7 Ways to Challenge Yourself During Your Next Workout
Discover effective ways to challenge yourself during your next workout and break through fitness plateaus with tips like interval training, plyometrics, and more!
Hi, I’m Chantal! I’m a certified personal trainer and nutrition coach. Welcome to my site. 🙂
If you’re anything like me, you know what it feels like for your workout routine to suddenly become boring and monotonous. After a while of doing the same routine, your workouts start to feel a little too, well, blah.
You hit the gym, follow the same exercises, and leave feeling like you could’ve pushed a little harder. It gets harder to want to exercise because it’s just not fun anymore.
(This happens to me most often when I work out alone for some reason.)
When that happens, it is time to switch it up. Otherwise, you run the risk of throwing in the towel altogether – and that’s just not an option. You’ve got to find ways to make things more exciting or challenging, and fast.
If you’re looking to shake things up and really challenge yourself, you’ve come to the right place. Here are seven simple but effective ways to push your limits and reignite the fire in your fitness routine!
7 Ways to Challenge Yourself During Your Next Workout
1. Incorporate Interval Training
Want to get more out of your workout in less time? Interval training is your answer! High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), which alternates between bursts of intense effort and short periods of rest, is a game-changer.
Not only does it torch calories, but it also boosts endurance and keeps your body guessing. Whether you’re on the treadmill or doing bodyweight exercises, adding intervals will kick things up a notch and help break through plateaus.
2. Increase Your Weights
Lifting the same weights over and over can feel comfortable—but comfort doesn’t lead to growth! Next time you’re lifting, try bumping up the weight, even if it’s just by a small amount. (Increasing your weights over time is called progressive overload.)
You’ll challenge your muscles in new ways, and trust me, you’ll feel the difference. Just remember, form is key, so increase gradually and make sure you’re still lifting with proper technique.
There are so many reasons women should be lifting weights, but if you are new to it, I know that it can be hard to know where to start. Here’s a great dumbbell workout for the upper body to start you off!
3. Try a New Exercise or Piece of Equipment
It’s so easy to get stuck in a workout routine that we often forget the gym (or even your living room) is filled with opportunities for variety. Have you ever tried kettlebells? What about resistance bands or TRX straps?
Mixing in a new exercise or piece of equipment can activate muscles you didn’t even realize you had, and it’s a fun way to keep things fresh. Plus, learning something new keeps your brain engaged too!
If you need ways to challenge yourself during your next workout, I recommend looking into one of these cheap fitness items!
I also highly recommend hiring a personal trainer for a few months or joining a new group fitness class to learn new things and really switch it up.
4. Add a Time-Based Challenge
This one is simple but so effective. Pick a set time, like 10 or 15 minutes, and see how many rounds or reps you can complete. For example, how many burpees can you do in 10 minutes? Or how many times can you run through a circuit in 15 minutes?
The clock adds an extra layer of motivation, turning your workout into a race against yourself—and trust me, you’ll feel the burn. A continuation of this would be to track your results and aim to improve them over time. 🙂
Related Reading: 5 Unique Fitness Ideas To Spice Up Your Home Workouts
5. Incorporate Plyometrics
If you want to boost power and increase your heart rate, plyometrics (or jump training) is a great addition to your routine. Moves like jump squats, box jumps, and burpee variations are not only fun but also improve your speed, agility, and explosiveness.
It’s a full-body workout in itself, and the results are undeniable—think toned legs, a strong core, and improved athletic performance. (Also, it can be really fun!) My only suggestion here is to start with shorter jumps to get the movement down before attempting tall jumps.
6. Track and Beat Your Personal Best
Sometimes the best motivation comes from within. Start keeping track of your personal bests—whether that’s your fastest mile, heaviest squat, or longest plank hold. Then, set the goal of beating that record the next time you hit the gym.
This creates a concrete, measurable challenge that pushes you to perform better every time. Plus, there’s no better feeling than seeing real, tangible progress!
If you need to switch it up even more, here is a big list of fitness goals that don’t involve the scale.
7. Add a Flexibility or Mobility Focus
Challenging yourself doesn’t always mean pushing harder in a traditional sense. Flexibility and mobility are key to a balanced fitness routine, yet they’re often overlooked. Incorporating yoga, dynamic stretching, or even foam rolling at the end of your workout can improve recovery, reduce soreness, and prevent injury.
A few extra minutes spent on mobility work can make a world of difference in how your body feels, both in and out of the gym. If you aren’t sure where to start, read this article about the importance of foam rolling or check out this full-body stretching routine.
Final Thoughts on Ways to Challenge Yourself During Your Next Workout
Challenging yourself during a workout doesn’t mean you have to go all out every time—sometimes it’s the small changes that make the biggest impact.
By incorporating these ideas, you’ll be well on your way to pushing your limits, building strength, and keeping things fun and fresh. (In my experience, this improves consistency, too!)
So the next time you’re getting ready to work out, think about how you can take things to the next level. It doesn’t have to be hardcore, it just has to challenge your body in some small way. Don’t underestimate the power of a little change!
Until next time,
Chantal from Ironwild Fitness
