• You have little time to train.
• You do not want to train more than 3 days a week.
• You want to have a balanced body.
• You do not want an imbalance between your upper and lower body.
• You like seeing results and can dedicate little time to training.
• Your lifestyle is fast-paced and hectic. 

Do you know how important it is to keep training?

Continuing to train even when you have little time is especially important for women, not only for aesthetic reasons, but also for maintaining good long-term physical and mental health.

Among the many benefits you can gain by training just 3 days a week as a woman using a full-body structure are:

• Protecting bone health. 

Women have a higher risk of osteoporosis Due to certain hormonal changes that occur, especially during menopause, training helps maintain and increase bone density. 

• Maintaining muscle mass. 

Not only for aesthetic reasons, but because at around 30 years of age, a the process of muscle mass loss, known as sarcopenia, which causes metabolism to slow down and increases the risk of injury. Just 2–3 times a week is enough to prevent this loss. 

• Hormonal regulation and mental well-being.

Strength training and exercise increase insulin sensitivity, which helps carbohydrates be used more effectively by your body, while also helping regulate the menstrual cycle and relieve its symptoms and those of perimenopause. 

If that weren’t enough, it also releases endorphins, rreduces stress and anxiety and improves sleep.

• Weight management and body composition.

Strength training with a full-body structure helps you have a more active metabolism even while at rest; this happens because muscle mass is metabolically active tissue that burns a large number of calories even at rest.

• Functionality and quality of life. 

Having strength and endurance, being able to walk up and down stairs, and carrying heavy objects should be non-negotiable. All these abilities can be developed by training 3 days a week with a full-body format, making it much easier to handle everyday life. 

What makes training 3 days a week different?

Training 3 days a week in a full-body format differs from other training routines in several ways: 

• Training frequency
• Number of exercises
• Recovery
• Recoverable fatigue
• Length of training sessions.

All these aspects should be taken into account when planning a full-body training routine, since otherwise the benefits mentioned above may be diminished. 

In short, when we train full body, frequency is higher, sessions are shorter, and progress tends to be more consistent; ultimately, this makes it ideal for gaining strength and muscle mass and promoting overall health. 

Can you lose muscle mass by training 3 days a week?

This is a fairly common fear and belief: “I train less, so I lose muscle,” but it isn’t true. 

In fact, it has already been scientifically (and empirically) proven that training 3 days is sufficient in the vast majority of cases, especially if we use a full-body structure, which allows us to stimulate each muscle group 2 to 3 times per week. 

However, not everything is as it seems; there are times when muscle mass can indeed be lost: 

• When protein intake is very low
• You train with very light weights that pose no challenge or difficulty for your body. 
• You have many days of rest between each workout. 

In summary: A 3-day full-body training program is a smart way to train when you have little time, without having to sacrifice your muscle mass. What matters is not only how many days you train, but how you train on those days: the progression of the loads you use, how hard you work in each session, and how consistent you are over time. 

Which exercises are best for a full-body routine?

In a full-body routine, ideally, prioritize multi-joint or compound exercises, because they allow you to work several muscles at once, providing more complete stimulation in less time; this is because they allow you to use heavier loads. 

In case you feel lost, you’ll find a list of the most important exercises right below, which you can include in your full-body routine. 

Lower body. 

• Regular squats, Smith machine squats, Bulgarian split squats, or lunges (which are essentially unilateral squats). 
• The hip thrust, the king of glute exercises, especially for the gluteus maximus. 
• Deadlifts and their variations, such as Romanian, asymmetrical, and stiff-legged deadlifts.

All these exercises work the lower body in a comprehensive and complete way.

Upper body (Push)

In this case, the muscles that will work primarily are the chest, triceps, and shoulders. 

For this purpose, some exercises we can use are the following: 

• Horizontal presses, such as the bench press—inclined, declined, with dumbbells, on a machine, or with a barbell… The key is to combine different bench angles. 
• Vertical presses, such as the military press or a very inclined press (an option for those who often have shoulder problems), can be performed seated or standing, with dumbbells, on a Smith machine, or on machines designed for this purpose. 

Upper body (Pull)

These exercises are designed for the complete and balanced development of the back, helping you maintain correct posture. 

• Free rows with a barbell or dumbbells provide effective stimulation throughout the back, from the lower back to the trapezius muscles. 
• Pull-ups, whether performed freely, assisted on a machine, or with resistance bands, are one of the exercises that shouldn’t be missing from your back day, as they work the latissimus dorsi effectively and more specifically. It is one of the largest muscles in the back. 

How should I organize my workouts to achieve results?

Now that you know which exercises to include, you’ll be able to figure out how to distribute your workouts throughout the week so you can achieve real results. 

The weekly schedule is simply about knowing which days you work out and which days you rest; it shouldn’t be a fixed structure, since life and day-to-day routines aren’t linear. Therefore, adapt it to your circumstances using the 1:1 or 1:2 ratio. 

The 1:1 or 1:2 ratio means working out one day, resting the next, and then working out again (1:1), or, if necessary, working out one day, resting for two days, and then working out again (1:2).

Table 1: Full-body training structure, 1:1 or 1:2 ratio

The best 3-day full-body routine for women

Now that we have the exercises and the structure we need to follow, it’s time to put together the full workout routine so you can start as soon as possible. However, since we know you might find this tedious, we’ve already done it for you. 

Conclusion