The human body is a strange, strange thing. Or maybe it’s just us that have developed into strange beings and demand strange things from our bodies? Who knows – the fact is the body is definitely strange.
Take building muscle for instance. Why is it that you can get excellent results from a particular exercise, then suddenly, after a while, the exercise stops working? It’s not because the muscle has lost its capacity to grow – I doubt even a single Pro bodybuilder has reached their absolute potential before and probably they never will – but it’s almost like the muscle has gotten bored.
It’s a strange, but widely reported phenomenon in bodybuilding that, without fairly regular changeups in your regime, you’ll stop making progress.
Some argue this is a physical issue in which the muscles or nervous system become so familiar with the same patterns of lifting that they begin to resist change. Others argue it’s more a psychological issue in which subconsciously (or consciously!) we become bored of the same old, and begin putting less effort in, giving the impression that we’ve stopped responding, when in fact it’s because we are training less hard – and we might not even realize this.
Either way, as Sheryl Crow said: A Change Will Do You Good.
How often should you change? Well, the simple answer is – when you stop responding, or if you are dissatisfied with your progress. But just be honest with yourself… don’t keep performing exercises which you don’t like doing, because that is a sure fire way for you to begin putting in half-assed effort. You need to fill your regime with exercises you love doing. And, as soon as you start to get even a little bit bored, spice things up a bit. You’ll soon see your progress skyrocket, and as long as your diet and resting is right, I fail to see how you’ll stop responding.