• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Breaking Muscle

Breaking Muscle

Breaking Muscle

  • Fitness
  • Workouts
    • Best Shoulder Workouts
    • Best Chest Workouts
    • Best Leg Workouts
    • Best Leg Exercises
    • Best Biceps Exercises
    • Best Kettlebell Exercises
    • Best Back Workouts
    • Best HIIT Workouts
    • Best Triceps Exercises
    • Best Arm Workouts
  • Reviews
    • Supplements
      • Best Pre-Workout
      • Best BCAAs
      • Best Testosterone Boosters
      • Best Bodybuilding Supplements
      • Best Creatine
      • Best Supplements for Weight Loss
      • Best Multivitamins
      • Best Collagen Supplement
      • Best Probiotic
      • Best Non-Stim Pre-Workout
      • Best Greens Powder
      • Best Magnesium Supplements
    • Protein
      • Best Protein Powder
      • Best Whey Protein
      • Best Protein Powders for Muscle Gain
      • Best Tasting Protein Powder
      • Best Vegan Protein
      • Best Mass Gainer
      • Best Protein Shakes
      • Best Organic Protein Powder
      • Best Pea Protein Powder
      • Best Protein Bars
    • Strength Equipment
      • Best Home Gym Equipment
      • Best Squat Racks
      • Best Barbells
      • Best Weightlifting Belts
      • Best Weight Benches
      • Best Functional Trainers
      • Best Dumbbells
      • Best Adjustable Dumbbells
      • Best Kettlebells
      • Best Resistance Bands
      • Best Trap Bars
    • Cardio Equipment
      • Best Cardio Machines
      • Best Rowing Machines
      • Best Treadmills
      • Best Weighted Vests
      • Concept2 RowErg Review
      • Hydrow Wave Review
      • Best Jump Ropes
  • News
  • Exercise Guides
    • Legs
      • Back Squat
      • Bulgarian Split Squat
      • Goblet Squat
      • Zercher Squat
      • Standing Calf Raise
      • Hack Squat
    • Chest
      • Bench Press
      • Dumbbell Bench Press
      • Close-Grip Bench Press
      • Incline Bench Press
    • Shoulders
      • Overhead Dumbbell Press
      • Lateral Raise
    • Arms
      • Chin-Up
      • Weighted Pull-Up
      • Triceps Pushdown
    • Back
      • Deadlift
      • Trap Bar Deadlift
      • Lat Pulldown
      • Inverted Row
      • Bent-Over Barbell Row
      • Single-Arm Dumbbell Row
      • Pendlay Row
Fitness

Find the Right Strength Program for You

If you've decided it's time to shop for a new strength coach, gym, or program, here's what to look for.

Written by Jesse Irizarry Last updated on Nov 22, 2021

If you live in or around a populated area, there’s probably no shortage of general gyms or CrossFit boxes you could join. If you’re a beginner, the different programs offered by these gyms may look about the same to you. But after a year of consistent training, you may see your progress stall. Then you have to decide if you’re going to stick with the programs and coaching at your gym, or if you need a change. If your goal is long-term strength development, you may need to be more selective in where you choose to train and who you let coach you.

If you live in or around a populated area, there’s probably no shortage of general gyms or CrossFit boxes you could join. If you’re a beginner, the different programs offered by these gyms may look about the same to you. But after a year of consistent training, you may see your progress stall. Then you have to decide if you’re going to stick with the programs and coaching at your gym, or if you need a change. If your goal is long-term strength development, you may need to be more selective in where you choose to train and who you let coach you.

The problem you face as you transition from beginner to intermediate lifter is that non-structured strength training no longer provides adequate stimulus to force strength adaptations. Instead, you need a structured progression, even if it’s very basic, to cause a sufficient overload. If you take the average CrossFit class, for example, anyone participating may see great improvements for a while due to the novelty and intensity. But because many boxes focus their programming for beginners, workouts are not necessarily repeated and built upon. This poses a problem for the intermediate athlete who needs this focus.

If you are serious about becoming a strong as possible, you need to be very selective in choosing a gym and in choosing a coach to help guide you. Here are some things to consider when shopping around.

Look for Experience

Whether you’re beginning a strength program at a CrossFit gym with a new coach, or looking for a personal trainer at a health club, you need to make sure this person is worth listening to and that what they are selling is worth your time.

Your coach does not need to be a record-holding powerlifter, but they do need to have the right experience. Make sure to find a coach who has been dedicated to the pursuit of strength for a substantial length of time. Without the right set of experiences, the coach cannot create the culture you need to succeed.

Exclusivity Helps Community

If you’re like most, you want to feel as if you’re a part of something exclusive. Why does everyone want to train at Westside Barbell? Because so few really can. A dedicated strength program or gym will really push you if it’s filled with like-minded individuals. Before you join, check out the community and train with them a couple of times. See if this is a group that really pushes one another with a positive attitude or if they’re just happy to go through the motions.

Strength programs that have a member cap tend to have the best community because the athletes take pride in being a part of this exclusive group. Finding something like this will undoubtedly help you achieve your goals.

If the community isn’t a good fit for you, it won’t help your progress. [Photo credit: Jeff Nguyen]

Basic Is Effective

When starting out, make sure the program, gym, or coach places an emphasis on the basics. Learning the Olympic lifts is great, but if you haven’t mastered the squat, press, and pull, you may not want to join an Olympic weightlifting class. You will see the greatest level of success if you stick with training the basic powerlifts and work to develop general strength for a while.

Check into the programming being offered by the gym or coach as well. You don’t need to start with anything too complex. Programs that focus on establishing and refining proper movements and simple progressive overload will set you up for long-term success. Cutting-edge methods look cool on Instagram, but building a base that can be built upon for years will bring you lasting results.

Learn the Why

Make sure that the coaches at your gym aren’t happy with making you a mindless drone. The mark of a great coach is that they teach you enough that you no longer need him or her. Be sure that your coach has some sort of educational component as a part of the training process. Although you may always have a coach and a group to train with, you will continually develop by eventually taking some control of your own training. Make sure your coach explains to you why you’re doing what you’re doing.

Progress Must Be Measurable

The program you’re on should have benchmarks to let you know what to expect from each week. If your coach has no planned testing period, plan a powerlifting competition for yourself at the end of a training cycle. Many trainees never set a physical goal for themselves, so they never make much progress, because they have nothing to compare themselves to or anything to track. Give yourself a goal to work towards and make sure you pick a coach and gym that will support this. If competitions aren’t for you, make sure there are still tangible goals for you to reach for within the strength program.

Before joining a gym or hiring a coach, make sure to be as selective as possible. Use these criteria to help make sure you don’t find yourself spinning your wheels. You’ll save yourself a lot of grief and make much more progress.

What’s the difference between a good coach and a great one?

8 Subtle Attributes of a Great Coach

Jesse competes in the sport of Olympic weightlifting, and he was also formerly a competitive powerlifter. He was featured in main strength and fitness publications. You can read more of his work on his website.

About Jesse Irizarry

Jesse Irizarry is a former Division 1 strength and conditioning coach. He worked as the head strength coach for three conference-champion teams for multiple years.Jesse was also an assistant strength and conditioning coach to the Liberty University Football team during multiple Division 1 FCS conference championships.

Since leaving college strength and conditioning and moving to the private sector, Jesse has created and developed multiple competitive strength programs and clubs for both Olympic weightlifting and powerlifting in New York City.

He is the owner and head coach at JDI Barbell, one of New York City's only dedicated strength facilities specializing in Olympic weightlifting, powerlifting, and general strength and conditioning.

View All Articles

Related Posts

Fergus Crawley 5K Run Tips Photo
Fergus Crawley Shares 5 Tips For Running a Better 5K
Actor Chris Hemsworth in gym performing dumbbell row
Chris Hemsworth Diagrams a Killer Upper Body Workout Fit For an Action Star
Hugh Jackman Deadpool 3 Workouts Spring:Winter 2023
Hugh Jackman Returns to Wolverine Condition in Workouts for “Deadpool 3”
Method Man Incline Dumbbell Presses December 2022
Check Out Rapper Method Man Cruising Through 120-Pound Incline Dumbbell Presses for 10 Reps

Primary Sidebar

Latest Articles

New Year’s Fitness Sales (2025)

XWERKS Motion BCAA Review (2025): A Registered Dietitian’s Honest Thoughts

Assault Fitness AssaultBike Pro X Review (2025): Assault’s Best Bike Yet?

13 Best Exercise Bikes for Home Gyms (2025)

Transparent Labs BCAA Glutamine Review (2025): The Key to Post-Workout Recovery?

Latest Reviews

Element 26 Hybrid Leather Weightlifting Belt

Element 26 Hybrid Leather Weightlifting Belt Review (2025)

Omre NMN + Resveratrol, Lifeforce Peak NMN, and partiQlar NMN on a red background

Best NMN Supplement: Fountain of Youth in a Bottle? (2025)

The Titan Series Adjustable Bench on a red background

Titan Series Adjustable Bench Review (2025)

A photo of the NordicTrack Select-a-Weight Dumbbells on a red background

NordicTrack Adjustable Dumbbell Review (2025): Are These Value Dumbbells Worth It?

woman lifting barbell

Be the smartest person in your gym

The Breaking Muscle newsletter is everything you need to know about strength in a 3 minute read.

I WANT IN!

Breaking Muscle is the fitness world’s preeminent destination for timely, high-quality information on exercise, fitness, health, and nutrition. Our audience encompasses the entire spectrum of the fitness community: consumers, aficionados, fitness professionals, and business owners. We seek to inform, educate and advocate for this community.

  • Reviews
  • Healthy Eating
  • Workouts
  • Fitness
  • News

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS Feed

© 2025 · Breaking Muscle · Terms of Use · Privacy Policy · Affiliate Disclaimer · Accessibility · About