How to Progress Your Workouts and Challenge Yourself

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Written By Juliet D'cruz

If you’re feeling stuck in a fitness plateau or not seeing the results you want from your workouts, it’s time to change things up. This article will show you the best ways to progress your workouts and challenge yourself to get results again!

The most effective way to do this is to increase the difficulty of your workouts. It will force your body to adapt and grow stronger.

Increase Weight

One of the most effective ways to progress your workouts and challenge yourself is to increase your weight. It will improve your squat, lunge and deadlift performances, not to mention make you feel stronger on the inside and out.

You can choose from many different types of weights at gym tweed heads, ranging from light to heavy, but the best way to determine which weight is right for you is to talk to your trainer or nutritionist. They will know what type of weight is most effective for your goals and be able to provide you with a solid workout routine that will help you reach your goal.

If you are trying to gain weight, make sure your diet is also nutrient-dense. It means avoiding processed foods and opting for more natural alternatives. In addition to the usual suspects, go for nutrient-rich foods like eggs, avocados and salmon, as well as the more calorie-dense options like chicken, beef and pork.

Increase Reps

Progressive overload training is a great way to increase your workout results in terms of performance and appearance. To use this strategy, gradually increase your reps and sets weekly.

You can progress by adding one rep to each set while keeping the weight and rest periods the same, or you can change up your rep range and try a different exercise. Changing your workouts will keep you from getting bored and ensure you are still progressing toward your goals.

Whether you aim to increase your strength, lose body fat or have fun, increasing reps is the key to making those improvements. It is especially important if you want to build muscle.

It’s best to stick with a rep range for most of your workouts and then add in a few higher rep sets occasionally. It will help you stay in the 8-12 rep range (the optimal muscle growth range) and keep your training challenging.

Using heavier weights for higher reps can help you build lean mass while lifting lighter weights for lower reps can increase your endurance and overall fitness. In addition, research shows that high-rep training can improve your metabolism and cause you to burn more calories after a workout.

Increase Time

We all know that a good workout is the key to healthier and happier lives. But if you’re looking to maximize your time in the gym, you’ve got to be strategic in your approach. 

Whether that means going to more than one session per day or doing something extra fancy, like a group fitness class, taking advantage of every minute you spend in the gym is important.

For example, if you’re looking to build up your cardio endurance, why not increase the duration of your run or bike ride? You can also try out a new class that counts your reps and sets in real-time.

Change Exercises

Many physical trainers encourage clients to change their workout routines as often as possible to avoid a plateau or boredom. The theory behind this is that exercising with the same weights for the same exercises for a long time causes the body to adapt and become comfortable.

When this happens, it becomes harder to make progress. The best way to stay motivated and keep your program challenging is to constantly change the exercises you use, the reps you do, the amount of time you spend on each exercise, and more.

One of the best ways to change your exercises is to do a compound set, combining two moves to target one muscle group. It is especially effective for lower-body exercises like squats and deadlifts and upper-body exercises like chest presses and triceps push-ups.

Another way to make exercises more difficult is to switch up your grips or how you do them. It is particularly important if you’re using heavy weights or a barbell.

Changing how you exercise changes the stress on your muscles and can stimulate growth. It can also increase the number of repetitions you do, which can boost size gains.

If you’re looking for new exercises, try the ones below to challenge your workouts. They’ll help you build lean, strong muscles that will be easier to maintain when your training schedule ends.