When it comes to making progress in a gym we often think of lifting more weight or performing more reps. However, there are many more ways to challenge your body both in a gym and at home. Below are my top methods to increase the difficulty of exercises and the benefits associated with them.
1. Decrease tempo
It’s generally a good practice to perform the eccentric (lowering) phase slowly and under control. However, you can take it a bit further and slow down the tempo even more. For instance, lower into your squat on the count of 3-5 seconds.
This approach will increase the time under tension which is essential to build muscle and help improve stability and technique. Decreasing tempo during the eccentric phase of an exercise will make even bodyweight exercises more challenging.
2. Perform 1-1/2, 1-1/4 reps or paused reps
Performing a full rep followed by a half or a quarter rep is another great way to increase the difficulty of an exercise. Apart from increasing your muscles’ time under tension, it helps you improve your technique.
Similarly, paused reps (pausing at some point during the eccentric portion of a movement) is an excellent way to improve strength, stability, and technique. It allows you to strengthen the weaker points of the movement. For example, if you find yourself losing tension at the bottom of a squat.
Paused reps also help you develop an awareness of the muscles involved in a particular movement and identify imbalances. For instance when you pause at the bottom of a pushup and find one arm working more than the other.
3. Perform unilateral exercises
Unilateral exercises are great to ensure balanced strength and muscle development. Furthermore, they will challenge your core and stability. Examples of unilateral upper body exercises include anything performed with a single arm (overhead press, chest press, seated rows).
Lower body unilateral exercises include lunges, Bulgarian split squat, single-leg deadlift, single-leg hip thrusts, and suitcase deadlift. Unilateral exercises can be performed using machines, free weights, functional equipment, and of course bodyweight.
4. Hold weight on one side
You can make both bilateral and unilateral exercises tougher by holding the weight (usually dumbbell or kettlebell) in one arm. This will make your core work harder to resist bending to one side (lateral flexion).
When it comes to unilateral exercises you can hold weight on either the opposite side from the working leg (contralateral) or on the same side (ipsilateral). Both of these variations are rather challenging. However, ipsilateral is tougher due to its asymmetrical nature and requires more stability and muscle control.
5. Use a more challenging stance
Half-kneeling, kneeling, split stance, squat stance…All of these stances will challenge your core and balance while ensuring full-body tension. Furthermore, they will help you avoid using momentum.
Not only will these positions make any exercise more difficult, but they will also improve your traditional lifts such as squats. This is particularly relevant if you find it difficult to brace your core when performing those lifts. The half-kneeling position is a good place to start to get a feel of a more demanding stance.
6. Add an additional movement
Another way to challenge your body is by simply adding an additional movement. Next time you are performing goblet squat, try adding a side lunge after every rep. You can also add an explosive movement to take your exercise to the next level. For example, follow each rep of a split squat by a jumping lunge.
From performing a single-leg deadlift followed by a lunge to adding pushups to renegade rows, the options are countless. Make sure you can do both movements safely and with good form before combining them together.
7. Try different weight positioning or equipment
Used to doing barbell back squats and lunges? Try a front rack instead – you can use cable, kettlebells, dumbbells, or a landmine. Used to doing rows using dumbbells? Try doing body rows with TRX. Positioning the weight differently or using new equipment will feel more demanding on your body. This applies even if you have been performing the exercise/movement for a while.
The suggestions above can be performed one at a time or in various combinations. For example, you can perform unilateral exercises while using paused reps or 1-1/2 reps techniques.
Remember to choose exercises and methods that feel right for your body and can be performed safely. You can then slowly build up to more challenging variations without sacrificing proper technique.