Challenge your normal fitness routine; try a new sport

It is human nature to want to do what comes easy, and for everyone who exercises, the same principle applies. The majority of individuals in the gym work out with the same exercise movements or same routine day after day. The two main reasons I find for this are limited knowledge and an individual's ability to perform specific movements.

First of all, most people don't have the time to invest in educating themselves on the basic principles of exercise physiology and human movement. Most people will take what limited knowledge they have and apply that to their exercise routine. They will normally stick to what they are comfortable with, and as a result they have limited variations from workout to workout.

The second reason for limited variation in exercise routines is that most individuals will gravitate to specific exercise movements, they perform well. If someone is predominantly stronger with their lower body movements, they will tend to do more squats, leg presses, and deadlifts because that is what comes easier for them.

The problem with focusing only on what you do well or what you know is that these workouts will eventually limit overall gains while also avoiding strengthening your weaker areas.

A significant amount of stress must be placed on the body to facilitate the recovery/adaptation phase of exercise. Challenging the body to new workouts with different types of movements and different weight/rep ratios will allow the body to continue to get stronger.

The same type of workouts day after day will increase the chance that the body will plateau over time. No one wants to put in time in the gym and have limited results.

I would challenge anyone involved with a consistent training routine to change their daily workouts from time to time. Learn a new exercise movement, increase the distance or weight of a specific workout, or try a new sport or activity.

Individuals who are willing to get out of their comfort zone will have greater success staying motivated, improving their weaknesses, and strengthening their overall total body.