3 Reasons Why You aren’t Getting any Stronger

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Look buddy, let’s face the facts. We all have our weaknesses, and while some silently agree to work harder on them tomorrow, others just accept them as a fact of life and leave it at that. But they have only themselves to blame. Here are three reasons that you are not getting any stronger.

1) Body Awareness

Proprioception may be a new word for some of you, but don’t worry, it just means awareness of your body. At any moment, our brain should have a sense of where our limbs are, or it’s not working properly. But what I really like to point out is that in the absence of a personal trainer, no one really knows if he or she is doing the right movements in the right way. It’s all very well to print explicit instructions on the internet, and a video demonstration often adds to the explanation, yet most newbies are blissfully unaware whether they are doing the right movements exactly. This is where the services of an exercise partner or mentor can really pay off. If you don’t know what the right or correct way is to proceed with an exercise, you will most likely be doing it wrong.

2) Movement Patterns

The second reason that we are not getting stronger is that we are using the incorrect movement patterns for the given exercises. Like a conductor who conducts an orchestra, we initially rely on our trainer, mentor, exercise partner or video presentation to guide us through the correct movements. He or she not only shows us the correct movements time and again, but also cautions us against doing the exercises wrongly. Learning the right movements is extremely important because it becomes a fixed pattern once we learn and later rely on only memory to do the exercises correctly. The movements, right or wrong are recorded in our cerebellum, and we use these to perform the movements at a later date. In time the movements become unconscious and automatic, just like driving a car or riding a bicycle.

3) Inhibition

This means shyness or reluctance to show our weaknesses to anyone else. If I asked you to show me how you do your favorite top three exercises, chances are that you would automatically show me the ones that you consider yourself strongest at. It takes trust, confidence and understanding to be shown another person’s weaknesses and this is only done when they are sure that they will not be ridiculed or exposed. If your body has hot developed sufficiently or proportionately in all areas, it is most likely that you would show me your areas of strength and hide from me your areas of weakness. You may have a greater upper body but do weak lunges or squats due to weaknesses in the legs or lower body. Your basic body shape – ectomorph, mesomorph or endomorph – and areas of strength and weakness and how you plan to overcome them says a lot about you. Each of you will have to work differently and overcome different obstacles in your path to bodybuilding progress.

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