Are You Working Out and Getting Weaker?

There are several different reasons why you could be working out and getting weaker. This lesson will go over a few of the most common ones, most of which I have dealt with at one time or another.

1. Lack of Nutrition

This happens a LOT when people are trying to cut weight. They just don’t eat enough calories to build muscle. If your body is in a crisis, you aren’t going to be able to get strong.

At one time I weighed 237 pounds and now only weigh about 194. During certain times, I tried to lose too quickly and lost some strength. During other times, I got it right and didn’t get weaker.

I recently lost 8 pounds in 30 days and got stronger in the process. It seems like 2 pounds per week is about right. If you want to learn more about how I did that, you can check out my Whole 30 results page.

2. You’re Repeating Too Many Workouts

I have fallen into the same workout routines several times and I started losing strength every time. For me, this happens primarily when I’m already really strong – at the point where I’ve already made a lot of gains. It gets harder to lift more weight and when that happens, you end up lifting the same weights too often. Strangely, you will get weaker when this happens.

In order to break the effect, you have to get more variety in your workouts. Use more variety in your movements, rep schemes, and weights.

3. You Never Lift Light

You shouldn’t be lifting super heavy every time you hit the gym. If you do, it will get harder and harder to recover from your workouts. Adding in a light day where you do a previous scheme of sets and reps with lighter weight can really help this problem.

4. Overtraining

Cardio addicts are constantly burning muscle while doing cardio. If you want to get strong, you have to limit your cardio. You should switch up your routine to integrate higher intensity, shorter workouts. Try something like CrossFit or do the Skinny School workouts. They will prevent the burning of muscle during long bouts of cardio.

5. Your Hormones Are Messed Up

Having messed up hormone levels is a lot more common than you think. I personally suffered from excess cortisol for a few years and it sucked my strength for no reason. My bench press dropped from 345 to 275 for no apparent reason. The same thing can happen if you have low testosterone or excess estrogen.

If you’ve tried everything and are still losing strength, I would highly recommend seeing an endocrinologist.

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Tags: getting weaker, lift light, nutrition, overtraining, working out