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What to Do When You Hit an Exercise Plateau

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Ah, the well known exercise plateau… It’s just the worst isn’t it? Well, maybe not. It may be the perfect opportunity to look at your exercise habits and ask yourself “what’s working and what’s not?” Plateaus are extremely common to those who exercise regularly.

First off, how do I know that I’ve hit a plateau?

Are you measuring or tracking your progress?

There are endless options to track your progress. Whether it be devices or apps, there are so many great options to monitor and track your fitness goals. If you’re not using tools like timing, heart rate monitoring, or tracking calories burned, it’s almost impossible to know the rate at which you’re improving.

Do you feel sore?

Soreness can mean a few things… it could mean you haven’t been stretching enough, or possibly you worked out without a warm-up, or maybe you’re pushing your muscles to a higher velocity and the muscles fibers are tearing. The last option is what you are ideally trying to do when you strength train. The muscle fiber tears are what cause the increase in size and strength of the muscle as it repairs. If you’re not feeling sore, your muscles may not be growing and this could mean you hit a plateau.

How are your clothes fitting?

I like to ask this one instead of focusing on weight. Your clothes are a great indicator of how your body is reacting to the type of exercise you’re doing. If you’re feeling uncomfortable in your clothes (i.e., they aren’t fitting as well as they did when you began training) this may be a red flag!

Photo by Bruno Nascimento on Unsplash

Okay, I think I’ve hit a plateau… what do I do now?

  • SWITCH IT UP

I get it, it’s so easy to get addicted to one type of workout. Maybe it’s cycling, running, yoga, barre, pilates, you name it. Unfortunately, though, sticking to only one type of training can get you stuck. Your body craves movement in a variety of ways. Challenge yourself. Try that dance class you’ve always wanted to try and see how open your body feels afterward. Try a mat pilates class and notice how deeply engaging your core can make you feel just as strong as weight lifting does.

  • BACK TO BASICS

This can be a great opportunity to go back to your fundamentals. Are you engaging your core when you squat? Are your shoulders pulled back and down as you bicep curl? Are you accidentally tipping forward and overextending your knee in a lunge? These minor adjustments can be huge change-makers in the quality of your results.

  • LOOK LOCAL

Notice the community around you. What are other people doing? Can you get involved in a local running club or a free yoga class at the park? Connecting with others in your local community can be a simple way to reconnect with why you exercise in the first place. Making a “workout date” with a friend will leave you with double the endorphins!

Photo by dylan nolte on Unsplash

Hitting a plateau is a great place to be. You can now look towards your goals and reassess your fitness strategy. Just like you have to constantly balance your work, lifestyle, and relationships, you also have to realign your exercise routine to make it the best use of your time and energy. Use this plateau as a learning experience and get out there – try something new!

Getting a Burn without Burning a Hole in your Wallet

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The Burn that doesn’t Burn a Whole in your Wallet As a form of exercise, Pilates has been around for almost 100 years now, however its popularity has generally been reserved for dancers, athletes or anyone who could afford upwards of $100 for a private session. Now, state of the art Pilates studios are using new large, user friendly, machines in a more affordable class setting fueled by uptempo music and amplified instruction, and it’s giving Pilates a whole new image. Boutique fitness studios like SLT, WundaBar, Flex Studios and Studio Metamorphosis, are a small part of this huge craze.

The creative mind of Sebastien Lagree and the development of the Megaformer might be responsible for this shift. Lagree Fitness has taken the fundamental understanding of a Reformer, the main apparatus used in Pilates, and has made the machine wider, sturdier and with many more moving parts. These machines are much easier to use than the standard Pilates machine. The springs are large and brightly labeled so you can easily adjust your own tension throughout the class. The foot bar is split in half and the two parts can easily rotate 360 degrees by gently pulling up. These not so minor changes to this apparatus have expanded the possibility of exercises; deep lunges, squats, reverse sit ups, planks, etc., and when paired with the motivating beat of a popular artist it makes for a super intense workout.

We’re also seeing machines that have combined two Pilates apparatuses into one such as the FlexFormer and the WundaBar Pilates machines. These pieces of equipment resemble your standard Reformer with a Wunda Chair attached to the back. The Wunda Chair is a classic Pilates apparatus that looks like a seat with a pedal at bottom near the feet. The pedal is great for advanced students because it’s spring loaded and unstable so it requires a lot of core strength. These classes are closer to what you’d experience in a Pilates private but the spring are still labeled and easily adjustable. Some are missing the loud motivating music you might get in a Megaformer class but you’re still going to get a good workout for a fair price.

While these machines are super cool and incredibly effective at giving you that deep burn, there are few things to be aware of. The classes themselves are designed to be very challenging, therefore, I wouldn’t recommend them to a prenatal client or anyone fresh off an injury. Megaformer classes can sometimes be rough on the hip flexors, especially for people with a weak core or with tight hip flexors already. So runners might want to be extra careful with that one. WundaBar uses a jump board attachment which is great for a burst of cardio, however if you’re not pulling in you abs real tight you might feel it in your lower back. What about that chair attachment? You need to have very good balance to feel comfortable on the chair especially for standing leg exercises. I also noticed a lot of instructors like to use the chair’s pedal for upper body segments, so your shoulders should be in tip top shape before you try that one.

The great thing about these new reinventions is that they are reinventing Pilates as a whole and bringing it to a broader population. Prior to this new trend in boutique fitness, your best chance of experiencing a Pilates machine was in a pricy one on one. Now, with these classes, people can enjoy the benefits of low impact spring resistance for a fraction of the cost. Across the board, these classes are fun, energetic and royally butt-kickin’ with minimal joint impact. A killer new addition to the fitness family and a great option for your daily dose of sweat, this Pilates Instructor approves.

megaformer workout