Are you one of those people who goes to the gym and ignores any plate below a 2.5kg?

Have you ever attempted to perform a lift and failed because the jump in weight was too high?

Well, if the answer is yes to any of them then you need to listen up.

One of the ways we can progressively overload is to add weight, there are various other ways but that’s for another blog.

What is progressive overload?

Progressive overload is when you gradually increase the weight, frequency, or number of repetitions in your strength training routine.

Now the issue I see with most people who try to progress by adding weight is the amounts they add.

As an example, if you’ve just done a back squat of 100kg for 3 reps and found it really difficult but then choose to add 10kg either side, there’s going to be 2 potential outcomes……

Scenario 1 is you will get the weight up, but your form goes to shit, and the risk of injury goes through the roof.

Scenario 2 is you will fail the lift and ultimately leave with a damaged ego (some people need this haha!)

If you honestly feel like an exercise is anywhere between an 8-10/10 then you need to be conservative with how much weight you put on if any.

This is where the use of the 1.25kg or 2.5kg plates comes in, just because it’s not a big number doesn’t mean it won’t be effective.

As a noob to the gym, you will be able to make bigger jumps at first with weight but as you become more trained and your strength is hitting its peak it’s very important to think about the small progressions.

Always remember if you want to progress long term you need to train smart with no ego, otherwise you will be out of the gym due to injury or out of the gym because you’re going too big.

Also, another huge part of this is actually logging your lifts so you can go into a new session knowing what you did previously.

Task

This leads me onto the task, if you are reading this and don’t log your workouts, I want you to begin to do so.

Do this for the next month with all your workouts with an aim to get stronger within some exercises.

Once a month has passed I want you to get in touch with us via email (info@rikfitdc.com) or Insta (@rikfitdc) and let us know how you get on.

For anyone who has never logged a workout I can guarantee this will be a game changer.

If you feel you may need some further help with how to do this then click on the link below to book a call with us!

https://form.jotform.com/200051535649047

We are here to BREAK THE CYCLE!

Hope you have a great day,

Ben Mannion
Head Coach
RikFit Dynamic Coaching
07727919966