The golden rule for building muscle: That's why you need to get stronger!

Let's face it: there's nothing better for a strength athlete than getting stronger on a regular basis!

When you first started training, you were probably able to put more weight on the bar almost every week. It was an incredible feeling, wasn't it! But as soon as the first "beginner gains" have been made, many exercisers no longer focus on increasing strength and get bogged down with so-called advanced training programs. Suddenly, periodization, exercise selection, variations and the movement of the little finger are more important than the working weight. Could this be the problem?

Strength counts when getting stronger!

Until you have reached a certain level of physical development, your sole focus should be on developing strength in the exercises that suit you best ergonomically.

Remember, if you're still lifting the same weights you were three years ago, chances are you'll still look the same. If you've lost your focus on one of the most important factors of muscle building, then use this method of goal setting to get back on track:

Choose 2-3 exercises where you can best work the target muscles. You should consider the following patterns:

• Upper body push: dumbbell incline bench press, dips, military press
• Upper body pull: bent-over barbell rows, pull-ups, dumbbell rows
• Quad focus: front squats, leg press, walking lunges
• "Back chain": Romanian deadlift, lying leg curls, hip thrusts

Once you've decided on your exercises, test your 6-8 and 8-12 maxes on each exercise. Then train hard for 12 weeks and focus on making progress on each exercise as best you can. Of course, technique should always remain perfect!

In a world full of "fancy" training techniques and muscle-building tricks, it's easy to forget that progress is the foundation of the hypertrophy pyramid. As soon as you realize this (again), you will grow again. In the meantime, don't get distracted by YouTube videos or detail-loving Instagrammers. This is primarily about you and your strength gains!