5 Reasons You Aren’t Getting Stronger
Let's look at a few mistakes many people make in their quest to increase strength. I’ve definitely made a few of these myself along the way, so hopefully I can save you some frustration.
Reason #1 You're only doing what's fun - and not what you need.
Your workouts should be about 65% full of things you like doing, and 35% what you don't. This may surprise you, but a funny thing can happen - you may actually start to like the things you’re not good at. Whoever said that you can't teach an old dog (or experienced weight lifter) new tricks doesn’t have the real scoop.
Reason #2: You're not taking deload periods.
One phrase which I've grown quite fond of is "fatigue masks fitness." The reason is very simple: most of your training career is going to be spent in some degree of fatigue. How you manage that fatigue is what's going to dictate your adaptation over the long-term. On one hand, you want to impose enough fatigue to create super-compensation - so that you'll adapt and come back at a higher level of fitness. On the other hand, you don't want to impose so much fatigue that you dig yourself into a hole you can't get out of without significant time off. Good weight training programs implement strategic overreaching followed by deloads - periods of lower training stress - to allow for adaptation to occur. You can't just go in and hit personal bests in every single training session - and if you try, you're going to wind up completely exhausted, overtrained, sick, or injured.
Reason #3: You’re not rotating movements.
It never ceases to amaze me when a patient claims that they just can’t seem to increase strength on their bench press (or any lift, for that matter), and when you ask what they’ve done to work on it of late, they tell you “bench press.” Specificity is important, but if you aren’t rotating exercises in your strength training program, you’re missing out on a wildly valuable training stimulus: rotating strength exercises. While there is certainly a place for extended periods of specificity, you can’t push this approach indefinitely. In addition to helping create adaptation, you’re also expanding your “motor program” and avoiding overuse injuries via pattern overload. I’m not saying that you have to overhaul your entire strength and conditioning program each time you walk into the gym, but there should be some semi-regular fluctuation in exercise selection.
Reason #4: You’re inconsistent with your training.
I will tell anyone that listens, that the best strength and conditioning programs are ones that are sustainable. I’ll take a crappy strength training program executed with consistency over a great program that’s only done sporadically. If a strength and conditioning program isn’t conducive to your goals and lifestyle, then it isn’t a good program. Find one, and stick with it.
Reason #5: You’re using the wrong rep schemes.
Beginners can make strength gains on as little as 40% of their one-rep max. Past that initial period, the number moves to 70% – which is roughly a 12-rep max for most folks. Later, I’d say that the number creeps up to about 85% – which would be about a 5-rep max for an intermediate lifter. This last range is where you’ll find most people who head to the internet for strength training information. What they don’t realize is that 85% isn’t going to get the job done for very long, either. My experience is that in advanced lifters, the fastest way to build strength is to perform singles at or above 90% of one-rep max with regularity. As long as exercises are rotated and deloading periods are included, this is a strategy that can be employed for an extended period of time. I’m not saying that you should be attempting one-rep maxes each time you enter the gym, however, they will likely happen if you employ this technique.
