what is the best female bodybuilding workout? In today's article, we are going to discuss this. Lisa Rhea, ABCFit's women's performance coach, explains the best exercises and routines to get a defined and ripped physique
Want a defined and ripped look? You don't have to spend a fortune or turn up at a gym for hours on end. Here's a comprehensive look at the best female bodybuilding workout for you, so you can get your desired end results without using fancy machinery.
Read also: 5 Best Home Workouts For Fat Loss
Morning Strength
The first 10-15 minutes of your day are when your body is most receptive to weight training. In the morning, when you're naturally motivated and feeling refreshed, your neuromuscular system is firing, your muscles are warm and less likely to cramp, and you'll have fresh legs to take on the day.
During morning strength, engage as many muscle groups as possible. Start with an intense combination of exercises that gives you maximal cardiovascular output for 10-15 minutes, followed by four to six repetitions of the second exercise. Repeat two to three times. The total workout takes 35-40 minutes.
Sit-up, reverse sit-up, push-up, bicycle
- Dumbbell bench press
- Dumbbell side plank with side lateral raise
- Dumbbell row with lateral raise
- Goblet squat
- Goblet single-arm row
- Goblet single-arm squat
Lunges
The primary muscle groups that you need to build are the legs and glutes, which you'll see in lunges, reverse lunges, and glute ham raises.
Sets: 4-6
Reps: 10-15
- A1. Convert set A to superset with B
- A1: 1-3 reverse lunges, 1-3 front squats
- B1: 1-3 reverse lunges, 1-3 glute ham raises
- B2: 1-3 reverse lunges, 1-3 glute ham raises
- B3: 1-3 reverse lunges, 1-3 glute ham raises
- B4: 1-3 reverse lunges, 1-3 glute ham raises
- B5: 1-3 reverse lunges, 1-3 glute ham raises
- B6: 1-3 reverse lunges, 1-3 glute ham raises
Day 1
Deadlift
The deadlift has a variety of exercises that target your shoulders, arms, chest, back, and glutes, which is where the majority of women's bodybuilding is done. You'll perform two or three dumbbell deadlifts (four or five reps), a front squat, and a lateral (left or right) dumbbell squat to build all your major muscle groups.
Sets: 4-6
Reps: 10-12
Lying hip abduction, side hip abductor bridge
- Seated hip abduction, supine position
- Side hip abduction, supine position
- Leg abduction, supine position
Lying hip adduction
- Seated hip adduction, supine position
- Leg hip adduction, supine position
- Seated hip adduction, supine position
- Leg hip adduction, supine position
Foam roller stretch, standing
- Foot flat on a foam roller
- Place a towel on the ground
- Squat down, extending arms, keeping hips and legs straight
- Bend knees, keeping hips on the foam roller
- Place the floor mat under the bottom of the foam roller
- Stretch both arms and legs out
Day 2
Military press
The military press requires a lot of muscle group work, since it works a wide range of muscles, from your arms and shoulders to your chest and back. A strict military press engages the lats and the triceps and helps you build lean muscle. However, you'll be doing this exercise with a dumbbell in your hands, and it's important to train these muscles properly. Beginners often rely on full range-of-motion movements for their triceps, which is great for an active lifestyle, but it can lead to overuse injuries. This is when you need to focus on lowering your body weight, and never adding more weight.
Sets: 4-6
Reps: 10-12
Barbell rows
- Dumbbell rows
- Cable rows
- Barbell shoulder press
- Dumbbell bicep curls
- Cable shoulder press
- Dumbbell triceps extensions
Alternating biceps curl, dip, standing
- Dumbbell bicep curl, lying down
- Cable bicep curl, lying down
- Cable bicep curl, standing
- Cable bicep curl, standing
- Dumbbell dip, lying down
- Cable bicep dip, lying down
Bent-over rows
- Barbell bent-over rows
- Cable bent-over rows
- Dumbbell straight-arm dumbbell rows
Bicep curl
- Dumbbell bicep curl
- Cable bicep curl
- Barbell bicep curl
- Cable bicep curl
Dumbbell shoulder press
- Dumbbell shoulder press
- Cable shoulder press
- Barbell shoulder press
Kneeling dumbbell overhead press
- Dumbbell overhead press
- Cable overhead press
- Cable overhead press
- Dumbbell overhead press
Kneeling dumbbell fly
- Kneeling dumbbell fly
- Cable fly
Bent-over lateral raises
- Dumbbell bent-over lateral raise
- Kneeling dumbbell lateral raise
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