What does your training look like in terms of effort? Some lifters don’t push hard enough; other lifters push too hard, and some lift with an ideal amount of effort.
Early Stages of Effort
It could be that you are in the beginning stages of weight training and are working your way up in poundages. It’s also possible that you are using a progressive loading plan that starts with a stage of training that does not require a high degree of effort. However, in order to keep making progress, you will need to gradually increase your poundages by five to ten pounds per week. As you continue to increase your poundages, you will eventually be using weights that require a substantial amount of effort to lift. The lifter in the following video appears to be on a progressive overload program. He is not pushing very hard at this stage of training, but as he continues to add weight, his workouts will become harder.
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Ideal Training Effort
It is my belief that most of your training should not be too easy, nor should it be too hard, rather it should be ideal in terms of effort. The lifters in the next videos are training at an intensity that is hard enough to drive results, but they are not going all out with max reps. You will see them lift with plenty of effort, but not to the point of straining and grinding to squeeze out as many reps as possible. Too much effort can easily lead to overtraining and hinder strength gains. When training for long-term progress, strive to perform each rep forcefully with the best form possible. Each rep within a set should look similar in terms of form and rep speed. These guidelines are demonstrated in the following two videos.
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Too Much Effort
One of the drawbacks of educating yourself on weight training through the use of you-tube videos, is that lifters like to post videos of their best possible performance. This basically means they are going for max reps. For the most part, I believe that you can go for max reps every three to six weeks when you are testing your strength. However, if you push for max reps all the time, you will put yourself at risk for burnout.
Does your normal training look like the lifters in the videos below? If it does, and you are making progress, keep doing it. In contrast, if you are going all out on a regular basis, but you are not making progress, think about adjusting your intensity to a level of effort that looks more like the lifters in the previous two videos.
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Adjust Your Effort if Necessary
If you are ambitious and hungry for progress, you may be inclined to push for max reps every time you work out. While this may work for a time, you will probably reach the point where you need to back off on effort. Ask yourself what your training looks like. Does it look too easy, does it look too hard, or does it look ideal? After considering this question, adjust your intensity, if necessary, in order to train at a level of effort that delivers results. May God bless you with the best of training.