WHY YOUR STRENGTH PROGRAM ISN’T GIVING THE DESIRED RESULTS

In the grand scheme of things, strength straining is only a small percentage of the total training required as endurance athletes. However it is important but most athletes always seem not to know how to get the most gain from their strength training sessions. One key aspect of strength training is understanding the importance of quality over quantity. In this article, we will be taking a look at the main reasons why you may not be experiencing gains in your strength training program. They include:

• DIVERTING FROM YOUR GOAL

Often, with strength training, we tend to get sidetracked, opting to train muscles which they think would look best, exercises which are most fun and those which are easiest to perform. Often we choose exercises which will make us look good against those which would help our performance. Some persons change routine too often and others, stick with the same routine for too long, neither of which is particularly effective.

Actually, a lot of “strength training” programs which coaches administer are not actually beneficial for endurance athletes. High intensity exercises like star-jumps, burpees, high repetitions, sit-ups, etc aren’t exactly beneficial for endurance athletes. These are fitness workout routines which you already achieve though the time you put in on the track, bike or pool. Rather, focus should be on exercises which develop structural strength around the joints.

Therefore, we need to remind ourselves what the focus of our training is as the focus of training is doing what is required consistently.

• FAILING TO PROGRESS

Failure to move one from one exercise routine to the next is a reason why a lot of persons don’t progress in their strength training. Once the body becomes accustomed to a particular routine, the benefits plateau and there’s no further progress.

To be sure your program is on track, switch things up every 4-6 weeks so you don’t plateau but you must remember that progression doesn’t necessarily mean increasing the load.

• IGNORING WARM-UPS

A lot of people hit the gym and do 3-5 minutes of cardio and head straight to the weights or machine but this should never be the case. A warm up is designed to identify “trouble spots” early enabling you detect which areas are tight and would require more attention. Make sure to spend 10-15 minutes on either a rowing machine, elliptical, treadmill or spin bike.