Why you’re not getting stronger (and how to fix it!)

One of the most frustrating things about strength training…

is when you hit a plateau…

You show up, do the work, but you just don’t feel like you’re getting any stronger and spend a whole load of time not really getting any better, or worse, just stuck…

If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone.

Structure over random workouts

You can’t build strength efficiently just doing whatever you feel like in the gym on any given day.

This might keep things interesting but kills progress…

Fix it:

• Pick a programme and stick with it for 8-12 weeks - don’t give up after week 3 and change things up. The first few weeks are for learning; figuring out the movements, appropriate weights & how hard each set should feel

• By week 3, you should feel more confident with the movement and better able to push the sets hard enough to create the stimulus needed to build strength and muscle

Structure > random workouts every single time

You’re not actually progressing anything…

This one is simple, but where most people fall down…

Strength is a specific adaptation. If the stimulus doesn’t change, neither do you.

An example of this would be doing 5x5 every week, same weights, same reps, same effort, week in, week out… That’s not training.

One simple habit that makes a HUGE difference, and something I wish I had done looking back instead of just trying to remember week to week, is tracking your workouts and your weights.

Every week, you should be pushing for clear progression…

Eg. if last week you did 8 reps of dumbbell bench press with 20kg dumbbells, next week you should be aiming for:

• 9 reps with the same weight

• or slightly heavier dumbbells for the same reps

Obviously that doesn’t seem like much, 1 rep, but over weeks, that adds up and builds your strength.

And if you don’t know what you did last week, you don’t know what to improve this week and it’s the small improvements that add up over time. 

Fix it:

·       Write it down! Paper, an app, anywhere! 

·       Aim to improve something (reps, weights, quality) every week

If nothing changes, nothing changes!

Your effort and volume are in the wrong place

This is a big one and I see both extremes - people doing too little or way too much…

Some people stop their sets when it starts to feel hard.

Others take every single set to failure.

Neither of these is efficient for building muscle and strength…

An example of this would be 4x8 back squats, followed by an hour of hitting every leg machine in the gym. It might feel productive and gives you DOMs for the next week, but it’s not necessary.

➡️ Always start with the minimum effective dose needed to get the results you’re after, train with maybe 1-2 reps left in reserve, don’t push every set to failure

We don’t want our first week to be 10/10 intensity, like we want just enough effort that you’re causing growth, but not too much that you have nowhere to go. This is called auto regulation, but more on that in another blog. 

At Principal Athletic, our PHT sessions are typically simple:

• 1 hour session

• 1-2 main lifts

• Accessory work

It might not look like much on paper, but when it’s done properly, with intensity + focus, it’s more than enough to give you the progress you’re looking for. 

Final thought…

Quite often, people who make the biggest progress aren’t necessarily the ones lifting the heaviest weights, they’re the ones who just keep turning up (consistency is king!!).

They follow the programme, trust the process and give their body time to adapt.

Strength training and muscle building is a LONG term process, like, painfully slow. This isn’t something you can do over a 12 week programme and call it a day, this is something that needs to be repeated for years and years (and years). 

It’s not sexy, but it works.

If you’re not progressing, ask yourself these questions:

·       Am I following a structured programme?

·       Am I training hard enough? 

·       Am I doing it consistently? 

·       Have I been doing it for long enough? 

·       Am I tracking progress? 

If any of those is no, that is your starting point. 

Structure + consistency + time = progress 

Strength training at Principal Athletic in Nottingham 

At Principal Athletic in Colwick, PHT is our signature strength training programme and everything we do is built around structured + progressive training. 

Whether you’re a beginner who’s just starting out strength training or someone who’s been in the game for years, the goal is the same: help you get stronger, consistently.

You will never have to think about what to do again, you just turn up and do the work! 

If you’re based in Colwick or Nottingham and want to train in a way that actually helps you progress, you’ll fit right in.