Rethinking Women’s Fitness
I'm excited to share insights from my deep dive into women's health, fitness, and nutrition research. As I work toward my Menopause Coaching and Nutrition Coach certifications, I've been studying the work of respected experts like Dr. Stacy Sims, Dr. Peter Attia, Dr. Layne Norton, and Dr. Mary Claire Haver. I value these voices because they think critically about research and provide evidence-based information that evolves as science advances.
This exploration has reinforced something crucial: Women have unique physiological needs that deserve specialized attention. The statement "Women are not small men!" from Dr. Sims reminds us that much of the popular fitness advice is based on studies done on men. For women, especially as we approach and enter menopause, our needs deserve thoughtful, specific consideration.
The Challenge of Implementing Fitness Principles
One of the challenges with fitness advice is not that the principles are wrong – it's that implementing all of them simultaneously is virtually impossible. The research tells us we should:
Strength train 3-5 times weekly with appropriate intensity
Perform 150+ minutes of zone 2 cardio
Include high-intensity interval training
Add sprint work and plyometrics
Practice mobility and flexibility training
Allow for adequate recovery between sessions
These are all evidence-based recommendations, but there simply aren't enough days in the week to fit everything in at the frequency and volume suggested. This often leads to an all-or-nothing approach where we either try to do everything (leading to burnout) or feel so overwhelmed that we struggle with consistency.
The key is finding a structured, sustainable approach that incorporates the most important elements while allowing for real-life constraints. This requires intelligent application of training principles rather than rigid adherence to an ideal but impractical program.
Structured Flexibility: My Training Approach
Having lifted weights since my teenage years, I've learned that consistency with the right principles matters more than perfection with the ideal program. Through experimentation and applying research to my own body's responses, I've developed a structured rotation that gives me the benefits of various training modalities without trying to fit everything into every week:
Day 1: Strength Training I focus on compound movements with appropriate resistance, typically including:
A primary barbell exercise (squats, deadlifts, hip thrusts, or bench press)
A unilateral lower body movement (Bulgarian split squats, lunges, or single-leg deadlifts)
Upper body push/pull exercises (rows, assisted pull-ups, push-ups)
Often finishing with bodyweight skill work like handstands or dead hangs
Day 2: Varied Cardio I rotate between:
Zone 2 steady-state work (usually step workouts or rowing)
Sprint intervals with plyometrics (jump training)
Cardio-focused mobility work (movements similar to jiu-jitsu floor practice)
Day 3: Strategic Recovery This includes intentional rest or gentle movement like walking or yoga
I then repeat this pattern, allowing flexibility when needed. Sometimes I take two consecutive rest days when my body signals it needs more recovery or when busy life takes over. I try not to take more than two days off from intentional movement, as I find my body feels best with regular activity balanced with adequate recovery.
This approach provides structure and consistency while acknowledging that some weeks require adaptation. The key is having a default plan while allowing for strategic flexibility when life happens.
Protein: Simplifying Nutrition with Strategic Structure
Just as with exercise, nutrition advice can become overwhelming. We're bombarded with details about what to eat, when to eat, how much to eat, and which foods to avoid entirely. It's enough to make anyone's head spin—and most of it is completely impractical for daily life.
Here again, I've found that focusing on key principles with strategic flexibility works better than trying to follow a perfect nutrition protocol. The single most important nutrition factor I've discovered for women's strength and health is adequate protein intake—about 1 gram per pound of body weight daily. While this might seem high compared to traditional recommendations, research consistently shows it's instrumental for maintaining muscle mass, supporting bone health, and promoting overall wellbeing.
Just as my workout structure provides a default pattern with room for flexibility, my nutrition follows similar principles. I aim to include quality protein at each meal, starting with breakfast—this helps establish stable energy levels and metabolism patterns. Rather than stressing about exact timing, I focus on this protein-throughout-the-day structure while allowing for real-life variations.
For those interested in time-restricted eating, this same balanced approach applies. While some intermittent fasting protocols encourage skipping breakfast, emerging research for women specifically suggests the opposite—that we may benefit more from eating earlier in the day and creating the fasting window in the evening hours. Again, it's about finding the right structure that works with our unique physiology.
Pre- and post-workout nutrition follows this same theme. Dr. Sims' research suggests women benefit from a small pre-workout snack of approximately 15g protein and 30g carbohydrates, with about 30-60g of protein post-workout. These guidelines create a helpful framework, but they're not rigid rules. When life gets busy and I can't perfectly time my meals around workouts, I focus on overall nutrition quality rather than perfect adherence to timing protocols.
Progressive Overload: Structured Intensity for Continued Results
This balanced approach to structure and flexibility extends perfectly to strength training itself. While consistency is non-negotiable for women's health, how we apply intensity can be intelligently varied while still delivering results.
The foundational principle here is progressive overload—gradually increasing the challenge over time. This structure is essential for continued adaptation, but it doesn't mean maximal effort in every session. While 5 lb dumbbells are a great starting point for many women, we need a systematic plan to increase resistance as our strength improves.
Understanding progressive overload has transformed my approach to training. Some cycles, I focus on steadily increasing weight to push my limits—applying disciplined structure to continue making progress. Other periods, I strategically incorporate deloading phases—reducing intensity while maintaining movement patterns—to allow for deeper recovery before the next progression phase.
This is where the idea of structured flexibility really shines. On days when I feel strong and energetic, I push toward my potential with heavier weights. On lower-energy days, rather than skipping workouts entirely, I might reduce the weight but maintain high-quality movement patterns. Both approaches serve my long-term goals when applied intelligently within a consistent framework.
When selecting weights, I aim for a load where I'm leaving only 2-5 reps in reserve at the end of each set—meaning I could do 2-5 more reps with good form before reaching failure. This provides sufficient stimulus for adaptation while allowing appropriate adjustment based on energy levels that day. It's a structured approach that includes room for daily variation.
The importance of this intelligent approach to strength training becomes clear when we consider that sedentary women can lose up to 8% of their strength each decade after turning 30, accelerating after 60. Through properly performed resistance training with progressive overload, we can not only maintain muscle but actively build strength and function throughout our lives.
The good news is that effective strength training doesn't require hours in the gym. Just 20-40 minutes, 2-4 times per week, with appropriate intensity and focus is sufficient. Quality and intelligent progression matter far more than duration—another example of how smart structure trumps excessive volume.
Recovery: The Essential Counterpart to Structure
A structured approach to fitness isn't complete without strategic recovery. In fact, recovery isn't simply "time off"—it's the phase where adaptation actually happens. Just as we need a disciplined approach to training, we need a similarly intentional approach to recovery.
When we train, we create micro-damage to muscle fibers and send signals for adaptation. It's during rest periods that our bodies repair this damage and build back stronger—a process that requires adequate time, nutrition, and sleep to support. Muscle growth occurs during recovery, not during workouts themselves.
This principle profoundly changed how I view my training schedule. Rather than seeing recovery days as "skipping exercise," I now recognize them as an essential component of my fitness structure. They're strategically placed to maximize adaptation from the more intense training days—another example of intelligent programming rather than just cramming in more work.
Without structured recovery, even the most disciplined training approach will eventually lead to:
Diminished results despite increased effort
Elevated cortisol (stress hormone) levels
Increased risk of injury
Disrupted sleep and hormone balance
Compromised immune function
Just as with training and nutrition, recovery benefits from having a default structure with room for flexibility. My approach includes dedicated recovery days in my weekly rotation, but I'll add additional rest when my body signals it needs more time or when life demands make training impractical. This isn't "falling off the wagon"—it's intelligent adaptation of the structure to optimize long-term results.
Cardio Training: Finding Balance Through Experience
Within my structured approach to fitness, my journey with cardiovascular training perfectly illustrates how personal experience and evolving research have shaped my approach to structured flexibility.
My relationship with cardio has a deeper backstory that informs my current approach. In my twenties, I followed the conventional wisdom that "more is better" when it came to cardio. I was running upwards of 25 miles per week, believing that longer, harder cardio sessions were the key to health and fitness. What I ended up with instead was a collection of injuries (hips, knees, shin splints) and metabolic dysfunction. All that intense cardio, performed without adequate recovery or complementary strength work, had taken a serious toll on my body.
This experience made me particularly receptive to new approaches as I continued my health education. I initially encountered Dr. Peter Attia's recommendations emphasizing zone 2 training—steady-state cardio performed at an intensity where you can still comfortably hold a conversation. This approach is excellent for building mitochondrial density and efficiency, enhancing fat utilization, and improving cardiovascular health without the stress and injury risks of my previous high-volume running.
Then I discovered Dr. Sims' research emphasizing the specific benefits of sprint intervals and plyometrics for women. Intrigued by this women-specific approach, I shifted away from zone 2 entirely to focus on these high-intensity, short-duration sessions—10-30 seconds of maximal effort followed by 1-5 minutes of recovery.
The science behind sprint work is compelling: short, intense bursts with adequate recovery appear to support women's hormonal health differently than extended moderate-intensity exercise. Dr. Sims notes that lengthy cardio sessions (60+ minutes at moderate intensity) can trigger a stress response in women that increases cortisol production, potentially disrupting estrogen, progesterone, and thyroid hormones. This can lead to a "wired but tired" state—elevated stress hormones paired with depleted energy—something I had experienced firsthand in my high-mileage running days without having the language to describe it.
What I've arrived at through experience and continued learning is a more balanced approach that incorporates elements from both methodologies. I've gradually reintroduced zone 2 training alongside sprint work, recognizing that each offers unique benefits that complement rather than contradict each other. This balanced approach is worlds apart from my earlier all-or-nothing cardio mindset.
My cardio days now rotate between:
Zone 2 sessions (usually on a step platform or rower) for mitochondrial health and cardiovascular efficiency
Sprint intervals with plyometrics for power, bone health, and metabolic conditioning
High-intensity mobility work that resembles jiu-jitsu floor movements, which I perform in an interval style for both cardiovascular challenge and movement skill development (this is distinct from the gentle, nourishing mobility I do on recovery days)
Each approach involves its own form of intelligent progression within structure. With zone 2 training, the structure comes from maintaining the appropriate intensity (challenging but conversational) and gradually extending duration. For sprint intervals and plyometrics, structure involves starting where you are and progressively intensifying—perhaps beginning with simple step-ups before advancing to more demanding variations.
The key insight from this journey has been recognizing that these aren't competing approaches but complementary tools in a well-designed program. By structuring my week to include both intensity styles, I get the unique benefits each offers while avoiding the potential downsides of overemphasizing either one. This balanced approach, developed through experimentation and adjustment, has proven more sustainable and effective than rigidly adhering to a single methodology—another example of how intelligent structure allows for evolution and refinement over time.
Embracing Intelligent Structure
The theme throughout all these elements—training frequency, nutrition, progressive overload, recovery, and training modalities—is finding the right balance between consistent structure and strategic flexibility. This approach allows us to maintain discipline without rigidity and flexibility without inconsistency.
Some seasons call for more intense training, others for more recovery. Some days you'll feel powerful and capable of pushing limits, other days success means simply showing up and moving with intention at a lower intensity. A sustainable approach acknowledges these variations while maintaining core principles.
The most empowering realization? Fitness isn't about shrinking ourselves or following rigid rules perfectly. It's about building strength, capability, and resilience through intelligent application of training principles. Our worth isn't tied to how strictly we follow fitness "rules" but to the consistency and intention we bring to caring for our bodies.
This approach to women's fitness—one that honors both structure and flexibility—allows us to build sustainable practices that support our health for the long term. As we navigate busy lives with many demands, this balanced perspective helps us maintain consistency without burning out.
I'm continually learning and evolving in my understanding of women's health and fitness. The approaches I've shared represent current best practices based on scientific evidence, but I'm always open to adjusting as new research emerges. My commitment is to continue sharing what I learn along the way, as we all navigate this journey of women's health together.