This is a rather controversial subject; people for muscle confusion say the best way to overcome a plateau and increase muscle mass is to constantly change up your workout, and people against it say the key to muscle development is by challenging the muscle with progressive overload. Little do both sides know they’re arguing to the same point…really.
One side is arguing how to work out, and the other is arguing how much weight to use during a workout.
It Doesn't Matter What Workout Routine You Follow
The key here is it doesn’t matter what workout routine you follow as long as you follow these guidelines:
- For whatever set/rep combination, be sure you’re challenging yourself with each rep and maintaining good form.
- Monitor your rest, and keep it under 2 minutes per set, to maintain intensity.
- If you decide to log your weights used in each work out, then be sure to note (and check once per month) your One Rep Max (ORM) as mentioned in our article: What Weight Should I Use? and adjust your weight used for reps (lower reps use higher percentage of ORM & higher reps use lower percentage of ORM).
Following these guidelines ensures a challenging workout that will help you with plateaus and muscle development.
Now with that, here is the caveat: A set routine gets stale, when the routine gets stale you lose motivation, when you lose motivation you don’t work out, when you don’t work out…well you get the idea.
Change up your routine, it’s exciting!
Change up your routine, it’s exciting! Every week a different order, different movements, and different parts of the gym! You may even get done quicker! With over 193 Trillion workouts we’ll be able to provide you with a new workout for the rest of your life, neat! If you do find a workout you like, stick with it, what difference does it make? These are your goals and this is your happiness! Just be sure to follow those above guidelines, and go with what makes you happy!
Happy Lifting!
