Progressive overload is a technique that’s as outdated as 6th century athlete Milo of Croton and his legendary bull carrying routine. With this coaching type, you’re attempting to enhance the depth of every exercise to keep away from a plateau in measurement and power. Basically, it’s doing a little bit greater than you probably did beforehand. This could seem a no brainer to lots of you studying, however a few of us overlook the apparent, so it pays to refresh the message.
Increasing weight, reps, and units is the only technique to obtain progressive overload. Boom, immediate positive factors, however plateaus are unavoidable should you’ve been within the lifting recreation for any size of time. Then, attempting to bust out of them might result in some ego lifting, that’s good for the ego however not so good in your physique. You’ve all seen that particular person half-repping heavy squats or getting the barbell caught on their chest.
There’s no disgrace in pushing the envelope, however three higher and safer methods exist to attain progressive overload with out growing load. It’s so easy you want you’d’ve considered it.
3 Methods To Achieving Progressive Overload
Increasing Range of Motion
Putting the muscle via a higher ROM makes any train more difficult as a result of it will increase your time below stress (mechanical stress) and the suck. The muscular time below stress (and never the suck) is a driving drive for muscle. Not solely does it encourage muscle-building, however it might strengthen weak factors inside a raise.
For occasion, growing the ROM with a deficit deadlift will work on weak factors like being gradual off the ground and lockout.
Another instance is the Rear Foot Elevated Split Squat. The elevated floor will increase the demand for hip mobility and makes the glutes and quads work arduous to tug you up from the underside of the squat. The break up squat and the elevated variation are the identical train, however the elevated ROM will increase the depth.
[Please note this works for only specific exercises like the ones described above but not for pressing variations like the bench press, where increasing the ROM puts the anterior shoulder at risk.]
Adding half a rep to an train is one other underrated methodology of accelerating ROM and time below stress. You take essentially the most difficult a part of the train, like the underside of a press or a squat, rise midway up, return down once more, after which rise all the way in which up.
One in a half-rep methodology works for many workout routines however is especially efficient with squat and press variations.
Benefits of Increasing Your Range of Motion
There’s an outdated saying round gymnasium circles that mobility coaching is power coaching and vice versa. Taking your muscle groups and cell joints via an entire and prolonged ROM safely will increase time below stress and can enhance your mobility with out fancy drills. Adding half a rep to particular workout routines will strengthen essentially the most difficult a part of the raise, hopefully strengthening your raise whereas including muscle.
How To Incorporate It
Increasing ROM and including half a rep works greatest utilizing sub-maximal weights (60-85% 1RM) as a part of your accent routine. Adding half a rep works for many workout routines, whereas growing ROM primarily works for leg workout routines; exceptions to the rule exist. Performing two to 4 units utilizing a rep vary of six to fifteen works greatest. Here’s an instance.
1A. Rear Foot Elevated Split Squat: 8 to 12 reps per facet
1B. Unilateral Dumbbell Row With Pause: 10 to fifteen reps per facet
Achieving Mastery
The extra you push it, the extra good type begins to slide, which is okay typically however turns into an issue while you do it constantly. Yes, I see the one that’s swinging backwards and forwards doing barbell bicep curls.
Weaknesses and compensations might seem in your raise that don’t occur with sub-maximal weights —for instance, fighting a lockout within the barbell overhead press or shedding full physique stress within the deadlift. If that sounds such as you, utilizing accent workout routines to strengthen weaker factors to stop compensations from occurring is a great guess.
Some lifters make the frequent mistake of testing power quite than constructing it as a result of who doesn’t wish to see how a lot they will raise? Occasionally, testing your 1 RM is inspired, however concentrating on good type and mastering the train with the load you’re utilizing is what try to be doing more often than not.
Mastery is a extremely underrated type of progressive overload.
Instead, make sure you do the train to the most effective of your means and with good method. Take psychological notes on the way you’re doing and whether or not the load is inflicting any type points. Work on these type points by programming accent workout routines to strengthen weak point, lighten the load, or cut back the reps to deal with method.
Benefits of Achieving Mastery
You raise to get higher wanting and carry out higher at life or your chosen sport; none of that occurs if you find yourself harm. Seeking mastery along with your power work will hold you more healthy for longer. Furthermore, creating a greater mind-muscle connection gives you a greater sense of consciousness and help along with your muscle-building positive factors.
How To Incorporate It
There’s a time and a spot for physique English to get the job finished, however try to be in search of mastery of your principal lifts more often than not.
Tempo Lifting
Each repetition you carry out has 4 elements: the eccentric, backside place, concentric contraction, and lockout. Shortening or lengthening how lengthy every a part of the rep takes is tempo. Tempo, every a part of the rep, is represented by the variety of seconds it takes.
For occasion, let’s use a 3322 tempo barbell squat for instance—it takes three seconds to decrease into the underside of your squat (eccentric), a 3-second pause on the backside, 2 seconds to push again up (concentric), and a pair of seconds to pause on the high.
The most vital good thing about performing tempo lifting, moreover embracing the suck, is it will increase the time below stress. Using tempo encourages you to gradual the train down and deal with type, which is crucial for mastery and choosing up any type glitches. Form hitches are simpler to select up while you’re going gradual quite than quick.
Benefits of Tempo Lifting
Increasing the muscle’s time below stress is the place it’s at for constructing muscle and for higher type and method. Tempo lifting, much like mastery, will create a greater mind-muscle connection to enhance your consciousness and positive factors,
How To Incorporate It
For tempo, use a 2-3 second concentric, and a 3 to 4 eccentric contraction works effectively for muscle and power. The pause and lockout could be manipulated to fit your objectives.
Like growing the vary of movement, tempo works greatest as a part of your accent routine utilizing weights between 60-85% of your one rep max. You will be unable to carry out as many reps as you often do with a given weight, however the enhance in stress will compensate for that. Three to 4 units utilizing a rep vary of six to 12 reps works effectively for many workout routines. Here’s an instance.
1A. Tempo Bench Press (3131): 6 to eight reps
1B. Upper Back Foam Roll: 10 to fifteen instances.