No pain, no gain.

It's Thursday and I am still sore from Mondays workout. I also may be sore from yesterdays also, but nonetheless I'm still very sore. Which brings me to a good point; after awhile when you start a workout program you get in the routine of doing the same things week after week. The first time you go through and workout every muscle group, you get your muscle pains knowing you worked out that region. You did something right because it hurts to get out of bed, correct? Well eventually that pain goes away, and your body gets used to it. Some people feel that the only way they are doing things correctly is if they feel muscle soreness the day after. That is most cases is not correct. Like stated before when you get into your routine your muscles adapt and can withstand the stress being put on them. The ideal thing to do to your body is called muscle shock. What muscle shock does is exactly what it sounds like, shock the muscles. Besides doing one of your regular routines throw your body a curve ball and do something completely different, higher reps and more weight are good examples. You can also do a strip set, a strip set is when you do as many reps you can with one weight and when you reach failure drop the weight slightly and continue to failure again. Complete this process till there is virtually no weight left on the machine or bar.

It's good to shock the muscles every now and then, I would suggest 1-2 times a month doing this. You can also do it on a regular basis by throwing out a lift and adding one that works the same muscle. What this does is workout the muscle you are looking to work but may incorporate other muscles, and stabilizers within the region.