Strength training
A women's strength workout built on five lifts.
Strength training isn't a different kind of workout for women — it's the same five movement patterns, loaded properly and progressed every week. Here's the program, the reasoning behind it, and how to add weight without wrecking your form.
The foundation
Five patterns that cover everything.
Squat pattern
Builds quads and glutes and carries over to almost everything else you do.
Back squat, goblet squat, hack squat or leg press.
Hinge pattern
The single best driver of glute and hamstring development.
Romanian deadlift, conventional deadlift or hip thrust.
Upper push
Shoulders and chest — the movement that changes your upper-body shape most.
Dumbbell bench press, incline press or overhead press.
Upper pull
Back strength and posture, and it balances out all the pressing.
Lat pulldown, pull-up, seated row or single-arm row.
Loaded carry or core
Trains the midsection to brace under load, which protects your back on every other lift.
Farmer's carry, plank, dead bug or cable Pallof press.
The program
Three strength sessions a week.
Rest 2 minutes between heavy sets and 60–90 seconds on everything else. Every set should finish with one or two reps left in the tank.
Day 1 — Lower emphasis
- Back squat or goblet squat — 4 × 6–8
- Romanian deadlift — 3 × 8
- Walking lunge — 3 × 10 each leg
- Leg curl — 3 × 12
- Farmer's carry — 3 × 30 m
Day 2 — Upper emphasis
- Dumbbell bench press — 4 × 6–8
- Lat pulldown or pull-up — 4 × 8–10
- Seated overhead press — 3 × 8
- Single-arm dumbbell row — 3 × 10 each side
- Cable Pallof press — 3 × 10 each side
Day 3 — Glute and full body
- Hip thrust — 4 × 8–10
- Deadlift or trap-bar deadlift — 3 × 5
- Bulgarian split squat — 3 × 8 each leg
- Incline dumbbell press — 3 × 10
- Cable row — 3 × 12
Training four or more days a week, or working around a busy schedule? Build the structure that fits with the free workout split builder — the hub this program branches off. Brand new to lifting? Start with the beginner workout plan for women.
Progressive overload
How to actually get stronger.
Pick one thing to improve each week: one more rep, one small jump in weight, or one cleaner set. When you hit the top of the rep range on every set of a lift, add the smallest available increment and start again at the bottom of the range. That's the whole method — repeated for months.
Questions
Strength training for women, answered.
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