At some point in your fitness journey, you are going to hit a wall of plateau. Sometimes there are 5-10 pounds we just can’t seem to lose. Luckily, there are a couple of solutions to push through this wall.
- Change your workout routine. Our bodies are built to adapt to the demands placed upon it. For example, if you were to run a mile a couple of times a week, your body would adapt by building strong leg muscles and shedding weight to run the mile. Over time, your body would fully adapt to running that mile and the muscle gains and weight loss would be minimal.
- Changing your workout every 6 weeks will help you avoid plateaus. Changing your workout could be as simple as going from a 30-minute run to a 45-minute or switching from a BODYPUMP class 3 times a week to a LES MILLS CORE class 3 times a week. If you are unsure of what changes to make, work with the Health & Wellness Director or Personal Trainer at your local Y.
- If it doesn’t challenge you, it doesn’t change you. As mentioned before, your body adapts to the demand placed upon it. The greater the demand on the body, the greater the change to the body. Every 4 weeks, you should increase reps, resistance/weight, sets, or time to your workout. You can also add High-Intensity Interval Training or Super Sets to make workouts more challenging.
- Work with a Personal Trainer. The best option to avoid and overcome plateaus is to work with a Personal Trainer. Personal trainers not only have science and certifications to back them up, but they also have hours and hours of practical hands-on experience with people at all stages of their fitness journey. A personal trainer can help you track your journey to date, and come up with a strategic and targeted plan for you to lose weight, increase muscle, and meet your goals faster.
Written by: Health & Wellness Director at Downtown St. Louis YMCA at the MX