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Bodybuilding program for women
Posted on: 08/01/2018The sports nutrition and bodybuilding markets have also turned their attention to women, with products tailored to their needs. Gyms have gradually adapted their facilities so that women can build up a workout adapted to their bodies and needs (weight loss, building muscle, toning the figure, endurance, fitness...).
For some twenty years now, women have been frequenting weight and fitness gyms just as much as men. Obviously, the objectives and the program are not the same and, over time, the preconceived notion that a woman who pushes iron while exercising would "look" like a man has faded, reassuring women and encouraging them to push the doors of the weight room with less fear.
In this article, I'm going to set out a program for women, focusing on the areas of the body that concern them and which, over time and through pregnancies, deserve more attention.
Since women are less interested in developing their muscles and more in toning their figure, we're going to start with a full-body workout, focusing on the lower body and abdominal area, in order to regain a mid-range weight or achieve a beautiful silhouette. Of course, we won't forget the upper body.
This women's sports program is based on three sports sessions a week, combining strength training and cardio.
As with all sports, you'll need to warm up for around ten minutes on a bike or treadmill to avoid muscle injury during the program.
Between each set, observe a pause of 30 to 45 seconds, and 1min 30 between two muscle groups will be sufficient.
Workouts
Exercises for thighs, buttocks, back, chest, shoulders, arms, abs
Incline press: 5 sets of 15 repetitions
Forward lunges: 5 sets of 15 repetitions per leg
Do a series of exercises on the first leg, then move on to the second. It's important to keep your back straight, and when bending, avoid letting the knee of the leg in front pass in front of the ankle.
Seated adductor machine: 4 sets of 30 repetitions
On this muscular machine, it's important to push on the supports with the outside of the thigh and not from the feet. This transfers the work to the glutes. When closing the thighs, slow down the movement to continue stressing the gluteal muscles.
Standing buttock machine: 4 sets of 30 repetitions
Chest, back and shoulders exercises
Dumbbell inclined squats: 5 sets of 15 repetitions
Spread your arms on either side of your torso, keeping your elbows slightly bent, and lower until you feel a stretch in your chest. Then raise the dumbbells in a circular motion. Finish with arms stretched above the chest, dumbbells touching.
High pulley neck pulls: 5x15 reps
Dumbbell lateral raises: 4x 12 reps (working the outer shoulder area).
Raise the dumbbells on either side of the body until they are parallel to the floor.
Then slowly lower the dumbbells on either side of the thighs. Ideal for losing upper-body weight and building muscle.
Arm exercise
Dumbbell curl superset - High pulley triceps extension: 4 sets of 12 repetitions
Alternate a set of biceps curl with a set of triceps extension, then after a 45-second pause resume the next superset.
Abdominal exercises
Crunch: 5 sets of 20 repetitions
Leg raises: 4 sets of 15 repetitions
What's important in this leg raise movement is to avoid hollowing out the back when lowering the legs, so as not to hyper-extend the lumbar region, which should remain as flat as possible against the floor.
Cardio work: 30 min on elliptical trainer or stepper.
The aim of this sports, muscle and cardio program is, of course, to burn body fat for a firmer physique, but also to improve cardiovascular capacity for a healthy heart and optimize recovery.
Now you're ready to start your women's fitness program and, with patience and perseverance, achieve a firm, toned body. It goes without saying that a balanced diet limited in refined sugars and fats will enable you to reach your muscle-building goals (buttocks, arms, mass and muscle gain, legs...) more quickly during training. And don't forget that we're talking here about 3 sports sessions a week to optimize cardio and muscle.
Author Alexandre CARPENTIER
Bodybuilding Champion N.A.C 2012
Alexandre shares his bodybuilding experience with MegaGear blog readers