3 Things to check to break your plateau

It is understandable for anybody who are lifting weights to want to get stronger fast and want to break through their plateau by pushing themselves harder.

It is also true that we often rush for the progression to happen and start adding more weight without really understanding what may be causing your plateau or not able to lift heavier.

Before you increase the load to break your plateau, you may want to go over 3 key factors that may be causing your stall.  I will be using squat as an example.

Form Compensation

Is your form at optimal level?

When you are squatting, your hip should go at least as low as below the knee line with the spine in neutral position without tilting your head upward.

Why?  If you are unable to go below your knee line, most likely there are some weaknesses or mobility issues that are limiting your squatting performance.  Not always but usually due to tightness around your ankle and hips.

Upward head tilt happens because you may have told that it helps you with you lift but this is a false skill. Your spine, from attachment of your skull to all the way down to your tailbone, should be in a neutral line (not straight).

What does this do?  By keeping your spine neutral, you are able to use your muscles surrounding your spine together with other muscles that are required for squats.  When you tilt your head upward you are breaking the kinetic chain, also known as energy leak.

Strengthening Antagonist Muscles

Have you been working on opposite muscle group or antagonist muscles?

It is rare to see someone who is working on strengthening opposite muscle group or antagonist muscles along with their main lift.

Although you are using your antagonist muscles during your lift; however, not as much as the primer muscles for that lift.  For squat, it is your posterior chain or muscle in the back of your body that would consider to be your antagonist muscles.  This would include hamstring, gluts, erector spinae muscle group, and trapezius muscles.

Recovery Process: Eating and Sleeping

You don't get strong from your exercise.  You are getting stronger by recovering from your exercise.  This includes both proper eating and sleeping habits.

Eating and hydrating is one of the key factors for your recovery that has huge impact on your progression in both strength and muscle development.

If you are looking to gain strength or break plateau, don't go on weight loss meal plan.  You do need adequate amount of protein, carb and fat along with a lot of vegetables in order to increase your muscular strength and size.

As for water, if you are following 8 glasses per day, most likely you are not seeing the results that you were planning on.  If you are working out to get stronger and build muscles, you will at least need about 2-3 liters per day.

When you have poor sleeping habits (< 6 hours), most likely you are not recovering from your workout, hence, you are not getting stronger.  Find a routine that would help you sleep better.

Increasing weight is the way to improve your strength/size and break through your plateau.  However, increasing your strength or size does have requirement such as your weaker muscle groups need to be stronger, dietary adjustment, and sleep improvement as mentioned above.

You cannot outsmart your body by just adding a load.  Yet, when you find your missing piece and start working on it, you will be amaze with gain that you will be experiencing.

It is always fun to get stronger,

Kota Shimada