Nicolas Sart

If someone doesn't see any progress, I'll usually have 3 questions about their training: 1) Is it too easy? 2) Is it too hard? 3) Are they taking enough rest? 99% of the time you'll find the reason for a lack of progress in one of these answers. That's if they're truly not progressing. Because there's another very common situation I see: People who actually progress but have not been tracking anything and just don't realize it. It used to happen all the time when I was coaching. Luckily I kept written records, photos and videos for my clients. And I can tell you most of them were in disbelief when they saw how far they'd come.

Here are the 7 best ways I've found to break a plateau: 1) Take a full rest week (don't be scared, you won't lose your strength). 2) Go back to the basics, even if it's boring. 3) Work with a lighter weight, do sets of 15 reps. 4) Work with a heavier weight, do sets of 5 reps. 5) Do the same exercises in an unstable environment (free weights, gymnastics rings etc.). 6) Stretch to become more flexible, and treat it as training. 7) Train doing less sessions per week for a while, and take more time for recovery.

Understand that flexibility and strength go hand in hand. Not only that, but you should train flexibility in the same way you train strength. - Stretch in sets and rest between them. - Give yourself rest days and don't stretch the same areas twice in a row. - Use progressive overload. Being more flexible will make you stronger. And if you do it right, the opposite can be true too.

Clients who always push themselves to the limit are people who are highly motivated and need to feel like they are doing the best they can to reach their goals. It is frustrating for them to think that they could have done more. This is why it is crucial to educate them about recovery and help them understand that the best they can do is actually add balance to their routine. Help them see that their efforts continue while they are not training. And make sure they understand the importance of prioritizing form and mindful exercise over constant exhaustion.

In Enso Bodyweight Training System, we usually end each workout with some variation of leg raises or hollow body hold. This is because core muscles are used every day in almost every activity. We want to train them regularly but limit training to one exercise per session to manage recovery. Leg raises can range from simple knee tucks to L-sits, and hollow body hold variations include very simple positions as well as exercises as advanced as the front lever.

There is no flexibility without strength. Not everyone knows it but they go hand in hand. Core strength is the link connecting everything together and without it, it is difficult to improve flexibility.