Shes 32, 150lbs, sedentary job, can train 3 times a week at about an hour each. Restricted ankle mobility and minor sciatica. Hates squat movements except pendulum
Wants a focus on building back definition and glute/ham size.
Im leaning towards a upper/ lower split that is just repeated throughout the week.
So far ive got the following
Upper
Assisted pull up 4 x 7-12
Pull down, wide bar 2 x 10-15
machine row 2/1 x7-12/10-15
chest exercise of choice 2x 15-20
face pull 3x 10-15
hammer curls 4x10-15
Lower
Pendulum squat 3x7-12
45degree hip extentension 3x10-15
hip thrust 4x10-15
RDL 2/1x15.20
Frog pumps 2x15-20
Abs of choice 2x10-15
RDLs, Hip Thrusts and a solid diet plan are all that’s needed for this tbh.
How experienced is she with the gym? What is her diet plan going to look like? What is her immediate goal and what is her longer term goal (lose fat first, gain muscle later, etc)?
Are you programming weights for each week? I think that is important. You want to have progressive overload built in. Some people will automatically do that, some will not. Programming a rep range can be good or bad depending on the person. Will the person always go to failure, will they leave a consistent 2 reps in reserve, will they always do the lowest number?
What squat variations have you tried? I think if equipment is available, that a Hatfield squat could work well for her. A bit easier to sit back into it than a regular squat (which should target glutes and hams a bit more). It also takes balance out of the equation.
If you program squats in, start easy. Like 2 sets of 5. Keep the reps low to help work on form. Start will low weight. It’s okay if it’s the easiest exercise of the day. It will then be something she probably doesn’t mind at least starting out.
Does she have access to a GHR machine? I see that as a good tool to use towards the end of the workout. I think it may be better than the 45 degree hip extension.
So she is actually very good at increasing the weight herself but i would say she can probably work a little harder in the sets so we are probably 3-4 from failure most of the time. I’m working on that slowly.
We’ve tried hack, barbell and smith. She really hates the feel of the movement more than anything and we have come to a compromise with the pendulum. I know theres no way of me getting her to do any freeweight squat variation consistently.
She does actually and we are currently using this with her hinging at the hip downwards and then up to just below parallel with the floor to limit lower back involvement. Would you advise the hinge at the knee instead and go up vertical and lower back to the horizontal?
Not necessarily, a Nordic and a GHR differs on knee position on a GHR machine. With a Nordic the knee would be directly on top of the pad, a GHR it would be slightly behind it.
Which would you recommend for the focus that she’s wanting? Will the GHR variation that we are currently using hit the glute enough to do what we want or is the upwards variant better?
You’ve got hip thrusts and frog pumps for direct glute work.
Maybe glute/hams, or even hamstring curls to get some targeted hamstring work could be cool.
Lots of lifters feel that focused work on the hams can make squatting more comfortable. Some people even do the hamstring stuff directly before squatting.
Sorry i didnt reply to this.
She hates the feeling and movement of a squat. We’ve tried a good few variants and she feels unsteady and unhappy with them, even machine options. The only one she is happy to perform is the pendulum.
Pretty comfortable in a gym environment, been attending the gym consistently for over a year, but definitely still at beginner level
I think with her relative newness to lifting, I would be focusing on fundamentals more than specialization.
I like Phraks Greyskull LP as a foundation template. Swap Deadlifts for RDLs and Squats for Pendulum. Maybe add in an exercise for direct glute work (Hip Thrust) after either Squats or Deadlifts.
No sense in trying to reinvent the wheel IMO. This program is just to get strong in all the fundamentals. Once that is achieved (and linear periodization has stopped being linear), I would transition to a more hypertrophy focused approach that could implement specialization.
How tall is your client? Because it could be a balance issue
Does she have rolled shoulders ~ because that can make it actually pretty uncomfortable and make the weight feel like it’s compounding in an uncomfortable lower back area.
And I’d highly recommend rdl’s but tell her to treat it like she’s thrusting her hip forward because she may emphasize her lower/upper back doing it and tap on the glutes at the end.
3-4 from failure is fine if she is making progress. I didn’t make my post to say going to failure was better than 2 reps in reserve, or that 2 reps in reserve was better than 3-4. All have a purpose.
A big trade-off for going really close to failure is that it spends a lot of energy on just a few sets. Leaving a few in the tank can make it easier to do multiple exercises with a good effort on all of them, vs just the first one or two.
I’d say sticking to 4 and under reps in reserve is a pretty good practice though. I doubt sets with more than 4 in the tank are very effective.
That is how I do them, but I really only go to about 45 degrees above parallel to the floor. Much more than that, and at least for me, I am giving my hams and glutes a rest at the top.
If you want to make it harder, you move the feet closer to the pad, or you adjust the foot holder thing higher. I don’t think too many people need to do these weighted.
I don’t see an issue with this at least for now. Belt squats can also be a good exercise, but will not work the glutes as much. Better for quads IME.
All evidence points towards the last 5 reps to failure being the most beneficial. I would recommend having your client’s last set go to true failure on each exercise. Most women chronically underestimate how much they can lift, so have her give it her all and see where she’s at.
I’m a strong proponent of failure training for the right individual. Your client isn’t there just yet, but getting familiar with the concept of technical/muscular failure is something I think all trainees should aim for.
Women can handle training closer to failure better than men can in general. They can usually do more reps at certain percentages compared to men as well.
A woman with a max bench of 135, may be able to crank out 5 reps at 125 lbs (~93%). A dude benching 405, isn’t likely cranking out 5 at 375 lbs.
