What workout do you ladies use

[Gunsmith]

I have several female frineds who are wanting to do more weight lifting to "tone" up , all of them general train 4-5 days a week. I've thought about letting them follow my workouts but i think minbe would be way over training for what they want.

What are your thoughts about P90X , one of the ladies is a fair bit over weight (40-50lbs) she is a stay at home mom and can't realy go to the gym several days a week so she asked me about the P90X diet and workout thing but I've never done or even seen it so I told her I'd ask.
Is it a decient investment

 

[mo chuisle]

P90X seems like a good program ... if you can follow it. I know so many people who've bought it, tried it, loved it for 3 weeks, and then quit. Like anything else fitness-related, it requires a commitment and hard work - something most people give up on after a short time. IF she can stick to it, chances are it'll work.

As far as workouts for women ... in my off-season, I train in a very similar style as my boyfriend. When I'm in contest prep, I need a higher intensity, varied workout in order to maintain muscle and accelerate fat loss, so I add some abs and cardio in between sets and exercises.

Most women who are just getting started in the gym also seem to like "sculpting" classes. They're a good introduction to weights, and most newbie women seem to feel more comfortable in a group setting. Also, some basic plyometrics with weights are a good start and incorporate more than one muscle group.

IMO, there are no exercises that are strictly for men. Women can do the exact same exercises as men.

 

[Gunsmith]

IMO, there are no exercises that are strictly for men. Women can do the exact same exercises as men.

yea , I understand that but I just diden't think that a woman would follow the same lifts and set/reps as a man if their goals were differant.

A couple of the women want to add a ittle size and shape but they are all doing their cardion first and like 45min at 75%-80% max heart rate , every time they come to the gym. Seems to me that this is backwards for anybody wanting to build muscle

 

[Gunsmith]

I've tried to convience them all to hire a trainer but all don't want to spend the money. The heavier girl (my ex) is very dedicated , she has cut her eating back and i actualy had to add some food to it as her cals were way low and she walks 45 min each morning fasted.

I think that a structored workout like the p90x will probably work for her

 

[mo chuisle]

yea , I understand that but I just diden't think that a woman would follow the same lifts and set/reps as a man if their goals were differant.

A couple of the women want to add a ittle size and shape but they are all doing their cardion first and like 45min at 75%-80% max heart rate , every time they come to the gym. Seems to me that this is backwards for anybody wanting to build muscle

I should clarify about the reps/sets - those should be customized to their goals. What I meant about the exercises being the same is that women shouldn't be scared of squatting or benching, or consider them "men-only" exercises.

Muscle will give a woman nice shape, not fat. So building up the muscle while sticking to a CLEAN diet will achieve that result. And yes, it's counterproductive to do cardio before weight training if they're trying to build muscle.

 

[Sassy]

Get rid of the 5 lb dumbbells...

Once I started training with a male workout partner, I realized there is no difference in the way a woman should train and men train. I had much better results training with heavy weights and low reps. I usually keep my rep range around 6 - 8 reps. I train 2 body parts per day. 5 day split.

For example:
Day 1: Chest & Tri's
Day 2: Back & Bi's
Day 3: Quads and abs
Day 4: shoulder & traps
Day 5: hams & calves

 

[TGandsey]

I am definatley someone who benifits from lifting heavy and keeping my cardio to a minimum. I usually try and do 3-4 exercises per body part, except for legs which takes a bit longer. I keep my rep range around 8-12. Sometimes i will throw in drop sets or super sets to change things up. A typical split for me looks like this:

Mon-Chest and triceps
Tues-Shoulders, biceps and abs
Wed- Off
Thurs-Cardio, usually a cycling class
Fri-back and shoulders
Sat-Leg day
Sun-Cardio, 1 hour mix of intervals and steady state on various equipment

 

[Gunsmith]

Once I started training with a male workout partner, I realized there is no difference in the way a woman should train and men train. I had much better results training with heavy weights and low reps. I usually keep my rep range around 6 - 8 reps. I train 2 body parts per day. 5 day split.

For example:
Day 1: Chest & Tri's
Day 2: Back & Bi's
Day 3: Quads and abs
Day 4: shoulder & traps
Day 5: hams & calves

Sassy , your obvioisly well advanced in your training and conditioning your body to this style , do you think that for the average person that a 5 days split would be overly taxing on their body or central nervous system , I personaly do the same style as you but I've seen some people have a realy hard time with it till they added a days rest in the middle.

it all looks like you ladies are doing pretty much basic bread and butter type training , I kind of see it like you guys do , just because your a woman doesn't mean you can't train like aman to get better gains , i think that alot of women don't understand that their not going to end up looking like a "body builder" without ALOT more food and supplements. But at the same time all these ladies are watching me diet down for a show (first ever) and keep saying "Look how huge your getting , I don't want all that" when I'm actualy getting smaller due to dropping the bodyfat , the illusion it puts off is amazing.
The scale is another thing that they are stuck on , I can't seem to get through to them that if your training properly and eating right you shoulden't see much changes on the scale due to adding muscle and losing fat

thanks again ladies for all your help

 

[marilyn]

I dont have too much to add since I think you received very good advise and can take ideas from the ladies suggestions....

as far as the split goes.....you are right, everyone is different and I had to adjust and find the one that workd best for me, so they can try different splits and see which one works for them...Nice job on helping them with their goals!! and asking for ideas.

 

[Sassy]

Sassy , your obvioisly well advanced in your training and conditioning your body to this style , do you think that for the average person that a 5 days split would be overly taxing on their body or central nervous system , I personaly do the same style as you but I've seen some people have a realy hard time with it till they added a days rest in the middle.

it all looks like you ladies are doing pretty much basic bread and butter type training , I kind of see it like you guys do , just because your a woman doesn't mean you can't train like aman to get better gains , i think that alot of women don't understand that their not going to end up looking like a "body builder" without ALOT more food and supplements. But at the same time all these ladies are watching me diet down for a show (first ever) and keep saying "Look how huge your getting , I don't want all that" when I'm actualy getting smaller due to dropping the bodyfat , the illusion it puts off is amazing.
The scale is another thing that they are stuck on , I can't seem to get through to them that if your training properly and eating right you shoulden't see much changes on the scale due to adding muscle and losing fat

thanks again ladies for all your help

You see so many different variations of training splits because everyone's body is different. You have to find the one that works for you. There as a time that I trained with 8 day split... it gives you a extra off day.

Day 1: Chest & tri's
Day 2: back & bi's
Day 3: off
Day 4: quads & abs
Day 5: shoulders & traps
Day 6: off
Day 7: off
Day 8: hams & calves

Lately my weekends have been to busy to workout, so I've go back to 5 days/2day off. It frees up my weekends.

I also find it nice to change up especially when I've hit a plateau add some negatives, drop sets, HIIT or DC. You just have to learn to listen to your body and react to what it's telling you. A lot of newbie don't think it's import to take time off so they just train until their body starts giving them problems. It's important to take a week off every now and then.

 

[mo chuisle]

it all looks like you ladies are doing pretty much basic bread and butter type training , I kind of see it like you guys do , just because your a woman doesn't mean you can't train like aman to get better gains , i think that alot of women don't understand that their not going to end up looking like a "body builder" without ALOT more food and supplements. But at the same time all these ladies are watching me diet down for a show (first ever) and keep saying "Look how huge your getting , I don't want all that" when I'm actualy getting smaller due to dropping the bodyfat , the illusion it puts off is amazing.
The scale is another thing that they are stuck on , I can't seem to get through to them that if your training properly and eating right you shoulden't see much changes on the scale due to adding muscle and losing fat

thanks again ladies for all your help

My question is - why wouldn't a woman do the same exercises as a man?? We're all working toward similar goals, right? To put on muscle and look good. Of course there are some variations to that goal, and we may do some modifications to some exercises, but in the gym, we're all there fighting against the iron.

Tell those women there's NO WAY they're going to get huge unless they eat crappy food and don't work out OR they eat a ton of food. It's usually tougher for most women to put on size, so reassure them that there's no way they'll look like men.

And keep them away from the scale!! Tell them to use the mirror and the way their clothes fit as guides for their progress. Who cares what their weight is as long as they're healthy and their clothes fit better?

Best of luck!