A Beginner's Guide to Bodybuilding for Women

A Beginner's Guide to Bodybuilding for Women

Fake tan. Biceps. The most sparkly bikinis you've ever seen - sure, that's the pinnacle of bodybuilding training if you decide to compete in the sport. But there's a much less glamorous side to being a female bodybuilder: dieting and meal prepping, counting macros, waking up early to do cardio, spending hours in the weight room, and peeling calluses off your hands.

Bodybuilding “doesn’t come without its fair share of sacrifices,” says Linzi Martinez, CPT, a nutritional health coach and owner of Body on Fire Fitness. "However, if this is your passion, it is worth every second. It requires you to harness your willpower and mental strength, and you will reap the empowering benefits in all areas of your life." (Not to mention, lifting weights has a variety of health benefits.)

Curious? Read on for the complete guide to what it's like to be a female bodybuilder.

What is bodybuilding anyway?

Bodybuilding is actually a sport. It comes with a very specific lifestyle that involves detailed exercise training and precise nutrition to strengthen, shape and develop the body's muscles (also known as hypertrophy training).

While some people practice bodybuilding to look and feel strong, for many, training and dieting culminate in a bodybuilding competition where you are judged on your physique and muscle development - in either the bikini, figure, female body, bodybuilding or fitness categories.

Before you continue reading, here's what you should know:Participating in a sport where you are judged almost entirely on your appearance can be hard on the psyche. "It's important to take care of your mind and spirit in addition to your physical body," says Ana Snyder, CPT, a fitness model and competitive bodybuilder based in New York City. "If you're already struggling with body image issues, achieving what the outside world (or judges) view as perfect aesthetics doesn't guarantee that you'll see a different person in the mirror."

If you're looking for a way to target your strength training, a physique competition can be a good option; However, remember that even though the judges are evaluating your abs, the health and performance gains you achieve are even more important.

Still, you can use bodybuilding workouts and training style even if you have no intention of competing and just want to get stronger. Read on for a sample fitness plan for female bodybuilders.

Female bodybuilding training plans

How do you build impressive muscles? Of course with consistent strength training.

“Typical bodybuilding training isn’t easy,” says Snyder. "Typically it involves training twice a day - about an hour of strength training and between 30 minutes and two hours of cardio per day."

Most female bodybuilders structure their training by dividing their strength training days by body part, often referred to as a "split." For example, a typical 5-day split might look like this:

Day 1:chest

Day 2:The back

Day 3:Shoulder

Day 4:Legs

Day 5:Weapons

Day 6 and 7:Rest

However, training looks a little different for everyone, depending on their body type and goals. "Most people structure their lifting by focusing on one body part per day, but I do legs three days and upper body three days," says Snyder.

Many athletes prefer to train each muscle group twice a week. To achieve this, you could structure your training so that there is an alternating “push” day, a “pull” day and a leg training day:

Day 1:Press (chest, shoulders, triceps)

Day 2:Pull (back, biceps)

Day 3:Legs

Day 4:Press (chest, shoulders, triceps)

Day 5:Pull (back, biceps)

Day 6:Legs

Day 7:Rest

Typically, you'll do a warm-up, then three to five exercises for the specific body part, performing three to four sets of 8-12 reps each.

It's smart to start with compound exercises (those that require the use of more than one joint, like squats, bench presses, deadlifts, etc.) and then move on to isolation exercises (those that only require the use of one joint, like bicep curls, leg extensions, etc.), says Martinez. (More here: Order exercises correctly in the gym)

Compound exercises usually get all the glory because they allow you to lift heavier weights and count as functional training. But isolation movements are pretty important to bodybuilding workouts: "Because these exercises focus on one muscle at a time, they effectively increase the size of muscle fibers, a main goal of all bodybuilders," says Martinez. Not to mention, if you're new to strength training, these simpler exercises will help you move safely and injury-free.

If you're doing 8-12 reps of each exercise, you should only be working at about 60-70 percent of your 1RM (one rep maximum), says Martinez.

"Lifting closer to 100 percent of your 1RM is more efficient at building strength and power, but bodybuilders more often focus on muscle size," she explains. "To induce hypertrophy - also known as an increase in muscle size - it is better to train for longer periods of time. This is why bodybuilders often lift less weight for more repetitions."

You can also use supersets in your workout, which simply means performing two exercises in a row that target the same muscle group, often with little or no rest in between. Pace is also important: You want to lift very slowly and in a controlled manner through the entire range of motion, says Martinez. "All of these techniques are efficient at causing muscle fatigue and microtears in the muscle fibers. When the body repairs these microtears at rest, the muscle fibers grow back thicker, resulting in hypertrophy, or an increase in muscle size."

And yes, you have to do cardio. “Cardio is incredibly important!” says Snyder. “This will help reveal the beautiful muscle shape you are creating.” Do 20 minutes of cardio three times a week, recommends Snyder. You can also incorporate HIIT workouts if you're more advanced, says Martinez.

Female bodybuilding diets

"I can't emphasize how important your diet is in supporting your building goals," says Martinez. Yes, you need protein (to build all that new muscle), but healthy fats are also a must (they'll keep you full longer and help you keep your daily calorie intake low) and complex carbohydrates are crucial for fueling your workouts. This is why many female bodybuilders follow an IIFYM or macro counting diet. "This form of diet allows you much more freedom in your food choices, as long as you stick to a certain amount of carbohydrates, fats and proteins," says Snyder.

And that's just the beginning. Here's a complete guide to bodybuilding diet and nutrition, including some more details about how most bodybuilding athletes "bulk" and "cut" to prepare for competition. (And yes, you can follow a vegan bodybuilding diet and lifestyle too.)

Before you sign up for a bodybuilding competition…

There are a lot of bodybuilding organizations out there: The International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness (IFBB), the National Physique Committee (NPC), and the World Natural Bodybuilding Federation (WNBF), to name a few – and they're all a little different. Before you decide to sign up for a bodybuilding competition, consider what genre might be right for you. FYI, they all require you to wear a swimsuit and pose for the judges in order to be scored.

Bikini:This is the most popular female bodybuilding division. It emphasizes a balanced physique with a moderate amount of muscle. They wear a two-piece bikini and pose in front of the judges to be judged.

Figure:When it comes to muscles, the figure category is a step up from the bikini category. You will be judged on muscular balance and symmetry.

Woman's body type:The women's physique section builds even more muscle and gets a more athletic look.

Bodybuilding:This is the most muscular category of bodybuilding for women. (Think: Arnold Schwarzenegger, but female.)

Fitness:This category is also judged based on body type and appearance. But it also includes a fitness program performed to music and includes elements of dance, strength exercises and gymnastics.

How to start bodybuilding for women

Hire a trainer:“One thing you should definitely invest in is a trainer,” says Snyder. However, don't go for just anyone who looks impressive on Instagram: "It's important to do a lot of research so you can find a trainer who can guide you with a good workout and nutrition plan," she explains. “You give them responsibility for your health.”

Track everything:“Make sure you log your workouts so you can strategically increase your weights over time,” says Martinez. It's also very helpful to log your food so you can keep track of your macros and calories. (Some of these food tracking apps can help you monitor all of that in one place while you're trying to become a female bodybuilder.)

Don't ignore machines:“For beginner weightlifters, it can be beneficial to use machines because they keep the body in the right place throughout the exercise,” says Martinez. If you're new to bodybuilding but have a good strength base, go ahead and play with the free weights. "These typically engage more muscles, which help stabilize the body throughout the range of motion of an exercise," says Martinez.

Take your time:If you plan to compete, give yourself plenty of time beforehand to build muscle and prepare. “Everyone is different, but new competitors are typically ready to compete after a 12-week intensive period,” says Snyder. “If you are more consistent with your diet and training even in the off-season, you won’t have to spend as much time preparing.”

Be patient:“There’s a method to bodybuilding,” says Snyder. "It is progressive in nature and requires an individually tailored plan. If implemented correctly, it will protect you [and] be effective and efficient. But increasing the size and strength of your muscles takes time, effort and consistency." Strong biceps and glutes don't grow overnight.

Up the ante further:“Like any other training program, your body will adapt, so it's important to test yourself regularly to make sure you're properly adjusting the weights, reps, and/or the amount of rest between sets as you get stronger to maintain or even increase the intensity of the workout,” says Martinez. (This is a nice little thing called progressive overload training.)