Strength plateaus. You’ve probably been there at some point:

 

You start running a new program and see good, predictable improvements for a while. But then, progress slows down to a crawl. Before long, you stop seeing any improvements and wonder what went wrong.

 

The state, also known as a strength plateau, can be frustrating because the solution isn’t always as apparent as “Eat more food to gain weight.”

 

To that end, we’ve compiled a list of practical ways to break through these plateaus.

 

Let’s discuss.

 

1. Confirm It’s a Plateau

 

Strength plateaus come in many shapes and sizes, but you must determine if you’re in one. 

 

For example, you can confidently conclude that you’re in a plateau if you’re a complete beginner and haven’t been able to add weight to the bar in the last month despite training consistently. 

 

But the same cannot be said for someone with lots of lifting experience. Not adding weight to the bar every month becomes more common as people get stronger, and it doesn’t necessarily indicate a plateau.

 

2. Evaluate How You Feel

 

Plateaus can result from many things, but how you approach your training will depend on how you feel.

 

For example, you could be in a plateau because you’ve been running a particularly demanding training program and are slightly overtrained. In that case, stepping off the gas pedal for a while would be better to give your body the time it needs to recover.

 

In contrast, a plateau might result from not training hard enough. So, if you feel great, maybe the most practical thing to do is train harder and do more volume.

 

3. Check Your Form

 

Are you stuck in a plateau where all of your lifts are stagnating, or do you struggle with one specific exercise and its variations? If it’s the latter, maybe your problem has to do with your technique and setup.

 

Examine your technique to determine if mistakes are holding you back from optimal progress. 

 

Also, if you’re stuck on a particular lift, consider where the sticking point is and work to resolve it. For instance, if you struggle at the bottom of the bench press, add some pause work with a lighter load to build chest and shoulder strength.

 

4. Tweak Your Training

 

Another effective way to break through a strength plateau is to make minor tweaks to your workout program. 

 

Good ways to do so include:

 

• Add partials to your workouts – rack pulls, board presses, floor presses, partial squats, etc.
• Do slow negatives – for example, descend for several seconds during squats instead of dive-bombing
• Pause – instead of always relying on the stretch reflex, pause for a moment in the middle of each rep; doing so will force the involved muscles to work extra hard
• Experiment with numerous exercise variations – do multiple variations of the primary lifts you want to improve instead of always doing the same thing (e.g., high-bar back squat)

On top of that, consider bumping your training frequency for a specific exercise to see if that helps with progress. For instance, if you’re struggling to bench press more weight, start doing the movement (and close variations) up to three times per week.

 

Looking for more personalised advice on breaking through plateaus? Book a free consultation with our coaches today.