Workout ADD, Why you Workout all the Time but Make no Progress….

Pintrest: Multiple pins on the same persons board of:

This persons leg workout, that persons butt workout, how such and such gets body X,Y,Z

Magazines: Every month a new workout.

TV Shows: How celebrity X,Y,Z does this or that and this doctors or personalities favorite workout of the minute.

Bootcamps: “We get in a group and do something different each time”

Exercise Classes: Taught to the mid range user in the group, which is usually someone of a low fitness level.

Fact: Most group exercise classes are based on entertainment, not fitness training.

In and of themselves all these things can be fine, can be done right (but it’s VERY rare) and ALL are worlds better than just sitting around on your azz doing nothing …

If you’re fine with just sweating, getting tired and bullshitting with your friends these are probably you’re best options really.

But in the end they’re just individual workouts that you may or may not perform with regularity.

In the end though, it’s all Training ADD: constantly doing this workout or that trying to find the magic bullet for the results you’re after.

And workouts are fine for beginners and low fitness level individuals….at first…..but after a while (3-6 months) those random workouts tend to still be “hard” and “intense” and “fun” but your progress has stopped, you’re fitness level isn’t improving and you’re not progressing towards your goals…

Why?

Because to get consistent improvement past the beginner stage you need a program that matches your goals.

You never actually progressed to more difficult exercises, variations and workloads as you improved. You just did more of the same..because that’s what the workout called for.

Maybe faster, maybe more of it….but it’s still more of the same.

That’s why progress stops and goals don’t get reached.

As your fitness level improves the challenge must also. You can increase the challenge by:

• Adding weight
• Doing more reps
• Doing more sets
• Performing the exercise faster
• Using a larger range of motion
• Changing the points of support
• Decreasing the rest periods

This is why workouts don’t work, they never change as you improve, they continue along to fit the median ability user.

For example: 

Pintrest Pin: Carrie Underwood’s leg Workout

• What if her “leg workout” is too easy or too hard for you? Will you get her results?
• What if she did that workout for 12 weeks and you follow the program for 4, until the next magazine comes out?
• What if the printed workout is the beginning of a progression? What if it’s where she has progressed to?
• What if she did that workout with a 20lbs dumbbell and you can only handle body weight?

Will you get her results if your circumstances and variables are different?

Probably NO….

For Example: Group Exercise Class

The teacher probably has to teach to the middle or lower level participant so everyone can participate.

Is there always a lot of people who, well, suck?….

Do you get the BEST workout, the one that fits your ability on that day and builds off the previous workouts?

Probably NO….

For Example: Bootcamp

• 3 months into it and your still doing the same exercise’s?
• Are the rest periods still the same?
• Are you still pushing the same weight on the sled?
• Using the same battle ropes? For the same interval?
• Swinging the same kettlebell for the same reps and sets?
• Have you gotten better consistently? How would you know?

Are you going to be better, fitter, stronger, leaner next month after another month of doing what you’ve already done?

Probably No…..

Programs however, change as you progress.

The individual workouts in a program are parts of the whole: interconnected and building off of each other, once you reach a milestone, something changes to continue to challenge you resulting in continued improvement.

For Example: Easy Progression I use …

A typical beginner workout rep scheme for exercises are (at the same external weight, 20lbs is just an example here folks could be any weight, and or range of motion):

• WK 1: 5 reps @ 20lbs
• WK 2: 6 reps @ 20lbs
• WK 3: 8 reps @ 20lbs
• Wk 4: 10 reps @ 20lbs
• WK 5: 12 reps @ 2olbs

Once you reach twelve reps at an exercise we move the weight up and start over.

Obviously, it doesn’t always happen perfectly, with week to week improvement…but the thought is:

You have to EARN the next step.

 Point is: as your fitness improves, the challenge increases and you must change/ improve to meet future challenges….

This is why programs are superior to workouts….there is a plan, that flows from one point to the next based on YOUR needs, goals and ability to adapt to the challenge.

Think about this:

The typical peaking program for a powerlifting meet is 12-16 weeks….

The typical fat loss program for a bodybuilder is 12-20 weeks….

The typical  fat loss program for a figure competition is 8-12 weeks…..

Following a program, workouts that are tied together with a specific goal in mind, is why these people get  results in competitions.

A setting where only results matter.

Excuses are for losers.

Yet so many people are spinning their wheels looking for “that new thing” that’s finally going to get them to their goals.

If you feel like your putting in a lot of work but not getting the results you want maybe it’s time to take a cold hard look at the reality and ask yourself,

“Have I consistently gotten better? Am I constantly improving and getting closer to my goals? Or am I stuck?”

If you’re stuck in a fitness rut…

IE. your busting your ass consistently in the gym, your nutrition is on point and your still not getting any measurable results; there’s a good chance you’re relying on the workout  fad of the minute.

And relying on quick fix magic bullets,  not following a good comprehensive program based on your ability, rate of adaptation and goals will always come up short.

Don’t think for a minute that this doesn’t happen to novice, intermediate and even advanced lifters who lose faith in programs, never sticking with them for the duration hopping from program to program looking for magical gains. It’s just less of a factor at that level than with the typical “workout” crowd.