Training guide
Women build muscle the same way men do, and at about the same rate relative to where they start: hard sets for every major muscle, 2 or 3 times a week, more reps or weight over time, enough protein and food, and patience. Women's testosterone is a fraction of men's and muscle grows slowly, so you won't get bulky by accident; you choose how far to go.
This guide covers the training that builds muscle (how often, how heavy, how many sets), protein and eating enough, your menstrual cycle and the pill, pregnancy, after the birth and the menopause, training at home or in the gym, and how long it takes. For women's health around exercise, such as bone, iron, leaking and breast support, see our strength training for women guide.
Across 29 studies, women and men grew muscle by a similar percentage from the same training, and women new to lifting gained upper-body strength at least as fast relative to where they started. The guidelines set the same strength dose for everyone: all the major muscles, on 2 or more days a week.
Women's testosterone stays under 2 nmol/L, against 7.7 to 29.4 in men. In trials, women's whole-body lean mass rose about 1.7 to 3.5% over 12 to 24 weeks, and in 20 untrained women, 9 weeks of training raised squat strength 35 to 41% while arm and thigh girth rose only 1 to 2%. Growth follows the hard sets you choose.
Two or 3 full-body sessions a week, with a squat, a hinge, a push, a pull and a carry or core move; most sets of 8 to 12, stopping 2 or 3 reps short of failure; building towards about 10 hard sets per muscle a week; and adding reps, then weight. Light or heavy weights both build muscle when the sets are hard.
About 1.6 g of protein per kg of body weight a day, the level where extra protein stopped adding muscle in 49 trials. In 27 untrained women, a whey shake after each session added no extra lean mass, and training on too little food stalls muscle gain.
In one 2026 trial of 24 women, timing heavy training to either half of the cycle showed no clear benefit over training evenly, though many of its tests were inconclusive. Go by how you feel. The pill made no measurable difference to gains across 8 studies.
Keep up strength training you already do in pregnancy, adjusted; after the birth, pelvic floor exercises come first; and through the menopause, lean mass dips only about 0.5% and training still works. Leaking, bleeding in pregnancy, or tiredness with heavy periods are reasons to see someone: see the warning signs.
Hard sets for each muscle, often enough, with enough food and sleep to rebuild, made a little harder over months. Our build muscle guide sets out the method for everyone; this guide applies it to women's evidence and life stages. Our strength training for women guide covers women's health around exercise: bone, iron and periods, leaking and breast support.
A squat, a hinge, a single-leg move, a push, a pull, an overhead press and a carry or core move. Many women's programmes favour the legs and glutes, but the upper body grows and strengthens well too: in 20 women, upper-body muscle thickness rose 10 to 31% in 12 weeks.
Across 29 studies of adults aged 18 to 45, women and men grew muscle by a similar percentage from the same training. Women new to lifting may gain upper-body strength faster relative to where they start, partly from learning the movements. Women are usually less fatigable than men in sustained efforts, which hasn't been shown to call for a different programme.
Testosterone is the main reason men carry more muscle: reference ranges are 7.7 to 29.4 nmol/L in healthy men and under 2 in women at all ages. Yet the same training grows muscle by a similar percentage in both, and in men, the short hormone rise after a workout didn't predict gains. Muscle grows slowly and follows the dose, so bulk doesn't arrive by accident.
On the same 12-week arm programme in 585 adults, muscle size changed by anything from a 2% loss to a 59% gain. Height, limb length, starting size and training history change how fast you gain and how a lift looks; a petite or tall woman trains the same way, with loads that suit her.
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In Scotland, 24% of women and 31% of men met the muscle-strengthening guideline, and the gap was widest at 16 to 24 (40% against 55%). Muscle-strengthening activity went with a 10 to 17% lower risk of death and major diseases, most at about 30 to 60 minutes a week, in cohort studies that can't prove cause.
Most trials are short, small and in young women new to lifting; the reviews pool them.
Across 29 studies of 18 to 45-year-olds, women and men grew muscle by a similar percentage (a difference under 1 percentage point that could have gone either way), and the authors conclude that women have a similar potential to build muscle. Only 6 of the 29 studies used people who already trained. An earlier review found no sex difference in muscle growth across 10 studies.
Across 17 studies, women gained more upper-body strength than men relative to where they started, and lower-body strength gains were similar across 23. Learning the movements may explain part of it.
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Across 30 studies of 1,410 adults over 50, women gained more lower-body strength than men relative to where they started.
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In trials of women, whole-body lean mass rose about 1.7 to 3.5% over 12 to 24 weeks. In 27 untrained women, 12 weeks of training added about 0.6 to 0.8 kg of lean mass while strength rose 19 to 113%. In 20 untrained women over 9 weeks, squat strength rose 35 to 41% and thigh muscle area 11.8%, while arm and thigh girth rose only 1 to 2%.
On the same 12-week arm programme, 585 adults' muscle size changed from a 2% loss to a 59% gain, and strength from no change to 250%.
Source 20
In 12 and then 56 young men, the short hormone rise after a session didn't predict gains in muscle or strength.
Light and heavy loads build similar muscle when the sets are taken close to failure, and heavier loads build more strength (21 studies; 28 studies of 747 adults, whose 2022 correction left the main findings unchanged). The 2026 American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) position stand found the same across loads from 30% to 100% of the most you can lift once.
Muscle grew more with 10 or more hard sets per muscle a week, each extra weekly set adding a little, and training to failure added nothing over stopping 2 or 3 reps short.
The NHS and the UK Chief Medical Officers ask all adults for strength work for the major muscles on 2 or more days a week, with no separate dose for women.
Three full-body sessions a week, as our plan for women does; 2 is the minimum that meets the guideline. With the same weekly sets, how you spread them across the week made little difference to growth in 25 studies.
A squat, a hinge, a push, a pull and a carry or core move, with a hip thrust or bridge and an arm superset if you like: the shape of our plan for women. Pair every push with a pull.
Weeks 1 and 2: 2 sets of 8 to 12, stopping with 3 or 4 reps to spare. Then 3 sets, stopping 2 or 3 reps short of failure, which our guides call 2 or 3 RIR (reps in reserve: how many more reps you could have done); the last set of small moves such as curls can go to 0 to 2. These are our plans' rules.
Build towards about 10 hard sets per muscle a week. Our 3-day plan, whose workouts the plan for women uses, gives the legs about 12 hard sets a week but the chest only 7 or 8 (our count). Once it feels easy, often after 3 to 6 months (our suggestion), the 4-day split or the 12-week muscle-building plan adds upper-body sets.
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2 to 3 minutes on heavy compound sets such as squats, 90 seconds to 2 minutes on other compound sets, and 60 to 90 seconds on small moves, as our plans' notes say.
Add reps until every set reaches the top of its range, then add the smallest weight step (double progression), and write down every weight and rep. An optional lighter week every 6 to 8 weeks helps, as our plans' notes say.
Staying with the same light weights for months; doing only lower-body work; stopping sets far from failure once past the first two weeks; changing the programme every week; skipping meals or protein on training days (our editorial list). Our goblet squat, Romanian deadlift, hip thrust, push-up and lat pulldown guides teach the moves.
Our editorial order, the shape of our full-body gym workout A and our plan for women, with our plans' starting-weight, effort and progression rules. Our goblet squat guide teaches the move shown.
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The movement on the figure: Dumbbell goblet squat
Three sets of 8 to 12 on goblet squats, Romanian deadlifts and hip thrusts and 3 sets of 10 on the leg press, 2 or 3 sets of 10 to 15 on bridges and leg curls, and 2 or 3 sets of 8 to 10 each side on lunges and step-ups (8 to 12 on Bulgarian split squats), all after 2 weeks of 2 sets (our full-body, lower body and glute workouts).
3D demoDumbbell goblet squatIntermediate · A dumbbell
3D demoLeg pressBeginner · Strength machine
3D demoDumbbell Romanian deadliftIntermediate · A dumbbell
3D demoBarbell hip thrustIntermediate · A barbell + A bench or box
3D demoGlute bridgeBeginner · No equipment
3D demoReverse lungeIntermediate · No equipment
3D demoStep-upBeginner · A step
3D demoRear-foot-elevated split squat (Bulgarian split squat)Intermediate · A bench or box
3D demoMachine leg curlBeginner · Strength machineWork up the push-up steps at 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 15 (our arm challenge session), use 3 sets of 8 to 12 on presses, pulldowns and rows and 2 sets of 12 to 15 on lateral raises (our full-body workouts), pair curls with triceps extensions at 3 rounds of 10 to 15 (our arm workout at home), and do band rows at 3 sets of 10 to 15, stopping 2 to 3 reps short of failure, with 60 to 90 seconds' rest (the move page's dose, its editorial starting point).
3D demoIncline push-upBeginner · A bench or box
3D demoKnee push-upBeginner · No equipment
3D demoPush-upIntermediate · No equipment
3D demoDumbbell bench pressIntermediate · A dumbbell + A bench or box
3D demoLat pulldownBeginner · A cable machine
3D demoSeated cable rowBeginner · A cable machine
3D demoSupported single-arm dumbbell rowIntermediate · A dumbbell + A bench or box
3D demoBand rowBeginner · A band + An anchor point
3D demoSeated dumbbell shoulder pressIntermediate · A dumbbell + A bench or box
3D demoDumbbell lateral raiseBeginner · A dumbbell
3D demoDumbbell biceps curlBeginner · A dumbbell
3D demoStanding overhead dumbbell triceps extensionIntermediate · A dumbbellFinish a session with farmer's carries (2 walks of 30 m) and dead bugs or Pallof presses (2 sets of 6 to 10 each side), as our full-body gym workouts do; add heel drops, 20 to 30 drops at first, building toward about 50 impacts on most days (the move page's dose), if impact suits you, and do pelvic floor exercises daily at the dose on their move page, as our plan for women does.
In 49 trials of 1,863 people, protein supplements added about 0.3 kg of muscle on top of training, which itself did far more, and gains levelled off at about 1.6 g per kg a day, an estimate with a wide range (1.0 to 2.2). Women were included but not analysed separately. Across 74 trials, more protein added a little lean mass with training, at 1.6 g per kg or more in people under 65.
In women already eating enough, extra protein added little: 24 g of whey after each session added no extra lean mass in 27 women, and 1.4 against 0.8 g per kg a day made no difference in 49 women aged about 66. Whey helped postmenopausal women only alongside training.
About 1.6 g per kg a day from food, over 3 to 5 meals of 20 to 40 g, as our build muscle guide says: for a 65 kg woman, about 105 g a day. Our protein calculator works out your number.
In pooled trials, a deficit of about 500 calories a day stopped lean-mass gains, though strength still rose. If you also want to lose some fat, a small deficit and patience suit muscle better than a big cut (our reading).
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Heavy periods can lead to iron deficiency anaemia, and our strength training for women guide covers iron. The warning signs below say when tiredness or breathlessness means seeing a GP.
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In 7 trials of 608 postmenopausal women, creatine with training added about 0.37 kg of lean mass; the review wasn't registered and one author has industry links. It's optional.
If you have kidney disease, ask your doctor before raising your protein or taking creatine; the safety studies were in healthy people.
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In one 2026 trial, 24 women with regular cycles trained for about 12 weeks with heavy training put in the first half of the cycle, the second half, or spread evenly. Every plan built thigh muscle and strength, and timing showed no clear benefit, though 11 of its 18 equivalence tests were inconclusive. Muscle building after exercise didn't differ by phase in 12 women, and a review of reviews calls it premature to say the cycle changes training results.
Across 78 studies, performance may be trivially lower in the early follicular phase, the days around the start of a period, on low-quality evidence. Strength varied little across the cycle in 21 studies.
In 6,812 exercising women, mood changes (90.6%), tiredness (86.2%) and cramps (84.2%) were common and went with missed or changed training, and soreness after hard exercise was greatest in the early follicular phase across 19 studies. On a bad day, use the lighter-week dose or swap to a walk, as our plan for women suggests.
One review argues for heavier training in the follicular phase, and earlier small trials conflicted; the 2026 trial found no clear benefit. Train as usual and go by how you feel.
Across 8 studies of 325 women, the combined pill made no difference to muscle growth, strength or power, and its effect on performance across 42 studies was most likely trivial. Muscle building after exercise didn't differ between pill and pill-free weeks in 12 women.
Periods that stop or change are covered in the warning signs below. Our menstrual cycle guide covers periods and period pain.
The NHS suggests 150 minutes of moderate activity a week with 2 muscle-strengthening sessions, including strength training at a gym if you do it already, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) encourages strength conditioning in uncomplicated pregnancies. Across 50 studies of 47,619 people, exercise programmes that included resistance training went with lower odds of high blood pressure and diabetes in pregnancy, though most mixed it with other exercise.
Already lifting heavier? Talk to your midwife or doctor about carrying on with your own programme; don't start heavy lifting in pregnancy.
Contact sports, activities where you could fall (such as horse riding, skiing and off-road cycling), scuba diving, hot yoga or hot Pilates, and hard exercise at high altitude unless you're used to it. After the first trimester, keep time flat on your back short. The NHS also advises against taking up a new vigorous sport, such as running, in pregnancy.
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In a survey of 679 women who lifted 80% or more of their maximum while pregnant, outcomes were mostly typical, but they were self-reported, and 57% reported leaking after the birth. In 359 women who kept lifting heavy in the first trimester, miscarriage rates were similar to the general population, in a look back that can't show safety.
Pelvic floor exercises come first. The NHS says: "Try to avoid exercises such as sit-ups, planks and high-impact exercises to start with. Also avoid straining on the toilet and heavy lifting." Build back gradually, as soon as it's medically safe, and agree it with your midwife or GP.
A caesarean is major surgery. Walk every day from the start, and begin pelvic floor exercises once your catheter is out. Wait about 6 weeks, or until it's comfortable, before exercise classes, the gym or lifting anything heavier than your baby. The timings are expert advice, so go by how you feel. Our caesarean guide covers the first days, the scar, and when to lift, drive, swim and run.
Start pelvic floor exercises as soon as you can and keep going every day: they cut the odds of leaking after birth. About 60% of first-time mothers have a gap between their tummy muscles at 6 weeks. Exercise narrows it only slightly, but builds strength, and in a trial curl-ups didn't widen it.
Evidence on strenuous exercise and prolapse is thin, and almost nothing is known about the months after birth. A pelvic health physiotherapist can help you judge when to go heavy again.
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In 1,246 women followed through the menopause transition, lean mass fell by about 0.5% (0.2 kg) in total. In 234 Finnish women, muscle fell 0.5 to 1.5%, and more active women kept more.
In one 10-week trial of 31 women around 52, free-weight training twice a week raised strength in everyone, but muscle grew only in those who hadn't reached the menopause, at 6 to 8 sets a muscle a week. The authors speculate that more weekly sets may be needed after it; that hasn't been tested. Across 12 trials in postmenopausal women, training improved physical function with no serious harms, on low-certainty evidence.
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) didn't change lean mass across 12 trials of 4,474 women; an older review found about 5% greater strength, and NICE calls the evidence that HRT improves muscle limited. NICE asks doctors to explain the importance of keeping muscle mass and strength through physical activity.
For bone, the UK osteoporosis consensus advises progressive strength training on 2 to 3 days a week, building to the most you can lift 8 to 12 times, up to 3 sets, with impact such as heel drops if it suits you. Around the menopause, the NHS suggests strength and resistance exercise to protect your bones.
Our pregnancy strength workout's moves, 2 or 3 rounds of 8 to 15 reps with 2 to 3 reps to spare, standing, seated or side-lying, with nothing flat on your back after the first trimester and presses done seated.
3D demoDumbbell goblet squatIntermediate · A dumbbell3D demoSupported single-arm dumbbell rowIntermediate · A dumbbell + A bench or box3D demoIncline push-upBeginner · A bench or box3D demoSeated dumbbell shoulder pressIntermediate · A dumbbell + A bench or box
3D demoClamshellBeginner · No equipment
3D demoHalf-kneeling Pallof pressBeginner · A band + An anchor pointHome, band and circuit training all improved strength in the ACSM's overview, and the type of equipment made no consistent difference. What matters is that the sets stay hard and get harder.
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A set of bands and a pair of adjustable dumbbells or kettlebells cover most of a home programme, and a sturdy step adds step-ups (our suggestion). Our build muscle at home guide shows how to keep bodyweight work hard.
Machines such as the leg press, lat pulldown, cable row and chest press load each muscle while you learn, and our full-body gym workouts use them. Our start lifting weights guide covers your first moves, a starting weight and gym safety.
Full-body gym workouts A and B are the sessions of our plan for women; the dumbbell and home sessions suit training at home, the upper and lower body sessions make a 4-day week, and the pregnancy, postnatal, bone and pelvic floor sessions suit those times.
A beginner full-body gym workout: goblet squats, dumbbell bench press, lat pulldowns, Romanian deadlifts and dead bugs, with sets, reps and rest.
45 minBeginner12 movesCardio machine, A bandFull-body gym workout B: trap bar deadlifts, cable rows, seated dumbbell press, step-ups, leg curls, push-ups and a Pallof press.
50 minBeginner13 movesCardio machine, Other / check instructionsA 35-minute full-body strength workout with dumbbells: goblet squats, presses, rows, Romanian deadlifts and carries.
35 minIntermediate9 movesA band, A dumbbellHome dumbbell workout B: reverse lunges, push-ups, bent-over rows, single-leg glute bridges, lateral raises and side planks.
35 minIntermediate11 movesA wall, A dumbbellA gym upper body workout for chest, back, shoulders and arms: bench press, rows, presses, pulldowns, raises, curls and pushdowns.
50 minIntermediate13 movesA band, A barbellA gym lower body workout for legs and glutes: trap bar deadlifts, hip thrusts, reverse lunges, leg curls, hip abduction, calf raises and core.
50 minIntermediate13 movesOther / check instructions, A barbellA 50-minute gym glute workout: hip thrusts, deep squats, Bulgarian split squats, back extensions and hip abduction, with sets, reps and rest.
50 minIntermediate11 movesA band, A barbellAn upper body workout at home with no gym: push-ups, band rows, pike push-ups, face pulls, close-grip push-ups and Y-T-W raises, with dumbbell options.
30 minIntermediate13 movesA band, An anchor pointA 30-minute strength workout for any trimester with dumbbells and a band: squats, rows, hinges, presses and side-lying hip work, none on your back.
30 minBeginner14 movesA dumbbell, A bench or boxA 25-minute strength workout from about 6 weeks after birth: sit-to-stands, deadlift practice, push-ups, rows, bridges and tummy work, with the knack.
25 minBeginner14 movesA bench or box, A kettlebellImpact, strength and balance for stronger bones, following UK osteoporosis consensus advice, with options for every level.
40 minBeginner14 movesA kettlebell, Other / check instructionsA 5-minute daily pelvic floor workout for women and men: slow holds and quick squeezes, three times a day, with how to find the right muscles.
5 minBeginner2 movesNo equipmentThe plan for women gives three full-body strength days with pelvic floor work. It gives the legs about 12 hard sets a week but the chest only 7 or 8, so if building upper-body muscle is your goal, the 4-day split or the 12-week muscle-building plan adds sets.
A weekly workout plan for women: three strength days, cardio and pelvic floor training, with the evidence on periods, pregnancy and menopause.
3 training days45 minBeginner4 days a weekA 12-week gym plan to build muscle after your first months of lifting: upper and lower days, sets that rise in three phases, lighter weeks, food and sleep.
4 training days55 minIntermediate4 days a weekA 4-day upper/lower split: two upper body and two lower body gym days, each muscle trained twice a week, with sets, reps and progression.
4 training days50 minIntermediate3 days a weekThree full-body home workouts a week with dumbbells or no equipment at all, plus walks and an 8-week plan to keep progressing.
3 training days35 minBeginner3 days a weekA 12-week plan for women over 40: three strength days, impact for bone, cardio and recovery through the perimenopause, in a gym or at home, with a 4-day option.
3 training days45 minBeginner3 days a weekA weekly plan for women over 50: strength, bone-loading and balance on 3 days plus walking, built on UK osteoporosis consensus advice.
3 training days45 minBeginner5 days a weekA pregnancy workout plan for each trimester: walks or swims, two strength sessions a week off your back, daily pelvic floor work and when to stop.
5 training days30 minBeginner5 days a weekA postpartum workout plan from the first days after birth to running and lifting again, week by week, with a caesarean track and readiness checks.
5 training days25 minBeginner4 days a weekAn 8-week glute workout plan: two glute days and two upper-body days a week, with hip thrusts, squats, hinges and side-hip work, plus a home option.
4 training days50 minIntermediateStart with our start lifting weights guide's first moves and starting-weight method, then follow our plan for women.
If you leak during jumps or heavy lifts, it's treatable: see a pelvic health physiotherapist, and lighten whatever sets it off rather than stopping training (our suggestion, from our plan for women's pelvic floor note).
A prolapse: avoid heavy lifting, running and trampolining until you have had advice.
With osteoporosis or a past spinal fracture, avoid repeated or loaded deep rounding of the back, and bend from the hips. The osteoporosis guide covers impact and lifting.
Osteoporosis or a spinal fracture: get individual advice before heavy lifting or impact.
Build muscle the same way; our PCOS guide covers what exercise does for polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
Our eating disorders guide covers exercise during and after recovery; the warning signs below say when to get help.
If you have kidney disease, ask your doctor before raising your protein or taking creatine; the safety studies were in healthy people.
If you get chest pain or pressure, feel faint or dizzy, are unusually breathless, or your heart races or beats irregularly during exercise, as our plans advise.
For chest pain that comes on suddenly and doesn't go away, feels tight or like squeezing, spreads to your arms, neck, jaw, stomach or back, or comes with sweating, feeling sick, light-headedness or breathlessness; severe difficulty breathing; someone who faints while exercising; palpitations that don't go away, or come with chest pain, shortness of breath or feeling faint; or a headache that starts suddenly and is extremely painful, especially while lifting or straining, or comes with numbness or weakness, difficulty speaking or loss of vision. The NHS says a bleed on the brain may be more likely when lifting something heavy. Don't drive yourself to A&E.
Ask for an urgent GP appointment or get help from NHS 111 for a headache that's triggered or made worse by coughing, sneezing, bending down or exercising. In the US, contact your doctor or urgent care.
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Stop straight away if you feel any pain or become unwell, the NHS says, and contact 111 if your symptoms worry you or don't go away.
A dull ache in your muscles for a day or two after something new is normal. Joint pain that's sharp, gets worse during a set or lingers into the next day means switching to the easier option, and seeing a GP or physiotherapist if it carries on (our plans' rule). Our muscle soreness guide has more.
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Stop exercising and call your midwife or maternity unit if you have bleeding from the vagina, tummy pain, regular painful contractions, fluid leaking from the vagina, breathlessness before you start, dizziness, a headache, chest pain, muscle weakness that affects your balance, or pain or swelling in your calf.
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If your bleeding turns red again, gets heavier or restarts after exercise, you've probably done too much. Drop back, and tell your midwife if it continues. This rule is ours, built from the Canadian and NICE guidance.
See a GP if:
See a GP for these, as our menopause guide says:
See a GP if you think you have a hernia, a bulge or lump that may get bigger when you strain and smaller when you lie down. Get help from NHS 111 if you have a hernia and pain in or around it, a bloated tummy, you feel or are sick, you're vomiting blood or your vomit looks like coffee grounds, you're constipated, you have a high temperature or feel hot, cold or shivery, or you've suddenly become confused. Call 999 or go to A&E for a femoral hernia (a small lump at the top of your thigh, in your groin) with very bad tummy pain, sickness, being unable to fart or poo, a high temperature or sudden confusion.
Call 999 or go to A&E: loss of feeling or numbness around the genitals or bottom, new trouble peeing or controlling your bladder or bowels, changes in genital sensation during sex or problems with erections or orgasm, or pain, tingling, weakness or numbness in both legs. These are signs of cauda equina syndrome, which needs treating in hospital urgently. Don't drive yourself.
See a GP if pain spreading down a leg hasn't improved after a few weeks of home treatment, is getting worse or stops your normal activities. Sciatica on both sides, or weakness or numbness in both legs that's severe or getting worse, is a 999 call or a trip to A&E.
Same day (urgent GP appointment or NHS 111): throbbing pain in one leg (rarely both), usually the calf or thigh; swelling in one leg (rarely both); red, blue or darkened skin around the painful area, which may be harder to see on brown or black skin; or swollen veins. It could be a blood clot (deep vein thrombosis, DVT), which is more likely while you're moving about much less than usual or after a hospital stay.
Also call 999 for pain and swelling in one leg with breathlessness or chest pain: it can be a blood clot that has reached the lungs.
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A pop or tearing at the front of the armpit or chest during a lift, followed by bruising into the chest or upper arm, a change in the shape of the chest or armpit, or weakness pushing, can be a torn chest tendon. Don't wait for it to settle: get help the same day from NHS 111 or an urgent treatment centre, as our pec strain guide explains.
A sudden pop at the front of the elbow during a heavy pull, with bruising, a gap at the front of the elbow or a bulge in the upper arm, can be a torn biceps tendon. Go to an urgent treatment centre or A&E (in the US, urgent care or the emergency department), and don't wait for it to settle: repair is best done within the first 2 to 3 weeks.
Call NHS 111 (in the US, your doctor or urgent care) for severe muscle pain and weakness with dark (cola-coloured) or reduced urine after unusually hard training. This can be rhabdomyolysis, which can harm the kidneys and needs prompt care.
The NHS lists spending a lot of time worrying about your weight and body shape, eating very little food, exercising too much, and having very strict routines around food among the signs of an eating disorder, and says to see a GP as soon as you can. Worrying a lot about one area of your body can be body dysmorphic disorder. Beat's helpline in England is 0808 801 0677, and our eating disorders guide has the other numbers.
Speak to your GP first if you haven't exercised for some time or have medical conditions or concerns, as the NHS advises. Get advice before heavy lifting or hard straining work if your blood pressure is uncontrolled, or you have heart disease or chest pain when you're active, a pacemaker or defibrillator, diabetic eye disease, glaucoma, a hernia, recent eye or tummy surgery, or you're pregnant, as our breathing guide lists. After a recent shoulder dislocation or shoulder surgery, follow our shoulder dislocation guide or your surgical team first.
Speak to a GP first if you haven't exercised for some time, or if you have a medical condition or concerns. Get advice first, too, if you have a health problem, an injury or symptoms, have recently had a heart attack or an operation, or are pregnant or have recently given birth.
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If you have a heart condition, follow your cardiac team's advice on how hard to work, and stop for the warning signs above. People with long-term conditions may wish to ask their specialist before starting. With uncontrolled high blood pressure, avoid straining against a held breath; the high blood pressure guide has more.
Women grow muscle by a similar percentage to men from the same training, their testosterone stays under 2 nmol/L, and in 9 weeks, untrained women's squat strength rose 35 to 41% while arm and thigh girth rose 1 to 2%. Growth follows the hard sets you choose.
In one trial of 24 women, timing heavy training to either half of the cycle showed no clear benefit, though many of its tests were inconclusive, and muscle building after exercise didn't differ by phase. Go by how you feel.
Light and heavy loads build similar muscle when the sets are hard, and heavier loads build more strength. There are no special toning reps.
No guideline sets a different dose, and relative gains are similar. What differs is the health around training: the cycle, pregnancy, the pelvic floor, the menopause, iron and bone.
Across 8 studies of 325 women, the combined pill made no difference to muscle, strength or power.
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The NHS and ACOG recommend strength work in an uncomplicated pregnancy, and if you already lift you can usually carry on, adjusted. Ask your midwife first if anything is new or you have a complication.
Women gained strength in trials at every age, and in pooled Finnish trials, 45 to 60-year-olds gained as much muscle as younger adults. One trial of 31 women around 52 found muscle grew only before the menopause at 6 to 8 sets a week; its authors speculate that more sets may be needed after it.
About 1.6 g of protein per kg a day from food covers most people, and in 27 untrained women, whey after each session added no extra lean mass.
The same way men do: hard sets for every major muscle, 2 or 3 times a week, building towards about 10 or more sets per muscle a week, and adding reps, then weight, over months. Eat enough, with about 1.6 g of protein per kg of body weight a day, and sleep 7 to 9 hours. Women gain muscle at about the same rate as men relative to where they start.
Not by accident. Women's testosterone is a fraction of men's, muscle grows slowly (in trials, women's whole-body lean mass rose about 1.7 to 3.5% over 3 to 6 months), and growth follows the sets you do. Once you like the result, you can hold your sets and weights where they are.
Strength rises within weeks, and muscle growth shows on scans after a few weeks. Over 3 to 6 months, women in trials gained a few per cent of lean mass, about 0.6 to 0.8 kg in one 12-week trial. People vary hugely, so nobody can promise a rate.
Two or 3 sets of 8 to 12 on most moves, stopping 2 or 3 reps short of failure, building towards about 10 hard sets per muscle a week. Light or heavy weights both build muscle when the sets are hard; heavier weights build more strength. The ranges are the same for men.
About 1.6 g per kg of body weight a day from food and any supplements, the point where extra protein stopped adding muscle in 49 trials; up to 2.2 g covers the uncertainty. For a 65 kg woman that's about 105 g a day. Our protein calculator works out your number.
You don't need to: in one 2026 trial of 24 women, timing heavy training to either half of the cycle showed no clear benefit over training evenly, though many of its tests were inconclusive. Train as usual and go by how you feel; on bad symptom days, do a lighter session or swap to a walk. Our menstrual cycle guide covers periods and period pain.
Not measurably. Across 8 studies, women on the combined pill gained muscle, strength and power like women who weren't on it.
Yes. Every major guideline recommends strength work in pregnancy. If you already lift, you can usually carry on, perhaps a little lighter. Breathe out on the effort rather than holding your breath, and after the first trimester move bench work to an incline or a seat.
Pelvic floor exercises can start straight away, and the NHS advises avoiding sit-ups, planks, high-impact exercise and heavy lifting to start with. Build back gradually and agree it with your midwife or GP; after a caesarean it takes longer. Our exercise after giving birth guide has a week-by-week timeline.
Yes: women gained strength in trials at every age. One trial of 31 women around 52 found muscle grew only before the menopause at 6 to 8 sets a muscle a week, and its authors speculate that more sets may be needed after it. HRT hasn't been shown to add muscle; our menopause guide covers the rest.
Yes. Home and band training improve strength, and muscle grows with light or heavy loads when the sets are hard. Our build muscle at home guide shows how to keep bodyweight work hard.
Muscle gain is slow and strength training trims a little fat, so your weight can stay the same while your shape and strength change. Track your lifts, and measure the same spots every 4 weeks if you want a number.
Exercise education, not a personal prescription, and clinical review of these guides is pending. Check with a GP before starting hard training if you have a heart condition, chest pain, dizziness or breathlessness when active, and stop for sharp or increasing pain. Health disclaimer.
