4 Effective Ways to Overcome Your Exercise Plateau

An exercise plateau is something we all dread, but most of us experience. We are steadily getting stronger, increasing our endurance and improving our flexibility, and then one day, our improvement just stops. This is a plateau. While this issue is frustrating, it is fixable and something that you can break through with a little effort and creativity.

You Are What You Eat

Yes, what you eat impacts how your body responds to exercise. If you are increasing how much you are exercising, you will need to increase your calories so that your body can be properly fueled to compensate for the increased demands. It is equally important to eat the right things. If you simply eat junk foods to make up those extra calories then you are not helping yourself. You need to make sure that you are consuming foods that are rich in nutrients, and that you are getting adequate proteins, carbohydrates and healthy fats.

Rest for a Week

This may sound counterproductive, but one of the primary reasons that we plateau in exercise is because we are simply over-training. I often find myself guilty of this. Your muscles need time to recover after a workout, and this includes your heart because it is a muscle too. I have learned from coaches and athletic trainers that about every 6 to 8 weeks, I should take a week off. During this week off, do not train at all. This means no cardio, no strength training, nothing. You will still, however, eat a well-balanced diet. This is a week for your body to rest, recover and get ready to go into "training mode" again.

Switch it Up

I don't know about you, but I get bored very easily. For example, I do cardio six days a week and I alternate Zumba, the treadmill and a stationary bike all throughout the week because if I only did one of those every single day, I would get bored quickly, and I would likely plateau more often. One way to avoid a plateau is to trick your body by constantly switching things up. The same goes for strength training. I follow a pretty strict strength training routine, but I will do legs one day, back and core one day and arms one day, lather, rinse and repeat. This keeps my body guessing which muscles I will train on a specific day and gives my muscle groups plenty of time to rest in between training sessions.

Interval Training

I know that not everyone likes to run and not everyone is physically able to run. I too have physical issues related to my spine that make long-distance running impossible now. However, interval training allows you to take advantage of the benefits of running without actually having to deal the with disadvantages and difficulties of it. Interval training also helps to bust through plateaus, especially those related to endurance. When you are starting out, follow a 15-45 mix and build up from there. This mix would be run for 15 seconds and walk for 45 seconds. You would do this for as long as possible and build up to a full 45 minutes, at least three days per week.

Resources

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services: Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans