Last Updated on November 7, 2022 by
Gaining weight is not easy. It takes time, patience and right approach. If you are thinking a medicine or an equipment to put on the extra weight, you are absolutely wrong. You need to follow some natural methods that will definitely help you put on some weight from your body. Weight gain is crucial for any girl who wishes to look great. There are many gym and workouts that result in weight loss but girls want to gain weight and this is why I will let you know about the certain things that can be used for gaining mass.
Women usually can’t bulk up like their male counterparts. The reason is simple: women are more complicated creatures. Unlike men, women require special programs to fuel muscle and strength gains. If you want to know more about Ladies Gym For Weight Gain, make sure you read this article.
Ladies Gym For Weight Gain

As a female who loves to eat and lift weights, the benefits of building muscle mass for women is one of my favorite topics to talk about. But I can also tell you from experience that there’s a right and wrong way to gain weight if you’re looking to add muscle.
So how should females eat and train if they’re looking to build muscle? If you’re a female who’s trying to bulk, you’ll need to eat in a caloric surplus and increase your daily calorie intake by about 10%. You’ll also want to strength train at least four to five days per week, follow the recommended set and rep ranges for hypertrophy training, and limit the amount of cardio you do.
In this article, I’ll discuss the definition of bulking, why women should consider bulking, whether or not it’s easy for women to build muscle, and how to know if you should bulk.
I’ll also show you how to calculate your calorie needs for a bulking phase and discuss the ideal ways to work out when you’re bulking. At the end, I’ll provide a sample bulking workout plan for women.
What Does It Mean to Bulk?
When you bulk, it means you’re intentionally trying to gain weight. Most often, the goal with a bulk is to put on more muscle mass.
In order to bulk, you need to eat in a calorie surplus. You may think this means you can eat whatever you want, but that’s not exactly true. Even when you’re trying to gain weight, food quality is important, especially if you’re a competitive athlete and/or you’re trying to minimize fat gain, which I’ll discuss later in this article.
Why Should Females Build Muscle?

Gaining weight intentionally is a hard concept for many women to wrap their heads around. We’re frequently bombarded with messages about shrinking our bodies and trying to fit into smaller sizes, and we’re particularly vulnerable to body image issues. But there are several reasons why it’s beneficial for women to build muscle.
1. It’s better than cardio for changing your body composition
If you want to improve your body composition, doing hours of cardio won’t give you the aesthetic results you want. In order to be able to see muscle definition, you have to actually build muscle, and that’s achieved by lifting weights, eating enough protein, and keeping the rest of your nutrition in check.
2. It makes daily activities and other forms of exercise easier
Building muscle makes you stronger, which makes things like carrying groceries, picking up your child, or moving heavy furniture by yourself much easier. It also helps boost your muscular endurance and strengthens your bones, ligaments, and tissues, which can enhance your performance in the gym and help prevent injuries.
3. It boosts your metabolism
Building muscle increases your resting metabolic rate so you burn more calories even if you’re just laying in bed. This means you can also eat more food without gaining weight — though you still have to be mindful of how many calories you’re eating on a daily basis.
4. It can help prevent diseases and metabolic conditions
Studies have shown that individuals with a lot of lean muscle mass have lower risks of developing heart disease, osteoporosis, and other chronic conditions.
And for people who have type 2 diabetes, strength training can improve glycemic control and help prevent sarcopenia, or the loss of skeletal muscle mass.
Is It Easy for Females to Build Muscle?

While perceptions are changing, the belief that women will become too bulky from lifting weights is still rampant. But it’s actually difficult for women to build muscle because they don’t have enough testosterone, the hormone that promotes increased muscle strength and muscle mass.
Lifting weights does help increase testosterone levels in women, but they’ll still be nowhere near the amounts of testosterone that men have. As such, the hormone’s effects on muscle and strength gains aren’t quite as prevalent in females.
Being on hormonal birth control or having conditions such as polycystic ovary syndrome can also make it harder for women to build muscle.
That’s not to say it’s impossible for women to build muscle. It just means that you have to work harder at it by being more strategic about how you eat and train.
What About Female Bodybuilders?
You may be wondering about women who compete in bodybuilding and why they look as muscular as they do. It’s important to keep in mind that the majority of these women have dedicated their entire lives to eating and training in such a way that results in them looking the way they do.
In many cases, they’re also genetically gifted and/or take steroids or other performance-enhancing drugs to achieve their desired physiques. It’s difficult to look that way just by lifting weights a few days a week and eating an extra 100-200 calories per day.
How To Know If You Should Bulk
You can theoretically bulk any time you want to put on muscle mass, but there are a few criteria you should meet before you enter a dedicated bulking phase.
- Your body fat percentage should be less than 20%. Some fat gain is inevitable even if you follow a correctly-structured muscle-building plan. Trying to bulk when you already have a high body fat percentage can cause you to gain even more fat in the process, which means you’ll have to spend more time in cutting phases later on in order to lose that excess fat.
- You’re “skinny fat.” Being skinny fat means you’re thin or you have an acceptable body weight but you don’t carry a lot of muscle mass. If this sounds like you, you’ll want to spend some time in a bulking period so you can add muscle to your frame. And if you’re skinny fat, it’s likely that you don’t have a lot of experience with strength training, so you’ll be able to build muscle more easily than someone who’s been lifting weights for years.
- You’ve already cycled through multiple cut and maintenance phases. If you’ve been trapped in a seemingly endless cycle of cutting and maintaining your weight, you might want to give bulking a try. It will give your body and mind a much-needed break from the stresses of constantly dieting.
- You’re okay with sacrificing your body composition in order to get stronger. If your main goal is to get stronger and you don’t mind looking or feeling heavier, bulking is a good idea. It’s also a good option for powerlifters or weightlifters who want to move up a weight class in order to stay competitive.
Eating to Gain Weight

As you’ll see, intentionally gaining weight doesn’t necessarily mean that you should eat whatever you want. Focusing on food quality and quantity is just as important during a bulk as it is during a cut.
Figuring Out How Many Calories to Eat When You’re Bulking
Before you determine how many calories you need to eat to gain weight, you first need to know your total daily energy expenditure (TDEE).
Your TDEE is the number of calories you burn each day. Some people also refer to this as maintenance calories, or the number of calories you can eat each day without changing your weight. You’ll need to know this number because you’ll use it to determine how many extra calories you have to eat to gain weight.
You can use an online calculator like this one to determine your TDEE. However, it’s important to keep in mind that the results you get from calculators like these are just a starting point, and your actual TDEE may be higher or lower.
Before you start your bulking phase, you should spend at least two weeks eating according to your TDEE results to see how it affects your weight. If you’ve lost weight, your TDEE is likely higher, but if you’ve gained weight, your TDEE may actually be lower. You’ll then have to adjust your calorie intake higher or lower until you’ve reached a maintenance point.
Once you’ve established your TDEE, you can determine how many calories you should eat each day to gain weight. In general, you’ll want to start by increasing your calories by about 10%. So if your maintenance calories are 2,600, you can start your bulk by eating an extra 260 calories per day.
And if you haven’t already been doing so, you’ll also need to measure your food and track it in a calorie tracker like MyFitnessPal or Cronometer to ensure you’re eating enough each day.
Protein, Carbohydrate, and Fat Breakdown for a Female Bulking Diet
In addition to monitoring your overall caloric intake, it’s important to track your macros as well. Getting enough of each macro will make your bulk more successful by ensuring you’re fueling your body properly with the right amount of protein, carbs, and fats.
Protein
Protein is essential for building and maintaining muscle mass, especially for women who strength train.
If you lift weights and you’re trying to bulk, you should eat 0.8-1.2g of protein per pound of body weight per day. For a 150lb female, this would be anywhere from 120-180g of protein per day.
The protein needs for women with lower activity levels will be at the lower end of that range while those for women who are highly active will be at the higher end.
Carbohydrates
Carbs provide the energy your body needs to get you through a tough workout and help the major organs in your body function properly. They’re also necessary for recovery and help replenish the glycogen stores that you lose during a workout.
Females who are bulking should aim for about 2-2.5g of carbs per body weight per day. Using our example of a 150lb woman, this would equal 300-375g of carbs each day.
Fats
Fats are essential for hormone regulation, vitamin absorption, and satiety. Because fatty sources of food are calorie-dense, including enough of them in a bulking diet is an excellent way to easily meet your calorie needs.
A female in a bulking phase should eat anywhere from 0.5-1g of fat per kilogram of body weight per day. So our 150lb (68kg) female should aim for 34-68g of fat per day.
Differences Between A Clean Bulk and A Dirty Bulk

While increasing your calories may sound fun, you shouldn’t fall into the trap of eating whatever you want. This is commonly referred to as a dirty bulk — in other words, you eat large quantities of junky, high-calorie foods to put on weight as quickly as possible.
The problem with following a dirty bulk and gaining weight too quickly is that the weight you gain is more likely to be fat instead of muscle. This can have negative effects on your health and, as I mentioned earlier, make it more difficult to lose that excess fat in the future.
A clean bulk is a much more reasonable way to add muscle mass. When you’re following a dirty bulk, you can still eat high-calorie foods on occasion. However, you should prioritize more nutritious foods like chicken, rice, vegetables, oatmeal, eggs, olive oil, and nuts. You’ll just eat higher quantities of them in order to maintain a calorie surplus.
What Supplements Should You Take During a Bulking Phase?
The fitness industry is fraught with supplements. But even if you’re trying to gain weight, you really don’t need many and should instead get as many calories as possible from real food sources.
That said, some supplements are worth taking not necessarily because they can aid in your weight gain but because they can boost your performance in the gym, which will make it easier for you to continue strength training consistently.
1. Creatine
Creatine is a substance that’s found naturally in your body and is produced by the amino acids glycine and arginine. The majority of the creatine that your body produces is phosphocreatine, which recycles a compound called adenosine triphosphate (ATP) that’s responsible for providing energy to your cells.
It’s recommended to consume at least 5g of creatine per day. You can get creatine from eating meat and seafood, but you’d need to eat a huge quantity of both to reach that recommended amount.
When supplementing with creatine, you should look for creatine monohydrate, the purest form of creatine and the one that’s most frequently researched. Some studies suggest that taking creatine immediately after working out is best, but you can take it at any time of the day.
2. Protein powder
Women who strength train already have higher protein needs than sedentary women, and trying to meet your daily protein goals when you’re bulking can be difficult if you’re relying solely on egg whites, Greek yogurt, or chicken. A high-quality whey protein powder can help you fill the gaps by providing anywhere from 20-30g of protein per serving.
Protein powder is most often found in the forms of whey protein and casein protein. Whey protein is a quicker digesting protein that’s best when taken before, during, or immediately after a workout. Casein is slow digesting and is best for when you won’t be able to eat for a while, such as right before you go to bed.
Whey and casein protein powders are usually sold separately, but some brands sell whey and casein blends so you can get the best of both worlds. Some protein powders are also considered mass gainers because they have a high amount of carbs and more calories, which can be useful if you’re struggling to gain weight.
If you can’t eat dairy, there are also many dairy-free and vegan protein powders on the market. Collagen is another popular form of protein, but it’s not a complete protein because it doesn’t have a full amino acid profile. You can still supplement with collagen, but you’ll get more bang for your buck by taking whey, casein, or a high-quality vegan protein powder.
3. Caffeine
Whether it’s through multiple cups of coffee, a single dose of a potent pre-workout, or a caffeine pill, caffeine can give you an energy boost that’s necessary for getting through a tough strength training session.
Research suggests that taking anywhere from 2-6mg per kilogram of body weight 30-60 minutes before exercise can yield the greatest results.
What about BCAAs?
Branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) are a bit of a controversial subject in the fitness industry. Some people swear by them because of their purported effects on recovery and their ability to reduce muscle soreness, but research supporting these claims is limited.
The three amino acids that comprise BCAAs — leucine, isoleucine, and valine — aren’t naturally occurring in the body, which is why people turn to BCAA supplements. But you can get an adequate amount of BCAAs from foods such as chicken and tuna, so supplementation isn’t necessary for most people.
Training to Gain Weight

It may sound obvious that lifting weights is the best way to build muscle. However, there are still several things to keep in mind when training during a bulking cycle so you can maximize your muscle gains.
Should You Train for Hypertrophy or Strength During a Bulking Phase?
When you’re trying to add muscle mass, you should train for hypertrophy. This means you should aim for three to five sets of eight to 12 reps. By keeping your reps in these higher ranges, you’ll only be able to lift at moderate percentages. This will allow you to do enough volume to induce the muscle damage needed for your muscles to grow bigger.
Furthermore, while you can and should include compound movements in a bulking plan, you should also include a lot of isolation exercises. As the name suggests, isolation exercises isolate specific muscle groups, which can help you develop the well-rounded physique you’re likely looking to achieve from your bulking phase.
How Often Should You Train During a Bulk?
While it’s possible to build some muscle by lifting weights only one, two, or three days per week, to maximize your growth potential, you’ll want to train four to five days per week.
In order for your muscles to grow, it’s recommended to do anywhere from 5-20 sets per muscle group per week depending on your experience level and which body part you’re training.
At the higher end of this range, it’s impossible to do all of those sets within one session. Spreading your training out over four or five days per week will allow you to split those sets up into multiple sessions so you don’t have to spend hours in the gym and you can recover properly between workouts.
Should You Do Cardio When You’re Trying to Bulk?
When you’re in a bulking phase, the goals are to gain weight and put on muscle mass. Excessive cardio can be counterproductive to those goals. It can not only prohibit muscle growth but also increases the amount of calories you need to eat to support your activity levels, which can be difficult to sustain when you’re already eating in a surplus.
You can still do some cardio if you enjoy it or you want to maintain cardiovascular health, but you’ll want to cut back on how much you do.
A good rule of thumb is to keep low-intensity cardio sessions to no more than 45 minutes and high-intensity sessions to no more than 20 minutes. I also recommend doing a maximum of three cardio sessions per week during a bulking phase, preferably on non-lifting days.
How Many Rest Days Should You Take When Following a Bulking Plan?
If you’re trying to gain weight, you may be tempted to strength train more often. But lifting weights more frequently can lead to overtraining, which can have an adverse affect on your bulking phase.
Contrary to popular belief, muscle building occurs when your body is at rest, not when you’re training. Taking at least two rest days a week will give your body enough time to recover so your muscles can grow and you can continue training hard every time you go to the gym.
What Is a Good Rate of Weight Gain When Trying to Bulk?

Results from a study published in the Journal of Human Kinetics suggest that you should aim to gain no more than 0.5-1lb/week. This study was done on males, but the same principles can be applied to women.
While you’ll gain more muscle in a shorter amount of time if you follow a more aggressive bulking approach, a higher percentage of the weight you gain will be from fat.
How Much Weight Should Females Expect to Gain from Bulking?
How much weight you gain during your bulking phase is highly individual. Your starting weight, the rate with which you gain weight, and how long your bulking period lasts can all dictate what your ending weight will be.
Going back to our example of a 150lb woman, let’s say her bulk lasted for 12 weeks. Assuming she followed a lean bulk and gained 1lb/week, her ending weight may be around 162lbs. But if she was more conservative and only gained 0.5lbs/week, her ending weight may be closer to 156lbs.
It’s also important to note that this is total weight gain, and some of that is fat. The amount of lean muscle mass you can expect to gain from bulking is closer to 1-2lbs per month. However, this also depends on genetics, how many years of lifting experience you have, other lifestyle habits, and many other factors.
How to Bulk Without Gaining A Lot of Fat
As you build muscle, it’s inevitable that you’ll also gain some fat. But you can minimize your fat gain by not increasing your calories too quickly and continuing to include nutritious foods in your diet.
Other ways you can bulk without gaining a lot of fat include:
- Increasing your calories gradually
- Consistently hitting each of your target macros
- Getting enough sleep and managing stress, which can result in lower cortisol levels and help prevent additional spikes in weight
How Do You Know If You’re Gaining Too Much Fat?
If you’re keeping track of your weight, it’s pretty easy to determine if you’re gaining too much fat. Gaining more than 1lb/week or roughly 1% of your body weight per month can indicate that you’re gaining too much weight too quickly, and chances are that that weight is mostly fat.
If you regularly get your body fat percentage checked via a DEXA scan or by measuring it on an InBody scale, you’ll notice that the amount of fat you’ve gained in a month is more than 1% of your total body weight.
Taking weekly progress pictures can also indicate whether you’re gaining too much fat. If you notice that your muscles appear harder and more defined, it’s a good sign that you’re gaining more muscle than fat. But if you look fluffier and more bloated, you’re likely gaining too much fat.
What To Do If You’re Gaining Too Much Fat
Gaining too much fat during a bulk is a common mistake, but you can nip it in the bud before it gets out of control by:
- Decreasing your daily calories so you’re not in as much of a surplus
- Eating in a calorie surplus on the days you work out and eating at maintenance calories on your rest days
- Increasing your sets, reps, and/or the amount of weight you’re lifting to stimulate more of a muscle-building response
- Not skipping your strength training sessions
- Incorporating small amounts of cardio if you’re currently not doing any
- Cutting back on the amount of cheat meals you may be eating each week
How Long Should You Follow A Bulking Plan?
The length of your bulking period will depend on your goals and how happy you are with your results. For best results, you should bulk for at least eight weeks, although many people choose to bulk for 12 or 16 weeks in total.
If you’re satisfied with how you look, you’re still performing well in the gym, and you’re gaining weight at a reasonable pace, you can even stay in a bulking phase for longer than 16 weeks. But the longer you bulk, the more fat you’ll gain, which means you’ll have more to lose if/when you decide to do a cut in the future.
What to Do After Your Bulking Phase Ends
While you can immediately start a cutting phase after a bulk, it’s not ideal because it will be harder to retain all of the muscle you’ve just gained. Instead, it’s best to spend a few weeks in a maintenance phase.
This gives your body ample time to settle into its new weight while also allowing your metabolism to adjust to a new level of daily maintenance calories before you start eating in a calorie deficit again.
And though it may not seem like it, gaining weight can be a huge stressor on your body, especially when you’ve also been lifting weights frequently. Going into a maintenance phase after a bulk gives your body a break from that stress so that it’s better primed to lose fat when you enter your next cutting phase.
It’s also a good idea to adjust your training to focus more on strength than hypertrophy for a few weeks. Your body accumulates a lot of fatigue and adapts to high training volumes during a bulk. Focusing on lower reps at higher weights will allow you to put your newly-earned muscle to good use and test your new strength levels.
A good rule of thumb is to maintain your weight and follow a strength block for at least six to eight weeks before you transition into a fat loss phase. But if you’re happy with your weight and the progress you’ve been making in the gym, you can also spend an indefinite amount of time in your maintenance phase.
Sample Bulking Workout Plan for Females

The sample workout below is focused on hypertrophy and includes both compound and isolation movements. It’s intended to be done four days per week.
Since this plan is an upper/lower split, you can do the workouts on back-to-back days, but I recommend not doing all four days in a row.
Upper Body Day 1
- Bench press – 3 x 8-10
- Bentover rows – 3 x 8-10
- Seated dumbbell shoulder press – 4 x 10-12
- Lateral raises – 4 x 10-12
- Barbell bicep curls – 4 x 12-15
- Overhead tricep extensions – 4 x 12-15
Lower Body/Core Day 1
- Squats – 3 x 8-10
- Glute bridges – 3 x 8-10
- Walking lunges – 3 x 8-10 per leg
- Leg extensions – 4 x 10-12
- Hamstring curls – 4 x 12-15
- Weighted situps – 4 x 12-15
Upper Body Day 2
- Overhead press – 3 x 8-10
- Pullups – 3 x 8-10
- Dumbbell incline bench press – 4 x 8-12
- Single-arm dumbbell row – 4 x 8-12
- Spider curls – 4 x 12-15
- Skull crushers – 4 x 12-15
Lower Body/Core Day 2
- Straight-leg deadlifts – 3 x 8-10
- Hack squats – 3 x 8-10
- Good mornings – 3 x 8-10
- Bulgarian split squats – 4 x 10-12 per leg
- Hanging knee raises – 4 x 10-12
- Calf raises – 4 x 12-15
20 Exercises To Gain Weight For Females

If you’re a female and trying to gain weight through workouts, then this article is for you. In this article, I’ve shared the 20 best exercises that will help females to gain weight and strengthen muscles. It also included a PDF of a gym workout plan to gain weight for females.
However these exercises are for all fitness levels, whether you’re a male or female, beginner or intermediate, you can do these gym workouts to gain weight and build muscles.
Gaining weight doesn’t mean gaining fat, both are different from one another. Exercises will help you develop muscles mass and that will help you increase weight.
But, if you think you can gain weight without managing your diet, then it’s next to impossible.
Diet plays a primary role in managing weight. Generally, to gain weight, you’ll need to be in a calorie surplus, meaning you’ll have to eat more calories than your body burns throughout the day. You can see a list of foods that can help you gain weight and include them in your daily diet.
You’re underweight because you haven’t fed your body properly. But when you work out you must take care of your nutrition.
For example, you’ll have to include protein, carbs, fats, and other nutrients in a way that can recover your muscles after a workout, increase mass and help you gain weight.
How Much Weight Should You Gain?
If you want to know how much weight you should gain, then first you have to check your body mass index (BMI). Once you get your BMI, you’ll get an idea of how much weight you can increase.
You can check your BMI online using a BMI calculator.
Generally, people with under 18.5 BMI are considered as underweight; 18.5 to 24.9 BMI is considered as normal weight, and 25–29.9 BMI comes in the overweight category. People with more than 30 BMI go under the obesity category.
Do Workouts Make Female Gain Weight?
Here workouts mean “weight lifting”. I’ll speak about lifting weight because in this post I’ve shared gym workouts for weight gain for females. And the gym workout usually means weight training or lifting weight.
If you’re underweight and want to increase weight, workouts may help you.
You will gain weight from lean muscle mass that you add by building your muscles with weightlifting – suggested by an article published on Health Clevel and Clinic.
However, lifting weight doesn’t make you bulky. Because women have a lower level of Testosterone Hormone which is responsible for muscle growth.
Okay so let’s find out which gym workout you can do and how to do those workouts to gain weight for females.
Exercises To Gain Weight Fast For Females
You’ll see the 12 exercises for the upper body; 6 workouts for the lower body and the 2 exercises for the core. Doing them all will help you build muscle, strengthen bone, and improve your body composition.
Here’s the quick list of gym workouts to gain weight for females
- Bench Press
- Incline Dumbbell Press
- Overhead Press
- Dumbbell Lateral Raise
- Tricep Dips
- Rope Pushdown
- Bent over row
- Renegade Row
- Dumbbell Rowing
- Cable Rowing
- Front Lat Pulldown
- Cable Bicep Curl
- Squat
- Deadlift
- Leg Press
- Lunges
- Barbell Hip Thrust
- Hamstring Curl
- Forearm Plank
- Side Plank
Upper Body Workouts To Gain Weight And Muscle For Females
I haven’t included pushups in this list but you should do; Because push-ups are also helpful in muscles gain and the best thing is that you can do pushups anywhere anytime. So, apart from pushups, here we take a look at the 7 exercises that help you gain upper body muscles.
1. Bench Press
The Bench Press is a must-do exercise for muscle gain whether you’re a beginner, intermediate or advanced.
This helps you build shoulder, triceps, and especially chest muscles.
It strengthens muscles, increases pushing strength, and promotes bone health.
There are two ways you can do the barbell bench press; first, with the help of the smith machine and the second is the free weight.
If you’re a beginner, you should do it on a smith machine because it will help you control your movement and give more perfection to your workout.
While the free weight bench press allows you to target your pecs more precisely.
A bench press workout is great for weight gain for underweight females and males.
How to Smith Machine Bench press
- Place a flat bench under the smith machine, set the bar in the rack according to your comfort, and put the desired weight.
- Lay down on the bench on your back, grab the bar with an underhand grip with your elbows bend and palms are facing upward.
- Keep your feet flat on the ground. That’s the starting position.
- Keep your abdoinal muscles tight, inhale and slowly press the bar upward until your arms are fully straight and then exhale.
- Pause for a moment at the top and then return to the starting position. That’s one rep!
- Do the three sets of 10-12 reps each with a couple of minutes rest between the sets.
2. Incline Dumbbell Press
The Incline Dumbbell Bench Press targets the shoulder, arms, and especially the upper part of the chest.
With the dumbbells, you can specifically focus on the muscles you want; because the dumbbells allow a full range of motion.
There are three variations of the dumbbell bench press; flat, incline, and decline. If you do the flat bench press, then doing an incline dumbbell press helps you build a defined breast.
So you can incorporate this exercise into a female gym workout plan.
How to Incline Dumbbell Bench Press
Step 1: Lie down on an incline bench (30-degree), holding a pair of dumbbells with your hands wider than shoulder-width. Hold the dumbbells at your sides at chest level. Keep your feet flat on the ground.
Step 2: Brace your core, inhale and start pressing the weight upward until your arms being fully extended. Hold a second at the top and return your arms to the starting position, then exhale. That’s one rep.
Recommended Sets and Reps: 10*3
3. The Overhead Press
The overhead shoulder is one of the best exercises for the upper body muscles gain.
The overhead press increases the strength and the size of the shoulder muscles.

Your core and tricep also engage during the overhead press.
It has different variations as well, such as standing overhead press, seated overhead press; smith machine overhead press; front overhead press, and back overhead press.
However, the front overhead press is considered the most effective one.
How To Overhead Shoulder Press (Sitting)
Step 1: Sit on a bench with back support; holding a barbell with your hands wider than shoulder-width at your shoulder height.
Keep your elbows bend at your sides and hold the barbell close to your shoulder.
Step 2: Keep your back straight and chest up and start raising the barbell over your head until your arms being fully straight. Hold for a moment at the top and lower the weight back to the initial position. That’s one rep! Recommended Sets and Reps: 10*3
4. Dumbbell Lateral Raise
The lateral dumbbell raises work on your lateral delts and helps you strengthen and build shoulder muscles.
How to do dumbbell lateral raise
- Holding one dumbbell in each hand stand upright in the shoulder-width stance.
- Keep your arms straight at your sides with your palms are facing your body. That’s the start.
- Now, raise the dumbbells out to the sides until arms are parallel to the floor.
- Pause for a second then return lower the dumbbell to the start. That’s one rep!
- Do 3 sets of 10 reps each with 2-3 minutes rest between the sets.
- You can also do this movement while sitting on a bench.
- Perform each rep slowly and in controlled fashion without keeping your body lose during the entire movement.
5. Tricep Dips
The triceps dip is one of the best bodyweight workouts you can do to strengthen your arms, especially the rear part.
To do triceps dip, you only need a bench, chair, or box.
How to do Tricep dip:
- Sit on the edge of a flat bench with your arms are straight beside your hips and feet flat on the ground.
- Firmly grip the edge of the bench with your palms are facing down.
- Spread your legs in front of you, heels touching the ground, and toes pointing toward the ceiling. That’s the start.
- Bend your elbows and lower your body as deep as you can. And then press back until your arms are fully straight. That’s one rep.
- Make sure your elbows tucked at your sides so that they don’t flare outward.
- Focus on squeezing your triceps during the entire movement.
- Do 3 sets of 10-12 reps each with 2-3 minutes rest between the sets.
6. Rope Pushdown
The rope pushdown can help you develop and strengthen your triceps.
You can also do pushdown exercises with a straight bar, EZ bar, or triangle bar.
How to do rope pushdown
- Set the rope to the higher section of the cable machine.
- Set the desired weight according to your strength.
- Grab the rope firmly and stand upright in the shoulder-width stance.
- Slightly lean your torso forward, and hold the rope at your chest level. That’s the start.
- Now, squeezing your triceps muscle, push the rope down until your arms are fully straight.
- Hold for a moment and then return your arms to the start. That’s one rep.
- You can do 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps each with 2-3 minutes rest.
7. Bent Over Row
The bent-over row is a must-do exercise for the upper body muscles gain. It works on the shoulders, arms, hips, and especially the back.
The bent-over row has different forms and variations such as barbell bent-over row, dumbbell bent-over row; wide grip and short grip barbell bent-over row, etc.
It can be one of the important gym exercises to gain weight for females.
How to do Barbell bent-over row
Step 1: Stand with your feet hip-width apart, holding a barbell with your hands a bit wider than shoulder-width with an underhand grip. Slightly bent your knees and let the bar hangs below your chest by extending your arms. That’s the starting position.
Step 2: Keep your back straight, chest up and brace your core; start raising the bar upward until it touches your abdomen. Hold for a second and then lower the bar to the starting position. That’s one rep! Recommended Sets and Reps: 10*3
8. Renegade Row
The Renegade Row is a compound exercise that works on the chest, triceps, back, and shoulders simultaneously.
It helps you increase strength, gain, balance, and improve overall body posture.
Incorporating renegade row exercise may help females gain weight and build muscle.
How to do Renegade Row
Step 1: Be in the push-up position with the dumbbells in your hands beneath your shoulders. Keep shoulder-width apart distance between your feet. To start the exercise. do a full push-up. Don’t rotate your hips during the movement.
Step 2: After the push-up, row one dumbbell at your sides towards your hip while pushing the other dumbbell. Slowly lower the dumbbell back to the starting position. Repeat on the opposite side. That’s one rep. Recommended Sets and Reps: 10*3. Perform slowly with lighter weight.
9. Dumbbell Rowing
Dumbbell rowing is a free weight exercise that targets your shoulders, arms, and especially back.
This will help you build a strong back and better posture.
To perform the dumbbell rowing you need a bench and dumbells. You can do both incline and flat dumbbell rowing exercises because both are good for muscle and weight gain in females.
How to One-arm Dumbbell rowing (flat)
Step 1: Grab a dumbbell in any of your hands; place your other side’s knee and hand on a flat bench. Keep your other feet on the ground.
Hang your arm extended below your shoulder. That’s your starting position.
Step 2: Start rowing the dumbbell out to the side until being reached at abdomen level. Hold for a second, then slowly lower the dumbbells to the starting position. That’s one rep! Recommended Sets and Reps: 10*3.
10. Cable Rowing
The cable rowing especially works on the back. It helps you build a defined back and also improves spinal cord bone density.
How to Cable Rowing
Step 1: Set your desired weight on the weight stack and attach the handle to the seated row machine. Position yourself on a flat bench and grasp the handle with a neutral grip your arms fully extended, palms facing each other.
Step 2: Keep your back straight, your feet flat on the ground, and your knees under the pad. Start rowing toward your stomach by pulling your shoulder blades back. Hold for a second and then slowly let the weight return until your arms extended. That’s one rep! Recommended Sets and Reps: 10*3
11. Front Lat Pulldown
The pulldown is a back workout that works primarily on the latissimus dorsi.
Whether you’re a beginner or intermediate, you can include pulldown exercise to build your back muscle.
Strengthening your back also protects you from low back injuries, and improves your posture.

The pull-down has several variations from the short grip and wide grip to overhand and underhand grip to front and rear pulldown. However, the front medium grip lat pulldown is considered the effective than others.
How to do front lat pulldown
- Sit on a bench attach to the lat pull-down machine, place your feet flat on the floor and adjust your knees under the pad.
- Grab the bar firmly with an overhand grip, hands wider than shoulder-width apart and palms facing downward.
- Keep your chest up, abdominal muscles tight and arms fully straight. That’s the start.
- Now, pull the bar down until it comes a few inches off the floor.
- Pause for a couple of second, squeeze your back and then return the bar slowly to the starting position by extending your arms completely. That’s one rep!
- Do 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps each with 2-3 minutes gap between each set.
The pulldown exercises help you gain weight in both males or females.
12. Cable Bicep Curl
The cable biceps curl works on bicep muscles and helps you build strong and toned arms.
- Set the rack to the lower section of the cable machine and attach the bar (straight or EZ).
- Set your desired weight according to your strength.
- Grab the bar firmly with an underhand grip, hands hip width apart.
- Stand straight 10 to 12 inches away from the machine.
- Slightly lean your torso backward, keep your arms straight and elbows tucked at your sides. That’s the start.
- Curl your arms toward your shoulder until you feel the contraction in your bicep muscles.
- Pause for a moment and then extend your arms to return to the start. That’s one rep.
- You can do 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps each with 2-3 minutes rest.
Lower Body Weight Gain Exercises For Females
I’ve shared the 6 best workouts that will help females build strong and amusing lower bodies. The exercises are squat, deadlift, leg press, lunges, hip thrust, and hamstring curl.
These workouts work on the glutes, hamstring, quadriceps, hips, lower back, and calves.
1. Squat
The squat is an important lower-body muscles growth workout. It doesn’t only tone your leg muscles but also helps you get stronger, attractive, and bigger legs.
The squats have different forms such as; bodyweight squats, dumbbell squats, barbell squats, smith machine squats, sumo squats, etc.
How to do a Bodyweight Squat
- Stand with your feet about hip-width apart, keeping your hands behind your head or at chest level.
- Brace your core, push your hips back when bending your knees.
- Make sure chest and shoulders stay upright and back stays straight.
- Get low as down as possible; Hold for a second at the down and then slowly stand straight to the starting position by extending your knees. That’s one rep!
- Recommended Sets and Reps: 10*3. Try focusing on the thigh while getting low.
2. Deadlift
The deadlifts are known as the king of the workout because of their benefits. A conventional deadlift alone targets many muscles at once such as; hamstring, quadriceps, back, arms shoulder, and glutes.
Deadlifts have a myriad of health benefits such as they increase muscle growth; strengthen muscles and joints; increase lifting capacity; enhance endurance, improve heart health and build an overall stronger physique.
The deadlifts are one of those exercises which help females to gain weight gain faster.
How to do Conventional Deadlift
Step 1: Stand with your feet hip-width apart, bend your knees and hips just enough to reach and grab onto the bar. Grip the bar to the shoulder width. Keep your arms straight. Your palms should face your body. Your hand must be equally far from the ends of the barbell.
Step 2: Raise your hips and shoulders at the same range while maintaining a straight back. Keep your core tight during the whole lift. Take a long breath and lift the bar with full strength. Hold for a second and lower the weight back to the return starting position. That’s one rep! Recommended Sets and Reps: 10*3.
You can also do several types of deadlifts with dumbbells.
3. Leg Press
The machine leg press is one of the best exercises for lower body muscles growth. It targets the quadriceps and other muscles of the legs.
The leg press strengthens muscles and joints and helps in muscle growth.
There are two variations of the machine leg press; one is the horizontal leg press machine and the other one is the recline seated 45-degree angle leg press; that can be done by pressing the legs upward in a diagonal direction.
Both are useful for the growth of the quadriceps, hamstrings, and gluteus. It is one of the safest and effective exercises to gain weight for all including females.
How to perform Recline seated 45-degree legs press upward in a diagonal direction
- Sit down on a recline leg press machine with back support.
- Place your feet flat on the footplate about hip-width apart.
- Make sure your legs form an angle of about 90 degrees at the knees and your knees must be in line with your foot.
- Grab the supporting handle (built at the sides of the machine) for the sturdy position. That’s your starting position.
- Brace your core and push the weight away by using your leg’s power; while keeping your heels remain flat on the footplate.
- Hold up there for a second and then slowly return to the beginning. That’s one rep!
- Recommended Sets and Reps: 10*3.
- Make sure your back remains on the pad and you only using legs power to perform this workout.
4. Lunges
The Lunges help you strengthen and build a strong lower body. Studies suggested doing lunges can be useful for improving hamstring strength and running speed.
Whether you’re a beginner or intermediate, you can incorporate lunges in your weight gain workout routine.
How to do Dumbbell walking lunges
Step 1: Stand straight with your feet about shoulder-width; holding a pair of dumbbells at your sides with arms fully extended. Brace your core and take a big step forward with your right leg by bending both knees at 90 degrees and your front thigh is parallel to the floor.
Step 2: Step forward with your other leg to bring both feet together. Hold the dumbbells close to your body. Repeat the movement with your opposite leg by moving forward. Recommended Sets and Reps: 10*3. Keep your chest up, back straight and your core and glutes engaged during the movement.
5. Barbell Hip Thrust On Smith Machine
- Set the bar to an appropriate height and weight according to your strength.
- Attach a thick squat sponge to the centre of the bar and place a bench under it.
- Place your upper back on the bench with your feet flat on the floor in front of you, shoulder-width apart, knees bent to 90 degree so your chest and knees are in line.
- Put a balance pad on your hip for extra safety.
- Grab the bar with an overhand grip, hands slightly wider than shoulder width apart. And the put the bar on your hips. That’s the start.
- Keeping your core tight, thrust the bar upward as high and fast as you can. Once you reach your top, hold for a couple of seconds before lowering your hips to the start.
- Focus on squeezing your glutes during the entire movement.
- Do as many reps and sets as you can.
6. Hamstring Curl
- Sit on the seated leg curl machine with your back rested on back pad.
- Adjust the machine so the back of your lower leg (below your calves) rested on padded lever and your thigh stays under the lap pad.
- Grab the handles firmly and pull the level machine so your hamstrings engaged.
- Once you feel your hamstring contracted fully, return to the start.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
When you don’t have gym access, you can also do hamstring curl with a dumbbell.
Core Strengthing Exerises
Core strength is of utmost importance for the upper body muscles development. A strong core helps you lift more weight and improve your overall performance.
For strengthening the core, there are many exercises such as sit-ups, planks, Russian twists, mountain climbers, etc.
Here are the two important core exercises you can do incorporate into your routine.
1. Forearm Plank
Planks are for all, whether you’re underweight or overweight; male or female; beginner or experienced, planks are for all.
The reason behind is that they are core strengthening exercise and works on several muscles at once such abs, lower back, arms, and hips.
A forearm plank helps you build strong abdominal muscles. It has also several forms but for you, I would recommend forearm plank once or twice a week.
How to perform a forearm plank
Step 1: Get into a pushup position with your forearms flat on the ground beneath your shoulders.
Step 2: Keep your body straight, brace your core and be in the same position for as long as you can.
2. Side Plank
The side plank works more on the side stomach-like obliques and strengthens the oblique.
You can do side plank along with other exercises at least once or twice a weak.
The side plank also helps you tone muscles and build attractive obliques.
How to perform Side Plank
Step 1: Hold your body at your side in a straight position supported by only one arm. Keep your both legs on the side just above the ground
Step 2: Brace your core and keep your body tight and be in the same position for 15 seconds for each side.
Workout Plan To Gain Weight For Females
I’ve created a sample of a 6-day gym workout plan that may help females gain weight
This isn’t a weekly routine, you’ll need to complete the total 6-day routine and then repeat. For example, if you take a rest after every 2 days then on the fourth day you’ll do the workouts of day 3. The rest day depends on you.
Routine Type: Push/Pull/Legs, Duration: 60 Minutes, Rest Between Each Set: 2-3 Minutes
Day 1 (Push Exercises)
Exercise | Reps & Sets |
---|---|
Bench Press | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Incline Dumbbell Press | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Overhead Press | 10 reps x 3 sets |
Lateral Raise | 8 reps x 3 sets |
Pushup | 10 reps x 2 sets |
Rope Pushdown | 10 reps x 3 sets |
Tricep Dips | 10 reps x 3 sets |
Female Gym Workout Plan To Gain Weight
Day 2 (Pull Workout)
Exercise | Reps & Sets |
---|---|
Lat Pulldown | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Barbell Bent Over Row | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Single-arm DB Rowing | 10 reps x 3 sets |
Seated Cable Rowing | 10 reps x 3 sets |
Cable Bicep Curl | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Preacher Curl | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Wrist Curl | 10 reps x 3 sets |
Weight Gain Gym Workout Plan For Female
Day 3 – Quadriceps, Calves and Core
Exercise | Reps & Sets |
---|---|
Deadlift | AMRAP |
Squat | 15, 12, 10 Reps |
Leg Press | 15, 12, 10 Reps |
Leg Extension | 15, 12, 10 Reps |
Calves Raise | 15, 12, 10 Reps |
Forearm Plank | 30-60 Seconds |
Side Plank | 30 Seconds each side |
workout plan to gain weight for females
Day 4 – Push Workout
Workout | Sets and Reps |
---|---|
Incline Machine Chest Press | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Dumbbell Pullover | 10, 8, 6 reps |
Dumbbell Front Raise | 10, 8, 6 reps |
Upright Row | 10, 8, 6 reps |
Shrug | 10, 8, 6 reps |
Tricep Dip | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Triangle Pushup | 10 Reps x 2 Sets |
Female Gym Workout Plan To Gain Weight
Day 5 – Pull Exercise
Exercise | Reps and Sets |
---|---|
Pullups | AMRAP |
Lat Pulldown | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Seated Cable Rowing | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Face Pull | 12, 10, 8 reps |
DB Concentration Curl | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Dumbbell Incline Curl | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Palms Down Wrist Curl | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Weight Gain Gym Workout Plan For Women
Day 6 – Hamstrings, Glutes and Core
Exercise | Sets and Reps |
---|---|
Barbell Lunges | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Dumbbell Romain Deadlift | AMRAP |
Hamstring Curl | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Bulgarian Split Squat | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Barbell Hip Thrust | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Side Hip Raise | 12, 10, 8 reps |
Forearm Plank | 30-60 Seconds |
Side Plank | 30 Seconds each side |