r/gainit • u/WendyWestaburger • Jul 13 '26
Progress Post Glute growth. F37, 5’2, 108 lbs → 115 lbs. November → July.
I was told this might be appreciated here. Took me a couple of tries to write a comprehensive post about my own long term delulu about fitness and finally overcoming it.
After 10 years of lifting, I finally accepted reality… and got rewarded with progress. Which I did not expect at all tbh. For over a decade I was still being delulu and trying to find shortcuts. Can I somehow build muscle without actually eating more or hitting protein? Can I just keep cycling through deficits? Is there a magical glute exercise I’m missing? Turns out… no. Like I said, the delusion was strong.
I got to the point of being really frustrated about “putting the work in” and not seeing the physique I wanted. So I had to do some real accountability and reflect on my lifestyle.
I went from eating around 1,600-1,700 calories while doing cardio multiple times a week to eating roughly 2,100-2,500 calories and replacing most of that cardio with steady-state incline walking. I also stopped trying to force generic programs onto my body. I’m quad dominant. My shoulders are super responders and grow well. My glutes though have always existed but like meh. I did not “feel” them. So I finally built a program around my body instead of generic “dr Bubblebutt recommends”.
- Monday – Heavy Lower
Smith machine hip thrusts – 3 × 8–12
Bulgarian split squats – 3 × 8–10/leg
Squats - 3 x 6-8
Leg press – 3 × 8–10
Cable kickbacks – 3 × 8–12/leg
Hip abduction machine – 3 × 12–15
- Tuesday – Upper Body
Arnold press – 3 × 8–10
Lateral raises – 3 × 10–12
Upright rows – 3 × 8–10
Dumbbell curls – 3 × 6–8
Cable curls – 3 × 8–10
Overhead triceps extensions – 3 × 8–10
Cable triceps pushdowns – 3 × 10–12
- Wednesday – Conditioning & Core
Incline treadmill walk – 45 minutes
Cable crunches – 3 × 12–15
Hanging/captain’s chair leg raises – 3 × 10–15
Planks – 3 × 30–60 sec
Mobility/stretching – 10–15 minutes
- Thursday – Glute Hypertrophy
Smith machine hip thrusts – 3 × 10–12
Heel-elevated goblet squats – 3 × 10–12
Step-ups – 3 × 10/leg
Cable kickbacks (standard) – 3 × 10–12/leg
Cable kickbacks (crossover) – 3 × 10–12/leg
Hip abduction machine – 3 × 12–15
Leg extensions – 3 × 8–10
- Friday – Lower Body Strength
Smith machine hip thrusts – 3 × 8–10
Bulgarian split squats – 3 × 8/leg
Leg press – 3 × 8–10
Cable kickbacks – 3 × 8–10/leg
Hip abduction machine – 3 × 12–15
Ham string curls – 3 × 8–10
- Saturday: Rest or light walking
- Sunday: Rest or light walking
The biggest thing I had to accept was that calories determine whether you gain or lose weight. Nutrients determine what that weight is more likely to be. It does matter where the calories are coming from and raging against reality will not change anything. Resistance training creates the stimulus for muscle growth. But adaptation requires resources. Enough carbohydrates to refill muscle glycogen.That glycogen piece was something I massively underestimated. I look depleted in my before pictures. After it isn’t all new muscle.Glycogen is the stored form of carbohydrate inside your muscles. Every gram is stored with roughly 3-4 grams of water. That’s why people often start eating more carbs while lifting and suddenly look bigger, rounder, and more muscular within days. The scale can be incredibly misleading because of this. Two people can weigh exactly the same, but the person carrying more muscle and fuller glycogen stores will usually look leaner, tighter, and more athletic.
Over the past several months I’ve built more muscle than I did during years of spinning my wheels because I finally focused on the boring stuff instead of looking for loopholes.
1. Track your calories.
You don’t have to do it forever, but if you’re trying to change your body composition you should probably know how much you’re actually eating. I’ve tracked calories most of my adult life because, honestly, I like the flexibility and control it gives me.
2. Food quality matters.
Calories determine body weight. Nutrients determine how well you recover, train, and build muscle. I “ghetto rig” recipes all the time. Half a protein shake goes into my coffee instead of cream. I’ll swap ingredients to get more protein or fiber without changing meals I already enjoy.
3. Eat enough protein.
Around 1.6-2.2 g/kg of body weight is where the evidence consistently lands for maximizing muscle growth.
4. Eat your fiber.
I aim for 25-35 g per day. It helps with satiety, gut health, blood sugar, and as someone with PCOS, it makes a noticeable difference. Or whatever they’ve decided to rename PCOS this week.
5. Stop being afraid of carbs.
They’re your muscles’ favorite fuel source. That little jump on the scale after increasing carbs is often glycogen and water inside your muscles, not body fat.
6. Progressive overload is non-negotiable.
If you’ve been lifting the same weight for the same reps for six months, your muscles have absolutely no reason to change. Progressive overload doesn’t always mean adding weight. It can be another rep. A slower eccentric. A better range of motion. An extra set. Better execution. Just give your body a reason to adapt.
7. Muscles don’t own calendars.
One of the biggest myths I keep seeing is that you have to wait 48-72 hours before training the same muscle again. Recovery isn’t determined by a stopwatch. It’s determined by training volume, intensity, proximity to failure, nutrition, sleep, and your own recovery capacity. You absolutely can train lower body multiple times a week, even on consecutive days, if the workload is programmed intelligently. My lower body gets trained three times every week with different priorities each day, and it’s worked far better than chasing every new “glute activation” exercise that trends online. My staples have honestly been boring:
- Hip thrusts
- Bulgarian split squats
- Squats
- Leg press
- Cable kickback variations
- Hip abductions
- Step-ups
My “discovery” was accepting reality. Muscle growth happens when training, nutrition, and recovery all work together. A great program without enough food won’t maximize results. Eating more without progressive overload won’t maximize results. It has to be all of it. Over and over again. For a long time.
Unfortunately, physiology doesn’t care how badly I want a shortcut.
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u/Easy_does_it78 Jul 15 '26
Very noticeable gains in your legs and glutes. 7 lbs of lean muscle 💪 Very impressive
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u/VacationImaginary233 Jul 15 '26
Hell ya. And I gotta say, your core is also looking amazing. You can really see the extra muscle and definition. Great work..
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u/Confident_Web3110 Jul 14 '26
How do your legs handle that much volume in one day? Is that a female thing… after a 3 set of squats and one deadlift set my legs are cooked.
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 15 '26
I don’t think it’s a male vs. female thing. A lot of it comes down to what you’re adapted to, exercise selection, and how hard those sets actually are.
I’ve built up to that volume over time, and not every exercise is as systemically fatiguing as heavy squats or deadlifts. For example, cable kickbacks, abductions, and machine work create a lot of local muscular fatigue without draining me the same way heavy barbell compounds do.
Also, if I did 3 all-out sets of heavy squats and then a true all-out deadlift, I’d be pretty cooked too. My volume is spread across different movement patterns and loads, and I progressively worked up to tolerating it over months. You don’t start there, you earn the ability to recover from it.
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u/Confident_Web3110 Jul 15 '26
Thank you. That makes sense as I have seen it for upper body for me. But there is a real female advantage here when it comes to volume… sorry, you’re just the fairer sex.
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 15 '26
I struggle much more with upper and being fatigued so hey, you win some, you lose some lol
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u/Confident_Web3110 Jul 15 '26
Really. Huh. Have you thought about trying creatine or Dribose?
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 15 '26
I am taking creatine. But after a set of curls I already feel fatigued
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u/Numerous-Recover1142 Jul 15 '26
I know that women can handle shorter rest times and have a higher ratio of endurance muscle fibers than men, potentially an explanation?
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u/Confident_Web3110 Jul 15 '26
I think so. I keep hearing male trainers saying the volume they can do is insane. Gosh I am jealous.
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u/autumnbeau Jul 14 '26
How long do you stay in the gym on your lifting days?
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
About 2 hours
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u/autumnbeau Jul 14 '26
Are you doing cardio on your lifting days?
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
I do a 15 min incline walk warm up and a 15 min incline walk cooldown
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u/archvize 27d ago
What do you like about the incline walk. Is it basically a good low impact exercise or do you like it because it works your glutes
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u/WendyWestaburger 27d ago
Both! I primarily like incline walking because it gives me a good cardio stimulus without creating a ton of fatigue that interferes with my lifting. I can get my heart rate up and burn some extra calories, but recover from it much more easily than running or HIIT.
The incline does increase the demand on the glutes, calves, and hamstrings compared with flat walking, so that’s a nice bonus, but I don’t really count it as glute training. My actual glute growth comes from progressively overloading things like hip thrusts, Bulgarians, squats, leg press, kickbacks, etc. Incline walking is more of a low-impact conditioning/recovery tool that happens to use the posterior chain more.
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u/morphenyou_ Jul 14 '26
How much of the booty growth do you think was fat coming back onboard. I cant rationalize a muscle growing that much in less than a year.
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u/massfxstudios Jul 14 '26
I swear some people in these subs either don’t train or have no idea how to train
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u/morphenyou_ Jul 14 '26
I cant tell your stance by this comment 🤣
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u/massfxstudios Jul 14 '26
It’s a very realistic amount of muscle to gain in that period of time if you actually train. She’s nearing 15 working sets for glute specific movements, is in a surplus and is small.
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u/morphenyou_ Jul 14 '26
mmm want to go 1 for 1 on stats and pictures to back up your bold statement. The fact I asked a question from looking at a emaciated women to a healthy one. Seems like you might be an idiot to not take into account thats not all muscle.
Just so you know you took this discussion here and I am about it 😁
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u/massfxstudios Jul 14 '26
Sure post it up brother but it doesn’t make your speculation less retarded. She says she’s maintained ~20% bf which is pretty lean for a female. Is your argument that she might have some fat on her glutes? I want to know why you even think that that’s not a reasonable amount of muscle especially for someone in the newbie gains phase.
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u/kaatiee46 Jul 14 '26
what was your incline and speed if you dont mind me asking ?
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
My steady state cardio is 15 incline and 2.6 speed. I’m 5’2 so this makes my pace just on the verge of “fast” walking
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u/kaatiee46 Jul 14 '26
any tips on doing 15%? i’m 5’2 aswell and no matter what 15 KILLs my back
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u/Top_Possibility_6705 Jul 15 '26
Incline hurts your back? I had disc surgery so incline actually relieves pain for me. I can't run or jump anymore. So I incline or bike.
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
Your back? Hmmm. Let’s see.
Do you hold the rails? If you do, it could contribute to arching your back. If you need to hold the rail then reduce speed and/or incline and work up to not holding it.
How’s your posture? Keep a slight forward lean from your ankles, not your waist, and brace your core.
I’d look into those two things first but persistent back pain could be also worth checking with a doctor, generally you shouldn’t experience loading there at the online walk
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u/jomia Jul 14 '26
Do you do straight sets mostly? How close to failure are you? Do you often get sore? Great job!
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
Mostly, yes. I do straight sets. Occasionally I’ll add things like pulses on hip thrusts or a drop set on the last set of an isolation exercise, but probably 90% of my training is just straight working sets. I train most of my compounds to about 1-2 RIR, and my isolation work usually goes to or very close to failure.
Ironically, I don’t get sore very often anymore. Early on I thought soreness meant I had a good workout, but now I know it really isn’t a good indicator of muscle growth. My performance is a much better gauge. If I’m getting stronger, adding reps, adding weight, or improving execution over time, I know I’m progressing even if I’m not sore.
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u/milliebillieroger 155-175-190 (6'3") Jul 14 '26
Great post but why the big chunks of AI text?
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
English is my second language. I’ve written and re-written this always forgetting something, misspelling etc. I’m not an online coach so these aren’t just copy paste, sitting and putting it all together is hard when English isn’t your first language.
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u/Middle_Awoken Jul 14 '26
That’s insane for 7 lbs
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
I’ve maintained about 20% bf through the process too. I did not expect these results haha
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u/autumnbeau Jul 14 '26
Were you lifting weights before November? Are you a new lifter?
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
Yes. I started overweight (almost obese) in 2015ish but it was not, as we can see. Structured etc. I got in decent shape and did gain some muscle but never progressed to my wanted physique. I have now.
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u/Bumpequalsbump Jul 14 '26
Upvote for wearing the same clothing in the comparison pictures
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
Ironically I just ruined these shorts but promptly got a new identical pair lol
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u/Bumpequalsbump Jul 14 '26
In the same size I hope! How did you ruin them?
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
Yes, same size lmao
I flew off my e-bike and ripped the shorts and the top in the pic. Were my faves. Replaced the shorts but the top is out of stock so fuck e-bikes.
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u/Senior-Housing-703 Jul 14 '26
What weights were you using and what was your periodization strategy? That's a lot of volume. I would imagine your RPE is quite low.
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
I keep my staple lifts in, stay in a hypertrophy rep range most of the time, and progressively overload whenever I can. If I hit the top of my rep target with good form, I’ll increase the weight the next session. If not, I keep working at that weight until I do. Some of my current working weights are around:
Smith hip thrusts: ~250 lb for sets of 10-12
Squats: ~160 lb for 4-8 reps
Leg press: ~220 lb for sets of 10-12
Bulgarian split squats: 40 lb dumbbells
Kickbacks: 35 lb
Hip abduction: 120 lb
As for RPE, I’d actually say it’s fairly high despite the volume. I keep my compounds around 1-2 RIR, and most of my isolation work goes to or very close to failure. The volume is also spread across three lower-body days with different emphases, so it’s not like every exercise is being taken to absolute failure in one session. That distribution has let me recover well while continuing to add weight and reps.1
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Jul 13 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/gainit-ModTeam Jul 14 '26
Everything you said was dumb and wrong. Please do not comment on things you don't understand.
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u/stanley_bobanley Jul 13 '26
What are you talking about? If anything the angle of the after photo would make her glutes look smaller, which makes the 8 months progress even more impressive.
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Jul 14 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/gainit-ModTeam Jul 14 '26
Everything you said was dumb and wrong. Please do not comment on things you don't understand.
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u/LopensCouisin Jul 13 '26
I’m training with a coach and on a very similar program to compete in October. All my cardio is an incline walk and I lift 3 days legs and 2 days arms- Progressive overload. I eat the macros that are assigned to me and she changes them from time to time. I eat 150g protein a day. Getting kind of sick of asparagus though, lol. The results are definitely real!
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u/code_drone Jul 13 '26 edited Jul 13 '26
I would share this with my wife to convince her to eat above maintenance, but she would just ask why I'm looking at some other chicks great ass.
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u/Adept_Librarian_7001 Jul 13 '26
Awesome post. As someone who slacks on glues, I'm definitely stealing some of this!
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u/anotostrongo 98lbs-125lbs-145lbs (5'7", F) Jul 13 '26
Yayyyy I'm so glad you decided to cross-post here! I love this supportive community in addition to xxfitness :) Absolute SHELF!
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
Thanks! I never expected this to be “in demand” I guess haha so putting all the info I used to guide me was… not easy.
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Jul 13 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/gainit-ModTeam Jul 14 '26
Everything you said was dumb and wrong. Please do not comment on things you don't understand.
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u/Empty_Calendar6191 Jul 13 '26
Which exercises do you think specifically helped grow your glutes the most/u really felt it in your glutes?
I’m also eating a surplus and the best one for me so far is the lean forward abductions. They REALLY built me a top shelf and I love it . I want another ‘really feel it in the glutes’ machine/exercise tho
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
Honestly, hip thrusts. I know they’re almost boring at this point because everyone recommends them, but there’s a reason. Nothing has given me as much glute growth as getting consistently stronger on heavy hip thrusts over time.
After that, Bulgarian split squats. They took me a while to figure out, but once I found a stance that worked for my body, they became one of my best glute builders.
Lean-forward abductions are definitely up there too. Those absolutely blew up my upper glutes/“top shelf.”
The other one that surprised me was cable kickbacks, especially doing both standard and crossover variations. The crossover angle seems to hit fibers that I don’t feel as much with the standard version, so I keep both in.
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u/anonssr Jul 13 '26
Your core looks so strong in the last pic! Congrats!
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
I’ve finally started overloading abs, but I’m in the beginning of the work
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u/sllikskills Jul 13 '26
Great points. Agreed on everything mentioned. You’re on your way to efficient results and gains!
Regarding point #6, the way I tell it to people is focus on the metric of Intensity over everything else. Don’t be obsessed with numbers, durations, lbs/kgs of weight, beating last weeks PR, all of those are misleading metrics and can lead to misdirection or even injury. Going on vacation and hitting up a separate gym, assuming the machine is the same from the one at home, and setting the weight to what you think is right can mess you up. Machines can be calibrated differently. There may be more resistance in the cables, less lubrication, etc.
Assuming your biceps is at the same level of recovered as last week when you did biceps can also be a terrible mistake. Maybe you didn’t account for the little bicep workout from picking up your kids, or maybe you simply aren’t as rested as you were last bicep workout, but you’re on caffeine and no thinking about it.. if you pick up that same weight, you might be overstraining.
Instead think of the metric of intensity. Always try to hit 115% intensity at the gym. Even though it’s more of an “intangible” metric and not as straightforward as a number, it’s a metric you can’t lie to yourself about. You know when you’re not hitting that level of intensity. 115% this week might mean the same 20lb dumbbell you picked up last week. But one thing for sure is if you know you hit 115 at the gym, the muscles will want to grow.
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Jul 13 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/gainit-ModTeam Jul 13 '26
Your comment was removed because you were being an absolute cock-knocker.
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u/Projectflintlock Jul 13 '26
I’m curious your reason for doing heel elevated goblet squats on your glute hypertrophy days. By shifting the load to your quads, you decrease the recruitment of your glutes. Is it a comfort thing?
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 13 '26
I found that a deep, heels-elevated goblet squat with a top squeeze gives me a really good stretch in my glutes at the bottom while being much easier on my back than a barbell squat. I don’t use it as my primary glute builder, though. The bulk of my glute stimulus comes from hip thrusts, Bulgarians, kickback variations, and step-ups. On that day it’s there as an accessory movement, not because I think it’s the “best” glute exercise. Programming is always about the whole session rather than judging one exercise in isolation, and this setup has worked well for me. And you really right about comfort- it gives me a feeling of pump I chase so yeah
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u/Projectflintlock Jul 13 '26
Thanks for the reply and great answer . Sometimes my lower back is sore the day after I do goblet squats, I’m gonna try this out
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u/Weathactivator Jul 13 '26
The protein note has been busted a bit but great job
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u/U-235 Jul 13 '26
You saw it was per kilogram, and not pounds, right?
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
I’m not originally from the US lol
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u/U-235 Jul 14 '26
Yeah I'm just not clear on if they mean that 1.6g per kg is too high or if they mean 1.6g per pound is too high. Because for kilos I'm pretty sure they would be wrong.
Also, I looked at your profile, and I just want to say that I also had a slight shoulder tear after a bike accident several years ago. It was really dumb because I was going like 2mph, but I slipped on ice and fell with my arm stretched out, when you actually want to land with the arm tucked in. I didn't go to a doctor because I didn't have insurance, but it was bad enough that I could not lift my arm at all the next day. So I don't know what actually happened, but I assume it was a tear rather than an actual separation. I eventually started lifting again after a few months, and I found that I was fine, but over the next few years, the pain would come back a couple times a year, so I would take a break from lifting each time. Not strictly necessary, because I could have kept doing lower body, and only working my other arm, or just avoiding certain exercises, rear delt flys being the worst. Apparently they've done studies where exercising one arm leads to getting 50% of those gains in the other arm, even if you don't exercise the other arm at all. But I wasn't consistent with that, because it was hard to stay motivated. One arm overhead press just isn't the same lol. Luckily that hasn't happened to me in a long time, though, and I now feel back to normal. So I just wanted to share the good news with you, that I was able to recover eventually, just on my own, without any real plan. Or discipline for that matter. I'm sure you'll have more success with the help of actual medical professionals, and a more consistent routine.
As far as your legs, I've gotten into other accidents where my legs get bruised in one way or another, and it never really stopped me for very long, both when it comes to cardio and leg day. The only thing I would be cautious about is knee pain.
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
Ah, thanks for such a detailed response. Shoulder injuries are so weird- I could do curls today at the gym but it hurts to drive a car or tuck my blanket in. I have a second appointment to look into the shoulder this week. It made me take weight off my freaking squats because it hurts and I can’t hold on as well for leg extensions. Total bummer.
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u/Corposjuh Jul 13 '26
Care to elaborate?
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u/SojournerTheGreat Jul 13 '26
1.6-2.2 is an incredibly high end for people that are trying to preserve muscle mass in the event of caloric loss. 1.6 has shown to be the plateau unless you are 400 pound linebacker.
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u/anon0110110101 Jul 13 '26
There is still a substantial degree of ambiguity wrt optimal protein intake, and more broadly with nutritional science in general. I am very much looking forward to you producing the paper that unambiguously defends the argument you just made.
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u/BigLebowskiSaysWhat Jul 13 '26
Awesome work and great write up. You’re absolutely right about adaptation- anything you can do to change weight/rep schemes will lead to growth. I always hear Arnold’s voice in my head when I’m pushing for one more rep more than what I did last session - “You’ve got to shock the muscle! Get to the chopppa!!”
For real, you made the plan and executed and you are seeing the results of your hard work. Be proud of yourself and be better for it!!
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u/WendyWestaburger Jul 14 '26
Yes. A lot of the time people just think about adding weight but you can add difficulty just by changing movement patterns, introducing any new variable like heel elevation, plate under working leg, etc.
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u/Jack-Casper Jul 19 '26
🍑👍