Guide
How to Build Strength for Women Athletes
Strength is the least glamorous and most transferable thing you can train. It shows up as a faster first step, holding your ground on a box-out, and still being upright in the fourth quarter. The programme below is deliberately small — eight movements, three sessions, one rule: something gets harder every week.
The eight lifts that matter
1. Goblet or Back Squat
Knee-dominant
The single biggest driver of first-step power and landing control.
Do: 4 sets of 6, adding 2.5–5 lb per week.
Easier option: Box squat to a bench, or bodyweight squat with a 3-second lower.
2. Romanian Deadlift
Hip hinge
Builds hamstrings and glutes — the brakes that keep knees healthy on deceleration.
Do: 3 sets of 8, slow on the way down.
Easier option: Single-leg RDL holding a wall, or hip hinge with a broomstick for position.
3. Split Squat / Rear-Foot Elevated
Single-leg
Sport happens on one leg. This exposes and fixes side-to-side gaps.
Do: 3 sets of 8 per side.
Easier option: Static lunge with a hand on a rail.
4. Push-Up or Bench Press
Horizontal push
Upper-body strength is how you hold position through contact.
Do: 4 sets of 6–10.
Easier option: Hands elevated on a bench or counter.
5. Row (Dumbbell or Inverted)
Horizontal pull
Balances pressing, protects shoulders, and builds a stable trunk.
Do: 4 sets of 8–10 per side.
Easier option: Inverted row with feet on the floor and hips high.
6. Chin-Up or Lat Pulldown
Vertical pull
Relative strength — the best single indicator of an athletic upper body.
Do: 4 sets to two reps short of failure.
Easier option: Band-assisted chin-up, or 5-second lowering from the top.
7. Loaded Carry
Anti-flexion core
Trains the trunk to stay rigid while the limbs work — exactly like sport.
Do: 4 walks of 30 metres, heavy.
Easier option: Lighter load, longer distance.
8. Hip Thrust
Hip extension
Direct glute strength that carries into sprinting and jumping.
Do: 3 sets of 10 with a 1-second squeeze at the top.
Easier option: Feet-elevated glute bridge on the floor.
How to progress week to week
- Week 1: find a weight where the last rep is hard but clean. Write it down.
- Week 2: same weight, one extra rep per set.
- Week 3: add 2.5–5 lb to lower-body lifts, 2.5 lb to upper-body lifts, reset the reps.
- Week 4: repeat week 3 at reduced sets — this is where the adaptation lands.
- Then start the cycle again from the new, heavier baseline.
A sample training week
| Day | Session |
|---|---|
| Monday | Lower strength: squat, RDL, carry, core |
| Tuesday | Court / conditioning + mobility |
| Wednesday | Upper strength: push-up, row, chin-up, hip thrust |
| Thursday | Active recovery: walk, breathing, mobility |
| Friday | Full-body power: split squat, jumps, presses, carries |
| Saturday | Play or small-sided games |
| Sunday | Rest |
Common mistakes
- Staying at a weight that never gets hard — if you could do five more reps, it is not strength work.
- Changing the programme every week, so nothing ever gets measurably heavier.
- Adding conditioning on top of every lift until recovery collapses.
- Skipping single-leg work, which is where most imbalances and injuries live.
- Under-eating protein and then blaming the programme.
FAQ
- How do women athletes build strength fastest?
- By lifting 2–3 times a week on a handful of compound movements — squat, hinge, push, pull, carry — in the 4–8 rep range, and progressively adding load. Most of the early gain is neural, which is why the first 3–4 weeks feel dramatic.
- Will lifting heavy make me bulky?
- No. Building visible muscle mass requires years of deliberate high-volume training and a calorie surplus. Heavy, low-rep lifting mostly improves how efficiently your nervous system recruits the muscle you already have.
- How many days a week should I strength train?
- Two days builds and maintains strength for most in-season athletes. Three days is optimal in the off-season. More than four rarely adds anything once conditioning and sport practice are accounted for.
- Can I build strength without a gym?
- Yes, for a while. Push-ups, split squats, single-leg RDLs, inverted rows, and slow tempos will build real strength for 8–12 weeks. Once bodyweight sets exceed roughly 15 hard reps, you need external load to keep progressing.
- How long until I see results from strength training?
- Strength on the bar improves within 2–3 weeks. Changes you can feel in sport — first step, holding position, finishing through contact — usually show at 4–6 weeks. Visible body composition change takes 8–12 weeks.
- Should I train differently during my period?
- Train as normal when you feel good, and reduce volume rather than intensity on low-energy days. Keeping the heavy sets and cutting the accessory work preserves your progression while respecting how you feel.
Want it programmed for you?
The Pretty Problem sequences this exact strength work across 21 days alongside basketball drills, mobility and mindset, with a Day 1 and Day 21 baseline so the progress is a number, not a feeling. Day 1 is free.