Muscle stagnation: how to continue to progress?

08.01.21 · 3 reading min

Summary.

Mangez plus.

Ne sous estimez pas ton repos.

Variez votre entraînement.

Faites un programme d’entraînement.

Do you feel like you're surpassing yourself every day at sport and yet you're starting to stagnate? Are you making little progress lately and would like to understand why? Rest assured, this is a completely normal phenomenon. And we will guide you to get you past this milestone and so that you can enjoy the fruits of your efforts.

Eat more.

It is possible that you have entered a phase of stagnation because you have not adapted your diet to your training. you need to increase your energy intake if you want to continue gaining muscle. In fact, muscle mass is very energy intensive, and therefore increases your daily energy expenditure. You shouldn't be afraid to eat more, to finally see your muscles form. Initially, for a beginner, 3 meals a day may be enough but very quickly if you want to continue to progress, consider increasing your food intake by adding 2 to 3 snacks for example. Obviously several factors must be taken into account in one's ability to gain muscle mass such as genetics, age, recovery, the limits of your body... But as a first step to promote your mass gain, it is essential to eat a balanced diet and adapt your macro and micronutrient needs. You can find our complete calorie guide on our blog here . Finally, make sure you drink enough water. Hydration is a key part of muscle recovery/building.

Don't underestimate your rest.

Rest time should be an integral part of your training. In fact, it is during these recovery phases that your body rebuilds itself. Training for too long too often can lead to overtraining and stunt your progress. It's important to understand how your muscles are formed. During your training, muscle fibers break and during the recovery phase your body will repair its damage and create other fibers to strengthen them, thus causing muscle mass gain. It is therefore essential to learn to be as rigorous in your training as in your rest. Remembering to eat, drink enough, not overtrain and sleep at least 7 hours is essential to continue to progress. We advise you to have a training program that allows you to know in advance your rest days and the muscle groups you will work to avoid always working the same muscles without allowing them to recover.

Vary your training.

Remember that the human body is an intelligent machine. He has a very advanced capacity for adaptation. Have you been doing the same workout for a long time, it seemed to work for you, yet it's been some time since you haven't seen any progress? Nothing could be more normal, we reassure you, we will give you avenues to explore so that you can continue to progress. Here is what you can think about changing as soon as muscle stagnation sets in:

Your frequency, your tempo: modify your training cycles, the number of repetitions and series, also think about modifying your recovery times to find what works for you.
Your exercises: change your routine, discover new practices and exercises, try new machines in the gym, work different muscle groups to always progress and continue to challenge yourself.
Weights: If you feel more and more comfortable with the weights you are lifting and you have been lifting the same weights for months, move on to the next level!

Be careful, there is no need to systematically change your program too frequently, it is important that you listen to your body and take note of your progress. If you find that you continue to gain muscle, keep the same workout. But remember to change it as soon as you start to stagnate! It’s also the best way to stay motivated!

Make a workout plan.

Establishing a schedule is a very effective way to keep an eye on your progress. Schedule your sessions, your rest days, your loads and above all take note of your physical progress. you'll no longer lose sight of what works for you, what you've already accomplished, and when it's time to change your plan!