Variety is the spice of life ...

As the saying goes 'variety is the spice of life'. This is holds true for building muscle as well.

A lot people going to gym work hard to devise a routine that works all the muscle groups and allows for good recovery. Initially, they will make great gains; but over time, they become accustomed to their workout, they get to know their way between the the different bits of equipment, become comfortable with going to the gym, and even do their routine on autopilot, and could even tell you to the minute how long their workout will last.

The problem is that the body becomes use to a static, unchanging, routines. The good gains they make early on slowly dry up, and they can become disillusioned and stale because the workouts become boring and they plateau out. This is when a lot of people stop exercising.

To ensure that you maintain the gains and keep the spice in your workout, you need to vary your routine. This will keep the body from becoming accustomed to any static routine.

This don't mean you have devise a new routine every time you intend to workout. All you need to do is change your workout.

So rather than starting with say shoulders, begin with your chest, or even rather than doing shoulder presses followed by lateral raise, swap the order. It could also be as simple a changing the number of reps/sets you perform. This will change the way your muscles are stressed and should allow you to maintain the gains and hold off when your body plateaus.

It also means you can stay engaged with your exercise routines, and hopefully stay interested in going to the gym.