One of the most common ideas I hear mentioned in the gym is that it is important to change your workout around if you want to achieve muscular growth. This idea comes from the belief that the body can adapt to the same type of workout over a period of time; thus, causing your body to become stagnant to the stimulus that is being applied. Although this can be true to a certain point, consider the following.
First, If you are experiencing a plateau in your workout there may be areas in your life that are lacking that could be causing the plateau like; lack of sleep, poor nutrition, lack of water, or stress. People often overlook these areas, so people are quick to change their workout around hoping to find an answer to their workout woes.
Second, keep in mind that the body goes through an initial neurological adaptation process whereby the body has to learn the movements that are in your workout. If you change your workout around to often, you will not give your body time to develop the neurological capabilities that it needs to perform the movements in your workout. Therefore, you will not be able to properly measure the strength gains that you have made.
Remember to look at all the possible areas that could be affecting your workout before you are so quick to change it around. This should help you to better assess your plateaus.
Chad Doing is a personal trainer for Nautilus Plus in Portland, Oregon.
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