Do you feel like you have been stuck in a rut? Well, here are some changes you need to consider if you want to continue progressing. 

Look, plateaus happen. But, they should not be happening often or last long. If you feel like you have stopped making progressive & noticeable improvements with your strength, fat loss, endurance, muscle growth, or whatever your primary goal is currently, then it is time for you to switch things up. This can happen even if you are ultra consistent in the gym.

What are the key signs that show you may be plateauing?

• Noticeable limit on strength or crash in your ability to lift heavier loads.
• Decrease in motivation, feeling stagnant within your fitness journey. 
• Lack of endurance. 
• Decrease in performance in general.
• Increased levels of fatigue while training. 
• Physical changes seem to have hit a wall. Fat loss & muscle growth seems to become stagnant. Body composition has flatlined. 

You are not going to be 100% all of the time when it comes to your training. That is just a part of the journey. You have to be able to break through obstacles & barriers to truly reach your highest potential. It is a process of ebbs & flows, & progression is not linear. It takes time. BUT, plateauing is a different story. & some people spend months or longer continuing to participate in the same training regimen. 

Once your body is adapted to the stimulus it has experienced for a 4-5 week period (can be shifted depending on the person but should not go much higher or deviate from this standard), you need to make changes within your exercise selection, overload factors, & acute variable manipulation. If you truly want to progress, you need to make changes. Here is what I recommend.

• Manipulating your overload factors: Your muscles will begin to adapt to the progressive overload methods you have integrated within your program. If those are not adjusted, then the stress you are experiencing while training is likely to limit & stop your progressional development within your current program. Load adjustments & intensity needs to be shifted in order for you to grow!
• Acute variable manipulation: If your load, recovery time, sets, reps, tempo manipulation, & exercise selection (+ more variables) are identical for too long… You intensity will stay the same. Once intensity becomes stagnant, your body has no choice but to stop or regress. We do not want this!!! Why is it important to understand how to properly manage acute variables in correlation to your goals to further progression?
• Your body is a complex machine. In order to properly adapt, you need specificity within your program. Without specificity, your training is random, therefore creating random stimulus. Within this 4-5 week phase, you should be following your properly adjusted program that contains specificity, allowing yourself to properly adapt to the experienced stimulus. No more random workouts or spontaneous variable programming. Keep in mind structured training is great, but repetitive training for too long of duration under the same stimulus will cause plateau. Train with purpose! You need variation.
• Imbalances & issues with your training style & movement patterns can & WILL catch up to you. It is important to establish a proper base to build from. This is commonly neglected, which only continually develops on the bad habits that you may have. A lot of the clients I work with have a large amount of imbalances & mechanic issues, so we establish a base. Correct before you progress!
• Simply under training or overtraining. This is extremely important. Do not over do it! Also, don’t slack. You will never reach the goals you are trying to achieve if you half ass your training. Over training or copious amounts of volume will catch up to you. Programming is an art & requires meticulous care. 
• Emphasize recovery! Arguably one of the most important aspects of development.  Your training can be dialed in, but if your recovery is not taken seriously, then your progress will be no where near where it could be.
• Not eating enough… This will cause you to plateau. If your nutrition is suboptimal, your development will be suboptimal. Not enough macronutrients, micronutrients, or calories can hinder the recovery process, diminishing growth. Inadequate or imbalanced nutrition can & will limit the bodies ability to support training demands + recovery practices. 
• Increased levels of stress & fatigue: Believe it or not, high levels of mental fatigue & stress can impact recovery & performance. 

Keep these things in mind if you are experiencing a plateau: 

Change up your routine. It may be time for a new & improved, structured program. New split, new exercise, new variables, & new overload. Modifying aspects like exercise types, intensity, & volume. Challenge yourself!

Prioritize your recovery & nutrition. Take care of yourself, especially if you are training hard. Things like sufficient sleep, rest days, and techniques like active recovery or de-loading can help. Reset & Refuel! Ensure your training habits, dietary habits, & goals all align!

Keep track of progress. This is HUGE. Keep a notepad or online excel sheet to monitor your progress. This will help you not only track progression, but identify the areas that you may need to improve on. 

Phase your training! You need implementation of structure to understand how adaptation works. 

Recognizing and addressing a training plateau is crucial for continued progress and to prevent frustration or burnout. By implementing strategic changes and listening to one's body, it's possible to break through plateaus and achieve ongoing improvements.

Peer reviewed studies supporting the given info:

The review emphasizes the importance of individualized training modifications to reignite progress. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Research published in Frontiers in Physiology examined the efficacy of AEL in experienced strength trainers facing plateaus. sciencedaily.com

This study suggests that varying training variables, such as intensity and volume, and ensuring adequate recovery are essential strategies to counteract these plateaus. researchgate.net

This underscores the necessity of personalized rest strategies to maintain and enhance performance. instituteofmotion.com

This approach incorporates strategic short rest periods within sets, highlighting the importance of structured rest in training programs. researchgate.net

This study indicates that adequate rest between sets is beneficial for muscle development. frontiersin.org

The authors highlight that structured variation in training variables can prevent performance plateaus and promote continuous improvement. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The study found that both models effectively enhance muscular strength, but undulating periodization may offer slight advantages in certain contexts. researchgate.net

The study emphasizes the importance of individualized training modifications to sustain progress. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov