Monday
Full body
- Wide Seated Leg PressQuads
- Smith Machine Chest PressChest
- Seated Underhand Wide Cable Bar RowUpper Back
- Seated Machine Shoulder PressShoulders
- Ab CrunchAbs
- Cross TrainerCardio
Here's an honest gym workout plan for women who are new to lifting: three full body sessions a week for 8 weeks, on machines that are easy to learn, with a little core work and some easy cardio at the end. It builds muscle the same way it does for anyone, by asking a little more of you every week.
In the app: this program as your plan. The week, its workouts and the next one to start.
- Days a week
- 3
- Level
- Beginner
- Length
- 8 weeks
- Session in week 1
- 36 min
- Equipment
- Full gym
- Goal
- Build muscle
Week 1, day by day
Every exercise of the first week, in the order you do them. Sets × reps, and the rest is the pause after each set.
The weights next to the exercises are an example for one woman: 27 years old, 62 kg, 166 cm, new to the gym. The exercises, sets and rest are the same as in the beginner full body plan; only the starting weights come from the women's table. Yours start from your own body and then follow what you log.
Week 1 is a practice week. It teaches the movements, so the same 4 base lifts open every session and only the core and cardio change. From week 2 the lifts start to change, and by week 3 each day has its own main lifts.
Wednesday
Full body
- Wide Seated Leg PressQuads
- Smith Machine Chest PressChest
- Seated Underhand Wide Cable Bar RowUpper Back
- Seated Machine Shoulder PressShoulders
- Toe Touch CrunchAbs
- Incline Treadmill WalkingCardio
Friday
Full body
- Wide Seated Leg PressQuads
- Smith Machine Chest PressChest
- Seated Underhand Wide Cable Bar RowUpper Back
- Seated Machine Shoulder PressShoulders
- Weighted Russian Twists EasyAbs
- Treadmill WalkingCardio
Built by the Coach.AI engine, version 55da4102.
Coach.AI
This is how the program looks in the app
Real screens from Coach.AI with this program in week 1: the overview of every workout, with each exercise, its sets, reps and rest.
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01 Day 1 · Full body
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02 Day 2 · Full body
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03 Day 3 · Full body
Scroll inside the screen to see the whole workout
The first week of your .AI plan is free.
How the program moves on
Here is week 1 next to the weeks after it, from the same run of the engine. Each cell is sets × reps.
- Wide Seated Leg Press, a main lift: 2 × 10 in week 1, 3 × 8 in week 2 and 3 × 10 in week 4. Fewer reps per set leave room for a heavier weight. How and when to add weight: progressive overload, explained.
- Working sets in the whole week: 30 in week 1, 44 in week 2 and 51 in week 4.
- The cardio that closes the first session of the week: 10 min in week 1, 11 min in week 2, 12 min in week 3 and 13 min in week 4.
- Week 4 keeps every exercise you start with in week 1. New exercises that join: 10.
- From week 3, some smaller exercises are done in pairs, one straight after the other.
- This program has no planned lighter week.
- Week 8 ends with a test day on Friday. It measures:
- Wide Seated Leg Press: one set, as many clean reps as you can with the weight you trained with
- Chest Press Machine Plate Loaded: one set, as many clean reps as you can with the weight you trained with
- Dumbbell Hammer Grip Row: one set, as many clean reps as you can with the weight you trained with
- Weeks 5-7 aren't shown here. In the app each of them is built from the sets you logged the week before.
| Main lift | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wide Seated Leg Press | 2 × 10 | 3 × 8 | 3 × 6 | 3 × 10 |
| Working sets in the week | 30 | 44 | 51 | 51 |
Working sets in every week shown
- Week 130
- Week 244
- Week 351
- Week 451
- Week 830test day
What comes after 8 weeks?
The last week closes with a test day: the same exercises, and you see in kilos and reps how much you added. Then the app opens the next program with one tap. It starts a little below where you finished, takes the weights you logged and carries on, so you never start from zero.
Beginner has three stages: Learning the moves, Adding weight and Getting ready for Skilled. Each program you train through without long breaks takes you up a stage. When the coach sees you’re ready for more, it offers you the next level, and whether to take it is up to you.
Who it's for
It's for you if you're new to the gym, or back after a long break, and you want to know exactly what to do on each machine instead of wandering between them. A session in week 1 takes 36 min. A women's plan doesn't need different exercises: what changes is the weight you start with, and in the app, how the plan treats the days of your cycle.
When another program fits better
If you mainly want to lose weight, the weight loss plan keeps the strength work and adds more cardio. Training at home with dumbbells? There's a plan for that too.
Still choosing between full body and a split? Here’s how to pick for your week.
Worth reading before you start
Questions people ask
Should women train differently from men?
Not in the exercises. Women build muscle in response to the same work, so this week is the same plan the app builds for a man at the same level, with lighter starting weights. What can differ is how a session feels on the days of your period, and that's what the cycle setting in the app is for.
Will lifting weights make me bulky?
Building noticeable muscle takes years of heavy, deliberate training and a lot of food. In the first months you'll mostly get stronger, firmer and better at the moves. The plan adds weight in small steps, so you're in control of how far you take it.
How does the app take my cycle into account?
If you turn it on, you give the first day of your last period and your usual cycle length once. On period days, or any day you mark as uncomfortable, the session is a few percent lighter with a little more rest, the lifts that tend to hurt on those days are swapped and there's one exercise fewer. If you say you feel fine, nothing changes. This stays on your phone.
How do I pick a weight for week 1?
Pick a weight you could lift for two or three more reps than the card asks for. The first week is for learning the movements and finding your numbers, not for testing yourself. If you know a recent set on a lift, the 1RM calculator turns it into a working weight for any number of reps.
What if I miss a day?
Do the next session when you can and keep the order. Don't squeeze two sessions into one day to catch up. In the app the rest of your week moves to the days ahead.
Can I do this program at home?
This week is built for a full gym: machines, cables and free weights. With dumbbells at home, or with no equipment at all, the exercises would be different. In the app you tell it what you have, and the plan only uses that.
Other programs
All programs
Beginner full bodyThree full body sessions on machines that are easy to learn.
Push pull legsPush, pull and legs, one job per session.
Upper lowerTwo upper and two lower days, every muscle twice a week.
5 day splitPush, pull, legs, then upper and lower.
Weight lossStrength work plus more cardio and shorter rests.
Home with dumbbellsDumbbells, a bench and three full body sessions.
Strength, 4 daysHeavy barbell lifts in low reps, four days a week.
2 days a weekFull body first, then an upper and a lower day.
Gym after 40Full body three times a week, with more rest.
Coach.AI
Get this week fitted to you
This is the week Coach.AI builds for a typical person with this profile (Beginner, Build muscle, 3 days, Full gym, age 27). In the app it's fitted to your own goal, days, equipment and age, and to the sets you log: each next week is built from what you logged in the one before.
The first week of your .AI plan is free.
