle group once or at the very most, twice a week and no more.  Usually when you are picking a muscle group they should be muscles that are opposite of each other and function.  If you pick biceps for one day, that same day you should work on triceps also sense they are in the same muscle area and opposite function, the bicep pushes, and the tricep pulls.  After you finish working the major muscle groups for that day, you should continue for a little while longer on more minor muscles like forearms, hand, neck, lower, back, or butt(if your into that).

            You should try your best to work out each day that you have planned to work out, even if you don’t feel like it.  When you are tired and don’t feel like working out, actually doing the exercises will help wake you up and after a while you will feel like working out more.  YOU GOTTA PUSH YO-SELF!!! 

           

 For an example here’s what I usually do for the week:

Sunday-REST, you NEED to rest

Monday-Biceps and Triceps

Tuesday-Chest and Back

Wednesday-Legs

Thursday-Shoulders

Friday-Biceps and Triceps

Saturday-Chest and Back   

I workout for five days straight and rest one day, it is not required to exercise for five days but I would suggest at least four days a week.  I would also say it is best to exercise at least an hour a day, although my usual workout takes me about two and a half hours.  When you are exercising though you should do one set then rest thirty to sixty seconds before doing the next set.  With every lift you should do three to five sets of each to gain the most you can from the lift for the day.   

            Plan on changing the types of exercises you do for each muscle every three to four weeks to avoid “plateauing” (I will make another blog on this soon).  A good way to prevent this is to start out making two to three of these routines and switching between that every three to four weeks to keep yourself from plateauing.  You should also add to the weight you are doing every three to four weeks to get the maximum gains in your workout.   

EXTREME BICEP WORKOUT!!!

EXTREME BICEP WORKOUT!!!

This is an exercise I personally do all the time in the gym and have seen great results with repetition.  By doing this for multiple weeks I have gained the nickname “baseball arms” because my friends say “your arms are so big it looks like someone cut them open and implanted baseballs in them”.

For this workout you will need:

·         A bench with a 35-45 degree angle

·         Two dumbbells of comfortable weight,  a bit on the lighter side though

·         A barbell of comfortable weight

Step #1:

First, you need to grab your dumbbells and sit straight up on your bench, not lying back against it.  Then, you need to curl both of your dumbbells up at the same time for seven reps.  Go to step 2 without resting in between. 

Step #2

Next, lay back into your bench at a 35-45 degree angle.  Hang your arms straight down and curl up while keeping your elbow straight down.  Do this for seven reps and continue on to step 3 without rest in between.

Step #3

Now, grab your barbell and barbell curl while standing up.  Start with your arms completely extended and curl up not pushing your body into it.  Do this for seven reps, then rest.

All three of these steps will make only one set, do about 3-5 sets in all.  On the third step, for the first set keep your hands about shoulder width apart, but for the second set keep your hands about a half a foot wider than your shoulders.  By having a wider grip you will put focus on the outside portion of your bicep.  Then for the third set, keep your hands just a few inches from each other in the middle of the bar.  By having a very close grip you will put more focus on the inside portion of your bicep.

I hope you enjoy this exercise and if your arms don’t feel like they’re about to rip out of their skin, you didn’t work hard enough.