Have you been training a while and hit a plateau?
Have you spent numerous hours in the gym with limited results? Strict dieting with minimal results? Are you strength training with no increases in weight? When was the last time you hit your personal record?
Most athletes who have been lifting for quite some time end of coming to a plateau in their lifting or training protocol. It is good to be consistent with your training protocol, however sometimes you need to shake up the regimen. When your inputs remain the same, the training can become stale and stagnant.
The Overload Training principle (also called the progressive overload principle) forces athletes out of their comfort zones to gradually increase training difficulty to see measured results.
How Muscle Building Actually Works
The Overload principle states that in order for muscle to increase in strength, size, and endurance, it must be regularly challenged to produce an output that is as close as possible to maximum capacity. This technique pushes the threshold of the body past its’ normal capacity, further breaking it down, which in turn will lead to performance gains. The body tends to adapt to training protocol in about 10 to 12 weeks which is why you have to change the protocol i.e. sets, reps, time under tension etc. in order to make the body respond and grow.
Correct any bad form habits before implementing the Overload Principle
Before you decide to start adding more weight to your training protocol, make sure you have taken the appropriate steps to correct any form issues you may have while performing an exercise. If you add more weight to an exercise where you form is not perfect, you stand a greater risk of injury due to your lack of technique. The best way to do this is to have a certified professional watch your form and then make sure you can complete the exercises with perfect form consecutively and repetitively. Muscle memory will help get you in the habit of performing each lift correctly once you understand what your doing.
How to Implement the Overloading Principle
Failure to implement the Overloading principle in your workout regimen can be detrimental to your fitness goals because the body becomes resistant to the same static workout protocol and then doesn’t adapt and grow.
There are two main components to the Overloading Principle, they are the overloading and the progression. As we have already discussed the overloading side of this principle.
The progression consists of a way to add overloading to your training protocol. This can be achieved through intensity, frequency, time of exercise, or a combination of all three.
For more information on the Overloading Principle and the techniques used to implement it, please visit www.hvmn.com. The link to the article is listed here https://hvmn.com/blog/training/overload-principle-training-with-purpose.