Maybe youβve reached a plateau in your workout. Or maybe your fitness goals seem to stay just out of reach. Youβve heard about βmuscle confusionβ and think that might be the answer to your problem.
Jeff Monaco, director of education for Goldβs Gym, sees people get that idea all the time. But the phrase βmuscle confusionβ leads to a lot of, well, confusion. Before you do anything, he says, you need to understand what muscle confusion really is, and what it could mean for you.
Clarity on muscle confusion
When you train, your body adapts, Monaco says β to lifting weights or doing cardio or any kind of training. Your body is a highly adaptable machine, and through repeating the same movements, it will start hitting plateaus and youβll stop seeing results. People think thatβs when you need muscle confusion.
But the idea behind muscle confusion is that you change your training at certain intervals toΒ avoidΒ plateaus.
The term βmuscle confusionβ first became popular with branded workouts that offered different ways to stay out of a rut by constantly changing your routine. It was used to sell the idea of constantly changing your workout to confuse the muscles and avoid plateaus.
The importance of rest
Another way people incorrectly apply the concept of muscle confusion is by simply intensifying their existing workout. When they hit a plateau, theyβll up the weight or duration to get more results. Bad move, Monaco says. When you do that, you could again be denying the rest that your muscles need to grow.
βRest is a vital component to training,β he says. βIt often gets overlooked.β Rest is key to exercise success. Always listen to your body. The period of rest after exercise is when your body is getting stronger and your cardiovascular system is improving.
βWe coach our trainers to perform an assessment about how the clients are feeling today versus previous workouts,β Monaco says. Simple check-ins like βHow are you feeling today?β or βDid you rest after the last workout?β actually are important steps to take to maximize your progress. If someone is still sore, trainers will work on flexibility and mobility training instead of pushing the fatigued muscles.a
The need for assessment
Monaco sees a lot of people who are stuck in the same routine. βThey just want to come in and do the treadmill at the same speed every day,β he says. Heβll ask about their results and their targets. After talking with him, theyβre in a better position to reach their goals.
He has seen how different peopleβs goals can be, and how much they crave variety. But you donβt need to rely on muscle confusion for that β just change your workouts.
βGenerally, one or two changes can yield great results over time,β Monaco says. βFor each type of training, resistance or cardio, pick one or two variables to change in your training program periodically instead of just changing everything or randomly selecting a different workout each day.β
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Changing one or two variables allows for better monitoring of your training program to understand what works and what doesnβt. When you change multiple variables constantly, evaluating your progress is difficult.
The more conditioned you are, the sooner you hit plateaus because your body is already closer to its full potential. Check your heart rate, while resting and during exercise, to get a good indicator of how your body is doing. βThe range for a healthy resting heart rate varies but is around 60 to 80 beats per minute,β Monaco says.Β
