TL; DR (Too Long; Didn't Read)

This weekend, I am speaking at the Health Optimization Summit in Austin. Part of my talk is about how men and women differ in hormones, muscle fibers, fatigue, recovery, circulation, injury susceptibility, neuromuscular adaptation, and anatomical angles—all influencing optimal training approaches.

Let’s go on a little nerd safari together.

WHY This Matters

Recognizing these differences ensures effective, safe, and personalized training that leverages strengths and reduces injury risk.

There is a reason you and I hate farmer carries.

Even though women are told that a “good test of longevity and strength” is to be able to hold their body weight in their hands and carry it across the room, this is a great test for bros without a pelvic basin.

Not so much for women drawn like you and me. Every time I walk with a dumbbell or kettlebell, my curvy hips bonk it out of the way, making the test more of a shoulder and lat stabilizing test as I try to control the fly-away dumbbell.

As Jessica Rabbit famously said, “I’m not bad, I’m just drawn that way.” Farmer carries are mid at best for women with curves.

It’s also probably why you hate bicep curls with a barbell and prefer dumbbells. Our carrying angle is also wider, making a barbell too restrictive.

See?? It’s not you. It’s the male-centric world and the tests that are derived from it.

You’re not bad. You’re just drawn that way.

WHAT the Science Says

• Hormones: Women have cyclical hormonal fluctuations (estrogen and progesterone) affecting muscle synthesis, energy availability, and performance.
• Fiber Types: Women generally have a higher proportion of Type I muscle fibers (endurance-oriented), while men typically possess more Type II fibers (power-oriented).
• Fatigability and Recovery: Women often fatigue slower and recover faster during endurance activities due to efficient energy utilization and better metabolic waste clearance. This is, in part, why we can train glutes 3x/week!
• Capillary Perfusion: Women have better microcirculation, enhancing oxygen delivery and waste removal during endurance tasks. (Helloooo tomato-faced workouts!)
• Injury Types: Women are more prone to ACL injuries due to wider hip angles (Q angle), hormonal fluctuations, and joint laxity. Men often experience muscle strains and ruptures due to greater force production, although this difference does tend to disappear when women enter menopause.
• Neuromuscular Adaptations: Women rely more on muscular coordination and endurance-based adaptations, benefiting from enhanced neuromuscular efficiency and stability. This allows women to perform sustained muscular activities effectively, maintaining better form and technique over extended periods, which reduces injury risks and improves overall endurance performance.
• Joint Angles: Women have larger elbow carrying angles and greater Q angles at the hips, influencing biomechanics, injury patterns, and movement efficiency. For example, the increased Q angle in women often contributes to knee valgus, which can raise the risk for ACL injuries during activities like jumping and landing. Similarly, a larger elbow carrying angle can affect upper-body mechanics, influencing movements such as overhead lifts, push-ups, and throwing actions.

HOW to Apply This to Your Training

Women:

➡️ Incorporate more strength training and explosive exercises to stimulate Type II muscle fibre growth.

• Use the large Q angle to your advantage: separate your feet a bit wider during a squat, let the knees come in ever so slightly on the descent to slightly to pre-stretch the glutes and fire them up.

➡️ Emphasize hip stability exercises, ankle mobility, and foot mechanics to optimize movement patterns.

• This is a must, especially for my muscle mommies wanting to prevent injury. I kept reinjuring my knee over and over again until I took my own prehab seriously. Don’t be a half-wit like me.

➡️ Adjust training intensity around menstrual cycles to optimize performance and recovery.

• Always train hard, and always approach muscle failure. BUT adapt the hard and how you approach failure (volume or load) to where you are in your cycle and what you feel you can best handle.

NOW: Practical Steps to Implement Today

• Listen to Your Body: Adjust intensity based on your fatigue and recovery signals, where you are in your menstrual cycle, and sleep and stress management.
• Prevent Injuries Proactively: Women, prioritize knee, ankle, and foot mobility for optimized mechanics and movement patterns.
• Give Yourself Grace & Time: …the same grace and time you’d give your best friend. Be your own best friend.

What I Recommend: Protein Tips & Money Smarts

 

🎉 HOW TO: MAKE EATING MORE PROTEIN MORE FUN

Some days, you just can't look at another chicken breast. I get it.

Protein recommendations for women have increased, which is great for energy, muscles, and bones, but it can be a challenge to get all your protein without supplementing.

I'm a fan of protein powder, especially Prime Protein from Equip Foods. It's 100% grass-fed and grass-finished beef protein isolate powder that tastes like your favorite dessert. That's such a bonus because I love making desserts for my family with a healthy twist.

ICYMI: I made a Banana Chocolate Creami recipe recently and posted it to my Instagram. This recipe is your answer to dessert cravings or a midday slump because it's packed with 30g of protein using Peanut Butter Prime Protein.

Try any of the other Prime Protein flavors, too—Chocolate, Vanilla, Strawberry, Cinnamon Roll, Iced Coffee, or Salted Caramel—to make your protein-boosted own sweet treat.

👉 To order and get more recipe ideas, visit https://www.equipfoods.com/. Use code BETTER to get 20% off (one-time use per customer).

 

💸 HOW TO: MAKE MONEY DECISIONS WITH MORE EASE

Have you ever found yourself sitting on your bathroom floor at 2 a.m.—heart racing, scrolling through your banking app for the fourth time that night.?

I know a lot of super successful people who have money. Good money even, but the knot in their stomach still wouldn't go away.

Here’s why: Financial anxiety isn’t about the numbers in your account. It’s about what is happening inside your nervous system.

More money doesn’t fix all money stress. Feeling safe with money does.

Knowing this, I'm excited to share that my friend Kate Northrup has a 6-step process to feel safe, confident, and magnetic with money. She's hosting a FREE 3-day experience called Good With Money, and it’s one of the most important things you can do for your financial peace this year.

It’s not: ❌ A budgeting bootcamp. ❌ A “just think positive” money mindset class. ❌ A glorified pitch disguised as value

It is: ✅ It’s a nervous system and financial reset. ✅ A full-body reprogramming to help you feel safe with money. For real.

If you’ve ever felt like financial stress follows you—no matter how much you earn or how hard you work—this is your invitation to end that cycle.

👉 Register for Good With Money, a FREE 3-day workshop series with Kate Northrup live right HERE. Be sure to sign up soon, as the first session begins Thursday, April 17.

Kate is a dynamo businesswoman who has been featured in The New York Times, Oprah Daily, and Harvard Business Review. She's also the author of “Money, A Love Story: Untangle Your Financial Woes and Create the Life You Really Want,” and “Do Less: A Revolutionary Approach to Time and Energy Management for Ambitious Women.”