Are You as Advanced as You Think in the Gym?
Discover the truth about strength training for women, and why effort alone isn’t enough, and how to build muscle after 35 with a strategy that works on this episode of Get Sculpted.
Here’s what we want you to remember: time spent working out doesn’t always equal progress. You can lift for years, follow all the trends, and still wonder why your body isn’t changing the way you want it to. This episode is your wake-up call—the hard truth that consistency alone isn’t enough if your workouts aren’t strategic.
In this episode of Get Sculpted, Coach Tijana, Marilynn, and Jordanna break down what it really means to be advanced in strength training for women, why your results might have stalled, and how to train with the kind of intention that actually builds muscle and transforms your body.
From understanding true progressive overload for women to learning why lifting heavier (not longer) matters, they’ll help you separate effort from effectiveness—so you can finally see the definition, strength, and confidence you’ve been working for.
Because the truth is, you don’t need to do more… you need to do it right.
Here's what we cover:
Why your training age matters more than how many years you’ve been working out
The difference between being consistent and being effective
How to train with intensity, structure, and purpose instead of just “doing more”
Why building muscle after 35 isn’t about luck or genetics, but about strategy
How coaching, feedback, and accountability accelerate your results
The mindset shift that takes you from “active” to advancing
This conversation blends tough love with empowerment, the kind that helps you look in the mirror and say, “Okay, I’m ready to level up.”
If you’ve ever wondered why your workouts aren’t showing up in your results, this episode will help you understand what’s missing and how to fix it with strategy, structure, and support.
Effort without intention doesn’t equal results. The right plan does.
-Coach Tijana
It’s time to stop guessing and start training with purpose. Tune in to find out what truly separates experienced lifters from those just going through the motions and how you can move into your strongest, most sculpted era. Then share your ah-ha moment with us on Instagram.
Connect with Get Sculpted
Thanks for joining us on this episode of Get Sculpted! If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a review on Apple or Spotify to help us reach even more women ready to cut through the noise and get the real deal on fat loss, muscle building, and what it really takes to build their 2.0 sculpted self inside and out.
This podcast is brought to you in partnership with Leah Bryant Co.
More about the Get Sculpted Podcast
Welcome to Get Sculpted, the podcast for women who want to lose fat, build muscle, and reset their metabolism with science-based strategies and actionable advice.
We go beyond quick fixes and fad diets to give you sustainable fat loss strategies, strength training tips for women, and the mindset shifts that help you achieve lasting results. Think less guessing, more confidence, and habits that actually fit your lifestyle.
No matter if you’re just starting out or ready to level up your training, this podcast gives women the tools to lose fat, build muscle, and feel stronger in their bodies.
We’re your hosts, Jordanna, Marilynn, and Tijana, fitness pros with over 20 years of combined experience and 1,000+ client transformations, including a focus on helping women optimize their metabolism and build strength. You’ll get strategies designed for real bodies and real lives.
We’ll cover questions like:
Can you lose fat and build muscle at the same time?
What is the best way for women to lose fat without losing muscle?
How do I start strength training as a beginner woman?
Why am I not losing weight even though I’m working out and eating healthy?
How can I stop yo-yo dieting for good?
Is cardio necessary for fat loss?
If you’ve been searching for sustainable fat loss, women’s nutrition, and strength training that actually works, you’re in the right place. Join us every week to sculpt a stronger body and a more empowered 2.0 life.
Connect with us on Instagram at @getsculted.ca
The unedited podcast transcript for this episode of the Get Sculpted podcast follows:
Tijana [00:00:28]: I started doing it, and mind you, my form was atrocious. I didn't know what the heck I was doing, but I thought, I am so fit. I'm working out every day. And I know that deep down, which is easy for me to admit now, but not at the time, I couldn't admit that, like, man, girl, you need some help here. Like, you don't have this all figured out, and you can't just walk in and have all this skills and experience and knowledge just from your own head…
WHAT BEING 'ADVANCED' IN THE GYM REALLY MEANS
Tijana [00:01:40]: All right, awesome. So let's talk about what it means to be advanced. Cause it's not just about how long you've been training. Okay. Because we've worked with tons of women. I know all of us who they're like, I've been working out for, like, 20 years, and this is how the conversation sometimes goes. Oh, I had a trainer. Oh, what did that look like? You know, I did, like, six sessions in College.Tijana [00:02:17]: We're not denying that maybe you have a lot of the kind of big things down, meaning like resistance training, you're doing it, but you've been kind of like a hamster wheel in your head, right? There hasn't been any feedback loop, there hasn't been anyone assessing your form... I actually don't count the years you've been working out. I count training age by how long have those workouts been effective and intentional?...
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MOVING AND MAKING PROGRESS
Jordanna [00:04:19]: I also would add that things have changed. How we look at building muscle from a personal training standpoint, from the science of it, how to build glutes today, is very different than how someone might have built glutes 15 years ago…Marilynn [00:05:22]: Yep. I also think, especially the women we work with, 35, 40 plus, there's a lot more conversation now about the importance of resistance training and training with heavy weight to be able to maintain muscle and bone density as we get older…
WHY CONSISTENCY ALONE WON'T SCULPT YOUR BODY
Tijana [00:05:58]: Okay. So I also wanna interject with a little bit of tough love here. Okay. And again, this is what I would have needed to hear at the time as well. If you have been lifting weights for longer than one year and you don't look like you lift weights, like, if you're Naked and you can't see the big muscles there. You're either not lean enough to have that show and that's nutrition, or, or your training is just not at the right level…Jordanna [00:08:22]: Yeah, I think that like when we have this conversation and I want you to really be thinking about a self assessment while you're listening to this episode and asking yourself, where am I on the spectrum of a beginner to being intermediate to being advanced? Because time doesn't always equal advancement on that scale…
EFFORT VS. EFFECTIVE TRAINING: THE KEY TO ACTUAL RESULTS
Jordanna [00:10:09]: Maybe you are. But nonetheless, at some point you're going to need a little bit more muscle to maintain the look that you're after and to help you long term with your health. So if the programming, if the intensity that you're working at, if the recovery is not locked in place and done with strategy, you're not going to get the optimal results, or it's going to take you an exceptionally long time to really get those pieces dialed in…Tijana [00:13:02]: And what we're getting at is like, just doing more of the foundation stuff is going to keep you in the foundation. Like, you need to be eating more, you need to be lifting heavy. You might not even understand what that looks like…
HOW COACHES LEVEL UP – EVEN WHEN YOU’RE ALREADY AN EXPERT
Jordanna [00:13:55]: Yep. And then t, I would love to hear a little bit more about, like, your experience with coaches needing coaches. Cause I think that that's also been very insightful. And we work with a number of coaches as our clients for this very story that you're going to share.Tijana [00:14:11]: Absolutely. So I want to share about my competition as well... I've been lifting for 15 years. But again, like you, Jord, a lot of that was not effective. Like, half of it, I would say was like, really effective. I've been training women for 13 plus years, coaching and training, and I still hired a coach for my fitness competition. And I've had coaches over the years as well…
Jordanna [00:17:36]: I think also having a coach gives you a blueprint for success. Like I've always thought of it this way, and you can apply that to other areas of your life…
RESULTS DON'T LIE: FACTS OVER FEELINGS
Marilynn [00:19:02]: Tough love. Here we go. I hate to break it to all of you listening. No matter what you think you're doing or not doing, at the end of the day, your results are gonna tell the story. You can question the heck out of everything. Your coach, your programming, your macros, all of that, but you can't argue with results, especially if they're not happening…
THE ADVANCED WOMAN’S BLUEPRINT: INTENTION, INTENSITY, AND STRATEGY
Jordanna [00:21:30]: Yeah, I love that because here's, like, the super hard truth, and I almost, like, my ego, kind of doesn't like to hear even what I'm about to say. So, like, cringe with me a little. But, like, you kind of need to earn the level that you want to be at. You have to put in the reps and you have to put in the work, which is trying really hard. You are doing the work, but you have to be doing the right work in the right order…Tijana [00:26:20]: Yes, yes, yes. I want to tie this in now and recap what exactly you need to be focusing on and how you get to that level where you look like someone who's advanced. Not just you've put in the time, but you're not seeing all that fruits of your hard labor. Okay? So remember, this isn't about tearing you down genuinely…