Anytime you start a new program, it’s common to see a ton of progress early on. However, if you’ve been exercising for any length of time, it’s normal for plateaus to happen and your progress to slow at some point sooner or later. I think back to the early days of working out when every week would be a huge jump in weight. The longer you’ve been in your exercise routine, the chances of seeing slower progress is higher. 

After consistently training in the gym anywhere from 3-6x/week, almost without fail, for the past 18+ years, I’ve worked through a lot of moments where my progress stalled. Most of the time I handled it poorly, and only found myself more frustrated as I tried to change my entire program or too many things at once. But as I’ve learned more, experimented in my own program, and with the clients I coach - I’ve identified some key things that you might want to adjust if you find your progress stalling:

1: Rest/Deload

If you’re the type that’s been going hard for a while, then adding some extra rest, reducing volume, or adding in more planned deload weeks could help get you past any plateaus. Your strength and progress doesn’t just happen in the gym, it happens during recovery too.

2: Go Harder

On the other hand, you have to be honest with yourself. If you’ve been following the same program for some time, it feels stale, and you’re going through the motions at the gym - it might be time to get a little uncomfortable again by progressing into some heavier weights, more reps, or more challenging exercises.

3: Same But Different

My default when I saw progress stall was always to do a program revamp, but this only gives the illusion of progress when you switch up your entire routine or jump to a new plan. Instead, implement what I call ‘same but different’ by choosing variations of your current routine that are similar (ex: substituting barbells for dumbbells or back squats to front squats).

4: Make It Fun

Working out isn’t going to be fun and effortless every time you go in, but it should be enjoyable overall. If you feel like you’re forcing yourself to workout, try switching it up enough to make it fun again. This could involve setting a new goal, finding a new routine, working out with a partner, or even changing up where you’re doing your workouts.

5: Keep Going

Out of all of them, this is the most effective strategy that is also the least popular. Sometimes you just have to keep going, realizing that progress might seem like it’s crawling or stalled for several weeks. Remember, the longer you’ve been training, the slower the progress will be. Make sure you have a way to assess and document your progress, as this will give you the best idea of when it’s time to switch it up or when it’s time to keep going.

What do you find helps you when your progress stalls in the gym?