You go to the gym and hit the weights.
You put miles in on the road.
You do the classes.
You stay consistent.
And while you are making progress, the gains are much slower than you would expect.
To top it all off, you feel your body’s ability to push harder during your workouts actually getting worse, not better.
Too many people find themselves in this type of scenario. They are consistent with their workouts. They do strength training and cardio regularly. They are strategic with their workout choices.
But it feels like their progress is stalling and the oomf they once had to keep pushing at the gym is slowly going away.
What is going on? And how can you overcome a situation like this?
We have seen this type of situation happen with multiple people, and the answer always comes back to one thing–their nervous system is too taxed.
It’s like trying to run multiple software programs on your computer all at the same time–when the computer is brand-new, it can handle that type of workload. But as the computer gets older, eventually it needs a reboot.
The same thing happens with your nervous system–when you are young, you can push hard day after day and the results will keep coming. But as you get older, your nervous system needs a reboot in order to keep up with the demands of your intense workouts.
So what does a nervous system reboot look like?
Enter active recovery and Muscle Activation Techniques®.
Active recovery is doing some kind of activity–whether it is a light workout, an easy walk, a short bike ride, or something along those lines–where you are challenging your body more than your average daily activities but not nearly as much as you would during a traditional workout.
This type of recovery workout gives your body–especially your nervous system–a chance to bounce back to its fully-charged state better than taking a day completely off.
In fact, it is so powerful that active recovery is almost always promoted as the thing to do versus a complete off day for many professional athletes and teams.
And, while a recovery workout is a powerful choice for active recovery, there is something else that takes things to an even higher level for your nervous system, and that is Muscle Activation Techniques®.
Muscle Activation Techniques®, also known as MAT, stimulates muscles that are not communicating well with your brain, causing your brain to have to constantly compensate for them. As a result, your nervous system becomes taxed and you lose a lot of that power you once had during your workouts.
Instead, with MAT, your brain and muscles start communicating properly and the stress on your nervous system gets turned way down. Not only does this lead to better workouts, it leads to immediate increases in strength and faster recovery overall.
The next time you plan your workouts, figure out some days when you can intentionally add in active recovery, either in the form of a recovery workout or Muscle Activation Techniques®.
Not only will your energy be higher the next time you hit the gym, you will more consistently make progress over the long haul, too.
If you would like to experience Muscle Activation Techniques® for yourself, we would love to see you at our studio, Muscle Activation Schaumburg, in Chicago’s northwest suburbs.
At Muscle Activation Schaumburg, we have been trained in the highest levels of Muscle Activation Techniques®–including MATRx, MATRx2, MATRx Stim, MAT Athlete, and MAT Athlete2–and are the most highly-trained practitioners in the Chicagoland area.
To try out Muscle Activation Techniques® for yourself, click here to schedule your initial consultation and assessment.
We can’t wait to see you on our MAT table soon!
In strength and health,
Julie & Charlie
