Resistance training is one of the most vital components to getting in shape. If you want to lose fat, lose weight, improve your body shape and tone up, you have to do resistance training and do it well.
If you have a coach by your side, this can accelerate your improvement and make sure that your routine is safe, effective and enjoyable. As a result, you make progress much quicker and more efficiently. If you are training by yourself, you can still make good progress but you will have to do plenty of research yourself and the likelihood is that progress is going to be much more inconsistent and sporadic.
That being said, it is important to know the signs yourself that your training is improving. So much emphasis is placed on the physical progress when it comes to your body shape, but what about your training itself? How do you know if your sessions are improving week on week? Here are five key indicators to help you identify your progression.
Exercise Execution
One of the biggest mistakes people make with their training is not placing enough emphasis on technique. As a result, not only can you not make progress with your body shape, but you also put yourself at a much higher risk of gaining a serious injury, particularly on the heavier, compound lifts. This is why, before you look to increase or even add any weight, your exercise execution needs to be of a high standard.
For some people, this can progress easily, and once it does, only then must resistance be added. For others, it takes weeks to perform an exercise correctly and move to the next level. However, this is a great indicator of progress because it shows improvement in coordination, balance, flexibility, knowledge, and your ability to feel a muscle group working. Make sure that exercise execution is high on your list of priorities when training.
Increase in Strength
One of the biggest differences you should notice is how much weight you can lift week on week. Building strength takes time and it’s not going to happen overnight, but you will notice that a certain weight becomes comfortable to lift and that you can gradually increase it, the more consistent you are with your training.
However, if your training is sporadic and of poor quality, it will be very difficult for you to improve in this area. You have to keep showing up for every single session and look to get better – this is where progress lies. Of course, executing the exercise well should be the priority before increasing weight, but once you do, you will be in a much better position to make improvements every week, particularly on compound lifts. This is a huge sign that you are making great improvements with your training.
Better Recovery in Between Sets
Another great indicator of your progress during training will be your fitness levels. When you start your fitness journey, it is likely that you will struggle to recover in between the sets of each exercise because your body has not adapted to a new style of training. As a result, you will be gasping for air more, you will feel stiffer and you will need more time to rest before going again for the next set.
However, the more consistent you are with your training and the more your body adapts to the new training regime, the more your fitness levels improve and the better your recovery will be in between sets. This means that you will not feel as exhausted, your energy levels will be higher and you will not need as much rest before starting the next set. This also moves across to your recovery in between sessions also, as your body will start to ache less and less and you will be more motivated to train again when your next session comes around.
You Have A Clear Structure
When you are on a fitness journey and looking to get in shape, one of the most important things you can have is a clear plan and simple structure. For so many people, resistance training is an intimidating prospect due to the fact that you don’t know where to start, what exercises to do, how to do them, what muscle groups you need to be training and how long you should be training for. As a result, confusion sets in, which only leads to a delay in results.
However, if you have a clear plan in all of these areas with your training, this is a massive improvement and something that is going to have a positive effect on your results. The fastest, safest and most efficient way of achieving this is to hire a coach who can take away the stress of planning your routine and give you a plan to follow that is effective, enjoyable and sustainable. Once you have this, you can then focus your efforts on giving your all during your training sessions.
More Confidence
The final indicator is from a more psychological perspective. As mentioned before, resistance training can be intimidating for many, particularly for those with little experience and practice. However, the more consistent you are, the better you become at executing exercises, and the more structure you have, the more your confidence will grow week on week.
You will start to feel excited on the way to your sessions, you will know your way around equipment better and you will become more self-sufficient with your training. Of course, you may still need a coach to guide you, support you along the way and make sure that you are still on track, but the idea of training consistently will seem less daunting and more fun as time goes on, especially if you are making progress with your body. More confidence can be a game-changer for a lot of people.
Summary
So, there are several ways in which you can tell of well your training is improving. These include better exercise execution, more strength, better recovery, a more structured plan, and more confidence. If you are noticing progression in these areas, then it is a huge sign that your training is advancing well. And once this happens, progress with your body shape and fitness goals are likely to follow suit.
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