Women need different programming than men

women have different training needs than men do!

On a basic level we have different sized Type 1 and 2 muscle fibers than men do, making us better adapted at using fat for fuel than men.

We recover faster within a workout from all-out effort training than men do.

We can do lots of low rep, high weight strength training and while we will add on some bulk in the form of muscle, we MOSTLY increase the power and efficiency of our muscles.


We lose weight more slowly than men and hold on to more fat (it's how we fuel physical exercise) than they do.

Women need longer recovery periods between training than men do, because we use stored glycogen more slowly than men do.

We perform differently over the course of a month when we menstruate.

Post-menopause we lose our ability too metabolize fructose.


But I think the MOST important truth about fitness training for women is that biologically, exercise and physical ability ISN'T the body's priority.
Keeping us fertile and ready to make babies is.

And it doesn't matter if you aren't planning on becoming pregnant.
It doesn't even matter if you are past menopause.

There are biological implications to the fact that we are equipped to grow, birth and feed babies and THAT my friends means LOTS of different things for our fitness practices, but the one common theme that I have learned from studying hormones, pelvic floors, gut health and the nervous system is that all female bodies need to feel something in order to perform well and that something is

SAFETY.


If you want to ask your body to do things for you, you FIRST have to communicate to it that a it is safe.

When it doesn't feel safe, then it tells your body-"HEY, shut down the reproductive hormonal pathways and brace for stress."

The problem is that women of child-bearing age NEED all of these pathways like ovulation and menstruation to be in working order in order to respond well to exercise and training.
They are a non-negotiable, regardless of our reproductive plans and priorities.

Safety=performance
We need the body to feel safe, challenged, sure, but SAFE!

How do we do that?

Well I'll tell you how we DON'T do it.

We don't starve it.
We don't beat on it.
We don't let it sit around sedentary creating mechanical stress.
We don't fill it with alcohol and other toxins that it struggles to process.
We don't let it grow accustomed to sitting and then march it to the gym and tell it to perform like a movement-accustomed athlete.
We don't hate it.


There are LOTS of programs out there that unfortunately encourage women to do a number of these things, but mine are NOT amongst them.

In fact I see that the KEYS to helping the body feel safe in fitness and exercise are the following:

1. Calm the nervous system with effective diaphragmatic breathing BEFORE and after exercise and as often as possible.

2. Learn how the body functions well enough so that you can recognize red flags an respond to them appropriately and respectfully.

3. Value QUALITY of movement over quantity all of the time.

4. Rest and recover adequately

5. Build balanced strength and muscle


These are attributes can actions that I'd like to see you value and prioritize as well as you embark on fitness journeys today, next week, next year!

These and many other female-specific themes so happen to also shape my programming and my coaching style.



Today all the sales on my programs are ending.
So grab them NOW to get to work in a manner that repeats your unique and powerFULL female physiology!

Want to strength train?

Kettlebells For Cool Kids™ is my kettlebell instruction course that teaches you everything you need to know about training with kettlebells in a manner that honors PROPER technique, your core and pelvic floor needs (hello! women are different and we need to talk about this.Vaginas, births and hormones are game changers) and respects your BUSY schedule.

You don't need to know ANYTHING about kettlebells to do this course, but you do have to have a CAN-DO attitude and a willingness to work on skill-based training that makes you feel bad-ass.

You get 3 workouts per week ALL of which are designed to teach you the skill of training with KB's.

Oh and DON'T forget all the 90's themed PLAYLISTS!!!!

**Kettlebells For Cool Kids is for women that have been CLEARED by their pelvic floor PT for exercise and understand how to manage pressure, have neutral alignment and can lift weight without symptoms.
If that is NOT you yet, then grab Connect™ FIRST and learn how to strength train with that program.

This program is ALSO majorly on sale right now through Monday (12/2) at midnight.
Learn more here

Want to strength train, but FIRST attend to your core and pelvic floor needs?



Connect Your Core & Pelvic Floor™ is for the woman that has core and pelvic floor problems. Weakness or over-recruitment, we are addressing them BOTH.
Prolapse or leaking.
Movement is NOT off the table for you.
You just need to spend some time learning and understanding what it happening with your body now so you can work WITH it and confidently train it to be strong and powerful again OR for the first time.

You get instruction and education on re-building core and pelvic floor strength AS WELL was a movement and strength training program to get you started with your return to movement.

Learn more about Connect™ here. Enrollment AND major sale pricing go away Monday (12/2) at midnight.
Use the code HOLIDAYHEALTH
Connect Your Core and Pelvic Floor™


Not ready to grab my course but you’re hungry for MORE?

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 About Sarah…

Sarah Smith is a Functional Pelvic and Gut Health Educator Level, Strength Coach, Original Strength Pro, Level 2 Russian Kettlebell Instructor and postnatal fitness specialist and functional pelvic floor and with a Masters in Soil Science and Agriculture.

She helps women feel confident, capable, content and STRONG in their bodies!

Sarah is a published author and has a decade experience conducting research at The National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, University of Arizona and North Carolina State University.

She uses evidence-based strategies to help her clients grow strong, and conquer their pelvic floor dysfunction, pelvic organ prolapse, diastasis recti and gut health complications and other injuries or health conditions. 

Sarah is a mom to three wild boys and one English Bulldog.
She loves kettlebells, leisure walks, chickens, soil, coffee, not folding laundry and watching people move-in a non-creepy way.

Are you ready for the Overhead Press?

Did you know that pressing overhead isn’t appropriate for all bodies all of the time??

Alignment and recruitment mobility and stability of the shoulder joint JUST as important, if not MORE important than how “strong” you are.

You may be able to get the bell pressed up overhead, BUT can you do it using the best form and protect your shoulders from pain later?

If you press overhead and you don’t have the mobility to prevent flaring of the ribs or tilting of the pelvis, you can end up developing injuries or core and pelvic floor issues.

Pressing overhead is NOT a requirement for strength and fitness (unless you are doing an RKC or SFG kettlebell cert), so don’t feel like you’re weak or failing.

Kettlebells are AMAZING at highlighting the areas of our bodies that need a little extra attention and that’a a GOOD THING!

Check out my video below and then video yourself or press in front of a mirror and evaluate if YOU’RE ready to press overhead!

Train with kettlebells!
Take my 24 week kettlebell program designed to take you from beginner to expert in less than 6 months!

Check it out!

Sarah Smith is a former athletic coach, personal trainer, level two Russian Kettlebell Instructor, postnatal fitness specialist and functional pelvic floor and gut health advocate with a Masters in Soil Science and Agricultural. 

She works online and in her garage gym in Raleigh, North Carolina. 

Sarah is a published author and has a decade experience conducting research at The National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, University of Arizona and North Carolina State University. She uses evidence-based strategies to help her clients grow strong, confident and capable in their bodies-even when struggling with pelvic floor dysfunction, pelvic organ prolapse, gut health complications and other injuries or health conditions. 

She is a mom to three boys and one English Bulldog. She loves kettlebells, leisure walks, chickens, soil, coffee, not folding laundry and watching people move-in a non-creepy way.

Three Damaging Pelvic Floor Rehab Myths

With increased awareness around pelvic floor problems, we are seeing more and more information on social media and even in the mainstream media about solutions to pelvic organ prolapse, incontinence and other dysfunctions of the pelvis.

For the most part this is a GREAT thing!
The more commonly discussed the topic, the more likely it is that women will feel less shame and embarrassment around the topic, but also that they will find SOLUTIONS!

But, as is often the case, drifting amongst lots of helpful and positive information is some misleading concepts and myths that will work AGAINST YOU as you try to rehab your pelvic floor.

Let’s check out some of the most popular ones in circulation!

Myth #1 Focus On The Floor!

I LOVE me some pelvic floor talk, but I have concerns. In insisting that the pelvic floor be considered, we have to be mindful of the message we are communicating.

We can’t ignore or forget it’s part of the whole, because...

IT’S PART OF THE WHOLE.

And we have to treat it as such.

•

In my personal experience and my experience working with clients I have observed that truly “strong” pelvic floors are the ones that work well and know their place.

They do their job, and ONLY their job.

They are surrounded and supported by strength.

They know how to relax.

They know when to work and how hard.

•

An anxious body, a dysbiotic microbiome, a pressure management system that is out of sync, or an imbalanced nervous system will all wreak havoc on a pelvic floor no matter how many kegels we do.

Let’s remember to #zoomout and acknowledge that pelvic floors have their own unique jobs that we want them to do well. They are supported and operated by our endocrine, neurological and microbiological (gut) systems, they have to work well with others and they can’t work alone.

Gosh, so much we can learn from these pelvic floors, eh??!!

Myth #2 Pilates and Yoga Are the ONLY Safe Forms of Exercise

For whatever reason, Pilates and gentle yoga have earned the reputation as the safe and ideal forms of exercise for postpartum moms and anyone struggling with prolapse or incontinence.

Like “Do your kegels, and then go do your Pilates and all your problems will resolve!”🤔🙄

If Pilates and yoga are your jam and you can find ways to do them that support your unique rehab process, i.e. they help you re-establish reflexive core stability, breath with the diaphragm, coordinate your PF with your diaphragm and recruit your pelvic floor optimally, then YAY!

But don’t kid yourself in thinking that these modalities are guaranteed to solve all of your pelvic health problems, because they ain’t.

And if you’re like me and you don’t want to be limited to those forms of movement and exercise, that is absolutely ok too!

•

You see, I’m all about that iron, particularly the kettlebell! To me it represents functional whole body strength and they are fun as heck to train with.

Besides that, there are countless exercises you can do with the kettlebell to build your body and support your core and pelvic floor.

Kettlebells come in many different weights, so you control volume and intensity of your movement. And with a handle that lends itself to all sorts of cool carries to help you train not just for sport, but for utility, because, hello, we have to carry stuff! Carrying kids, groceries, even just my body used to  increase my POP symptoms, until I started TRAINING how to be strong and manage pressure WITH kettlebells!

•

I’m not saying kettlebells are the End All Be All of fixing your pelvic health problems. They are no more of a panacea than #kegels are.

But they are an incredible tool that when applied well, can re-build strength in movement for clients of ALL ages and fitness capabilities.

And this can be said for MANY other forms of training besides yoga and Pilates.

Let’s stop limiting people to what has been deemed “safe” and let’s find things that inspire and address weaknesses!

Myth #3 Tight and Tense= Strong

We put emphasis on the need for pelvic floors (and vaginas) to be “strong” but many women hear “tight” and “forceful” and so they practice squeezing and contracting.

•••

But the reality is that the optimal heath of the pelvic floor is SO MUCH MORE complex and wonderful than that.

Exclusively focusing on what we perceive to be “strength” can be insufficient for optimizing pelvic health and often times causes harm.

The pelvic floor has jobs to do and a range of motion to move through.

•••

If you define “strength” as the ability to do your assigned job well, then sure, let’s make our pelvic floors STRONG.

BUT if you think a “strong” pelvic floor is one that is tight, lifted, contracted, tense and/or rigid, then read this graphic a few times.

Now grab my Pelvic Floor Freebie with this link.

Sarah Smith is a former athletic coach, personal trainer, level two Russian Kettlebell Instructor, postnatal fitness specialist and functional pelvic floor and gut health advocate with a Masters in Soil Science and Agricultural. 

She works online and in her garage gym in Raleigh, North Carolina. 

Sarah is a published author and has a decade experience conducting research at The National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, University of Arizona and North Carolina State University. She uses evidence-based strategies to help her clients grow strong, confident and capable in their bodies-even when struggling with pelvic floor dysfunction, pelvic organ prolapse, gut health complications and other injuries or health conditions. 

She is a mom to three boys and one English Bulldog. She loves kettlebells, leisure walks, chickens, soil, coffee, not folding laundry and watching people move, in a non-creepy way.

Three Strategies To Help YOU FINALLY get consistent in exercise ** PLUS free workouts!

**Scroll down if you want to skip the TIPS and just get the workout!

All summer my husband and I have been traveling with our 3 boys around New England for the past month and have managed to train with kettlebells 3-4 days per week.

With a family of 5 moving around from place to place on vacation, being consistent with training could be almost impossible except that we had THREE simple strategies for getting out workouts in.

These particular strategies not only worked for us on this vacation, but they are my GO-TO strategies for both myself and my clients to stay consistent in our training EVEN when our full and busy lives make it difficult, so here they are:

1. Simplicity

2. Flexibility

3. Accountability

Let’s talk about them.

Simplicity:
WE kept our workouts MAJORLY simple on this trip for two primary reasons,

1. We only had space in our car and ease of transport for two kettlebells (12 K and 16K) and two resistance bands. IF we had brought much more than that, the equipment would have become a burden, nuisance to have around PLUS it would have been too cumbersome to lug to the beach, or pull out in the AirBNB yard to get our sweat sesh on. 

This was the case for us on this trip, but this may be the case for you right now!
If you don't have room in your home, the stroller, your car or your home office for lots of equipment, don’t worry. Being consistent with just a few pieces of equipment can build your body and physique AND help you to truly master exercise.
In Kettlebells For Cool Kids-my 12 week kettlebell program we only use TWO pieces of equipment!!

And
2. When you’re traveling and managing a family of 5, you simply don’t have the bandwidth for COMPLICATED workouts.

We found that it was FAR easier to be consistent in our training by keeping our training sessions to 3-4 compound (utilizing multiple muscle groups and joints) movements only.
If we wanted to add a few in more at the end, like a finisher, we had that option, but when we met out in the yard or at the beach to train, we knew that we were simply going to do a 3-4 exercises at a set number of reps and then move on with our day!
The weights were relatively light, so we kept the pace up and worked as hard as we could, resting as needed.

Flexibility:

I tell my clients this all of the time, but it was especially important on a family vacation, the only way to be CONSISTENT in your TRAINING is to be FLEXIBLE around what it looks like, where and when it takes place and how perfect it is.
On the days that we trained, we had a plan as to what we would do, but if we simply gave up when things weren’t going to plan (breakfast ran late, getting to the beach took longer, we forgot a piece of equipment, the kids needed us, etc….) then we would NEVER have honored our commitment to workout 3 times a week this month.
And so when things when awry, we just went with it.
We improvised with bodyweight exercises.
We accepted interruptions, even embraced them, “Sure kids we’ll play with you, let’s sprint down the beach to those rocks!?”

We just kept going as best we could and knew that whatever we managed to make happen was better than NOTHING!

That #persistenceoverperfection mindset, man, it is the BEST way to get things done and keep us coming back!

Accountability: 

Feeling like our commitment matters is helpful.

On this particular trip, Jeremiah (hubs) and I were accountable to each other in the way that my Kettlebells For Cool Kids are accountable to their fellow cool kids, my clients are accountable to me and you can be accountable to your friend, partners, coach, neighbor, or online community.

Rather than solely focusing on my own self and my own commitment, I also wanted to show up and train to support Jeremiah, my partner in crime.
I mean when it’s 92 degrees, sunny and you’d love to just lay around and drink coffee or nap and chill at the beach, knowing that your bud is willing to train with you and also wants to honor their own commitments can make all the difference.

At the end of the day, diet and exercise culture has trained us to think it’s OK to give up on our commitments to ourselves because many of us have DECADES of experience trying crash diet and exercise programs, that we quit because let’s face it, they suck and are impossible to stay with.

But the truth is COMMITMENTS matter.
It takes time and help to BREAK the habit of quitting and giving up on the promises that we make to ourselves.

Effective and smart programming shouldn’t MAKE you feel like you want to quit.
It should be adaptable to your real life, BUT you also have to be tenacious and determined to show up and do what you said you were going to do.

I have personally seen that for myself and my clients, the accountability piece is HUGELY important.
We are FAR less likely to break a promise ourselves or put our goals on the back burner because they are inconvenient, uncomfortable and or too much work IF we know someone is watching.

PLUS when we partner with someone else in our commitment, on those days when we truthfully don’t feel like working for ourselves, we can often muster the strength to show up for someone else.

This summer on days when we needed the SIMPLEST of workouts that would pack a PUNCH, workout WHOLE BODY and leave us feeling like we had WORKED OUT HARD-you know all that burny, sore good feelings we did the following workout:

In any order, complete the following (it takes about 30-45 minutes, depending on how much rest you take and you should rest as needed!:

100 KB swings **(beginners sub KB deadlifts)

100 pushups **(beginners sub 50 incline pushups)

100 weighted squats **(beginners sub bodyweight)

If you’ve NEVER learned how to do a kettlebell deadlift, proper pushup or squat, get
Kettlebells For Cool Kids™!

Sarah Smith is a former athletic coach, personal trainer, level two Russian Kettlebell Instructor, postnatal fitness specialist and functional pelvic floor and gut health advocate with a Masters in Soil Science and Agricultural. 

She works online and in her garage gym in Raleigh, North Carolina. 

Sarah is a published author and has a decade experience conducting research at The National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute, University of Arizona and North Carolina State University. She uses evidence-based strategies to help her clients grow strong, confident and capable in their bodies-even when struggling with pelvic floor dysfunction, pelvic organ prolapse, gut health complications and other injuries or health conditions. 

She is a mom to three boys and one English Bulldog. She loves kettlebells, leisure walks, chickens, soil, coffee, not folding laundry and watching people move-in a non-creepy way.

Do you leak when you lift? Are you afraid you're making your prolapse worse? Here's a simple strategy!

Hey there!

I LOVE teaching women how to lift heavy things, but I ESPECIALLY love teaching them to LEVERAGE their breath and power to accomplish any physically challenging task.

You see, your breathing cycle is more than just about getting oxygen into your lungs (to oxygenate your tissues) and getting carbon dioxide (expired air) out, it’s part of your body’s natural ability to MANAGE PRESSURE.

Do you struggle to manage pressure?
Here are some clues that you might:

• You leak when you exercise (sneeze, cough or laugh too)

• You see bulging or doming in your core when you exert yourself

• You hold your breath and brace to feel strong when lifting something

• You feel pressure in your vagina after a long day or exercise session

• You have chronic low back pain and feel loose in your core

While learning to manage pressure is a concept that is covered IN DEPTH in my upcoming course, Connect Your Core and Pelvic Floor, today I am showing you some breathing cues to help you perform deadlifts AND kettlebell swings withOUT bearing down on your organs to brace yourself and feel strong in movement.

Check it!

Training with kettlebells can either help OR harm your core and pelvic floor. It all comes down to how you manage pressure and move your body. Check out this video on how to breath during the deadlift AND kettlebell swing!

To PRE-REGISTER for my Connect Your Core And Pelvic Floor course and have access to DISCOUNT pricing, complete the form below!

Troubleshooting the deadlift when your hamstrings are tight or you are tall!

One thing I often hear from new clients is, “Kettlebells hurt my back.”
And it’s true.
Kettlebells can ABSOLUTELY hurt your back, like bad.
But so can lifting groceries, sneezing, reaching in the backseat of your car to hand your kid a snack (this happened to me!) and sitting all day long.

You see it’s not really the MOVEMENT or what it is that we are moving (kettlebells, groceries, our own bodies), but HOW we are doing it.
How we are leveraging the strength and power of our body to move weight is what makes a movement safe or not.
It’s what determines whether a movement is painful.
And for sure, sometimes we have to modify some movements to better ensure that we are moving in a manner that is favorable for OUR UNIQUE body, and that’s absolutely OK!

Today I am showing you one of the many strategies that I’ve shared with the members of my Kettlebells For Cool Kids kettlebell training course, how to modify a deadlift or a kettlebell swing to help avoid back pain!

Check it out below!

Come try a two week sample from my Kettlebells For Cool Kids program!

Sarah Smith is on a mission to help women conquer their pelvic health struggles and build STRENGTH and SKILLS!
She is a strength coach, RKC2 Kettlebell Instructor, Original Strength Pro Instructor, certified personal trainer, postnatal fitness specialist and pelvic floor and gut health advocate with a Masters in Soil and Agricultural Science.
Sarah works online and in Raleigh, North Carolina. 
She is a Believer, wife to her best friend, Jeremiah, a mom to three boys and one English Bulldog.
She loves soil, coffee and not folding laundry. 
Come follow her on Instagram or Facebook.