Progress Stalled and You Don’t Know Why? Use this Checklist to Figure it Out

Progress Stalled and You Don’t Know Why?

Use this Checklist to Figure it Out

Has your weight loss or muscle building or strength progress stalled? There are a lot of variables at play and it’s sometimes hard to determine which one(s) have caused the plateau.

Use this checklist, compliments of Andrew Heming at T-Nation.com (plus a few of my own suggestions in blue) to find out why.

·        Do I have a clearly defined goal?

·        Is my training focused on my goal or am I distracting myself with cool but non-essential exercises or techniques? (Or am I trying to accomplish too many goals at once without focusing on any?)

·        Do I have unrealistic expectations? (Am I trying to be ripped by Tuesday” Am I expecting to gain 40 pounds of muscle in a month?)

·        Am I doing the big, hard, uncomfortable, result-producing exercises?

·        Am I keeping a training journal?

·        Am I getting better at these exercises by regularly adding weight?

·        Am I training consistently?

·        Am I following a program for an appropriate amount of time or am I program-hopping? (Or conversely, have I been using the same program for too long?)

·        Am I consistently monitoring goal-relevant assessments? (e.g. measurements)

·        Is my nutrition on track? Am I keeping a food log?

·        Am I consistently using the right supplements for my goals?

·        Do I get enough sleep?

·        Am I getting sufficient rest? (Is that two-hour game of pick-up basketball killing my muscle gains?)

·        Am I managing stress effectively?

·        Am I training with good effective form or just using a lot of wasted effort without concentrating on doing it properly? Sloppy form is wasted effort.

·        Am I just adding more and more volume to overcome a plateau? “More” isn't always the answer.

Many people mistakenly look for a programming solution when they aren’t practicing sound training, nutrition or lifestyle habits.

Progress doesn’t happen in a linear fashion. It happens in fits and starts. If you are doing all of the above correctly then give it time.