Women's Focus

Women's Full-Body Hypertrophy — Balanced (Non-Glute)

4-day upper/lower hypertrophy program for women who want balanced whole-body development, not a glute-led plan. Equal upper:lower volume, 8-12 reps at ~2 RIR, with a built-in deload. 10 weeks for beginner to intermediate lifters.

Category
Women's Focus
Length
10 weeks
Frequency
4 days/week
Est. session
50–70 min

Last updated: June 2026

01Overview

About this program

A 4-day upper/lower split for women who want their shoulders, back, chest, and arms to grow alongside their legs — the deliberate counterweight to the glute-and-hip-thrust template that dominates women's hypertrophy programming. Two upper days (a horizontal-press day and a vertical-press day) sit opposite two lower days (a squat-led quad day and a hinge-led hamstring day), so every major muscle gets two quality sessions a week inside the MAV band our Hypertrophy framework targets.

This is for women with at least a few weeks of consistent lifting who want proportional, balanced size — upper body included. It is NOT a glute specialization (use the Glute & Lower-Body Builder for that), nor a strength peaking block — the whole program lives in the 8-12 rep range at RPE 8, roughly two reps in reserve, where Schoenfeld's volume work places the bulk of the hypertrophy stimulus. Equipment: a barbell and rack, dumbbells, and the common cable/machine stations; everything has a home-gym substitution noted in the template coaching.

Progression is double-with autoregulation: hold the rep range and add load only when every working set hits the top of the range at or below the prescribed RPE. Volume ramps across each accumulation block, a deload at week 6 resensitizes you, and weeks 7-9 push effort before a final week-10 deload. Across the 10 weeks expect visible upper-body development and added working load on every compound, achieved without grinding to failure on the main lifts.

Women's Focus · 10 weeks · 4 days/week

10 weeks

Start to finish

Frequency
4 days/week
Per session
50–70 min
02The fit

Who it's for

Four ways to tell at a glance whether this block belongs in your week.

01The goal
4-day upper/lower hypertrophy program for women who want balanced whole-body development, not a glute-led plan.
02The commitment
A steady four-plus days a week
03The arc
10 weeks, 4 phases that build and reset
04The coaching
Your coach drives the plan forward — it reads each session and moves you up the moment the work gets easier, so you keep progressing
03The arc

How it progresses

10 weeks across 4 phases — your coach watches the effort in your logged sets and moves the weight up the moment a load starts getting easier, so you keep climbing instead of waiting on the calendar.

  1. 62
    Intensity
    Weeks 15

    Phase 1 · Accumulation

    Accumulation

    Establish working loads, then add a set and/or load each week while holding 8-12 reps at RPE 8. Balanced upper and lower volume.

  2. 30
    Intensity
    Weeks 66

    Phase 2 · Deload

    Deload

    One easy week — cut sets and load to shed fatigue and resensitize before the harder block.

  3. 82
    Intensity
    Weeks 79

    Phase 3 · Intensification

    Intensification

    Push effort: same movements, top of the rep range at RPE 8-9, more AMRAP finishers on isolations.

  4. 30
    Intensity
    Weeks 1010

    Phase 4 · Deload

    Deload

    Final easy week to close the block clean and log carry-forward loads.

04The sessions

Sessions in this program

The individual workouts this program schedules through the week — open any session for its full exercise list, sets, and coaching notes.

05The thinking

Why your coach builds it this way

A 4-day upper/lower split for women who want their shoulders, back, chest, and arms to grow alongside their legs — the deliberate counterweight to the glute-and-hip-thrust template that dominates women's hypertrophy programming. Two upper days (a horizontal-press day and a vertical-press day) sit opposite two lower days (a squat-led quad day and a hinge-led hamstring day), so every major muscle gets two quality sessions a week inside the MAV band our Hypertrophy framework targets.

This is for women with at least a few weeks of consistent lifting who want proportional, balanced size — upper body included. It is NOT a glute specialization (use the Glute & Lower-Body Builder for that), nor a strength peaking block — the whole program lives in the 8-12 rep range at RPE 8, roughly two reps in reserve, where Schoenfeld's volume work places the bulk of the hypertrophy stimulus. Equipment: a barbell and rack, dumbbells, and the common cable/machine stations; everything has a home-gym substitution noted in the template coaching.

Progression is double-with autoregulation: hold the rep range and add load only when every working set hits the top of the range at or below the prescribed RPE. Volume ramps across each accumulation block, a deload at week 6 resensitizes you, and weeks 7-9 push effort before a final week-10 deload. Across the 10 weeks expect visible upper-body development and added working load on every compound, achieved without grinding to failure on the main lifts.

06FAQ

Common questions

The facts most people check before they commit a block to it.

01How long is the Women's Full-Body Hypertrophy — Balanced (Non-Glute) program?

Women's Full-Body Hypertrophy — Balanced (Non-Glute) runs 10 weeks at 4 days a week, structured into 4 phases so the load builds and resets on schedule. In Squatly, the coach tunes it to you, so the plan keeps moving with your training.

02Who is Women's Full-Body Hypertrophy — Balanced (Non-Glute) for?

4-day upper/lower hypertrophy program for women who want balanced whole-body development, not a glute-led plan. It sits in the Women's Focus category, and the coach reads your training to tell you whether it's the right fit before you commit a block to it.

03How does Women's Full-Body Hypertrophy — Balanced (Non-Glute) progress over the weeks?

It opens with accumulation and finishes with deload. Each phase has a job — accumulate work, push intensity, or back off to absorb it — and the coach moves your load when your logged sets earn it, not on a fixed schedule.

04Does the coach adjust Women's Full-Body Hypertrophy — Balanced (Non-Glute) to me?

Yes. The program is the starting structure; the coach reads your e1RM trend, your weekly volume, and your effort on each lift, then tells you when to push — when a load is getting easier, it's time to add weight. It shows you the trend lines behind every call, and you accept, edit, or reject it. With every workout, the plan gets more yours.

Tuned to you, every workout

Keep moving forward.

The program sets the structure. Your coach drives it forward — reading your numbers and pushing the weight up as you get stronger, so the plan stays yours and you keep progressing.

iOS · Works offline

Aleks · Coach

Three clean sessions at 185 × 5, last one at RPE 7. You’ve got more let’s take 190 on Monday.

Proposal — add weight

Last185 × 5RPE 7
Mon190 × 5▲ +5 lb
AcceptDeny