Workout

Exercise Guide
Including Cardio, Exercises,
& how to plan your workouts!

Lower Body
 Welcome to my personal weight training and body-sculpting workout guidelines! This
simple to follow, easy to understand program will help you to get your body better
and more toned than ever!

Within this training guide you will be able to choose the exercises that you enjoy for
each of your muscle groups.

You will also be able to change your workouts every 6-8 weeks, just by looking back
and selecting different exercises from your previous workout choices!
It is beneficial to change your workouts every 6-8 weeks, this is made easy- just by
going back and re selecting different exercises, this way you are keeping your body
guessing and able to progress further!

Along with this weight-training guide I have also included some information in regards
Welcome

to my personal cardio routine to help your aerobic fitness, help assist in weight loss
and make your feel great on the inside!

Combined with my clean eating diet guidelines, cardio and along with these weight
training manuals will make for some seriously amazing body transformations!

Once again, consistency is key. You may not see results straight away- but you WILL
see results with consistency!

These programs have been put together by myself, along with my personal team of
qualified personal trainers and ALL exercises in these guidelines are from my own
PERSONAL training programs.
Before beginning this or any other exercise regimen, consult your physician to be
sure it is appropriate for you. If you have any injuries, medical/health or problem areas
please take this into consideration with your own trainer or healthcare professional,
as the exercises from my workouts may not be appropriate for you, and you may
need to simply replace certain exercise(s) with an alternative that can suit your needs.
This site offers health, fitness, and nutritional information and is designed for
educational purposes only.
You should not rely on this information as a substitute for, nor does it replace,
professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you have any concerns or
questions about your health, you should always consult with a physician or other
health-care professional. Do not disregard, avoid or delay obtaining medical or health
related advice from your health-care professional because of something you may
have read on this site. The use of any information provided on this site is solely at
your own risk I accept no legal responsibility if you injure yourself, or obtain any long
term health effects.
This document along with all information included must not be shared, placed on the
Internet or reproduced, legal action will be taken. Copyright of Sophie Guidolin, all
rights reserved.

NOW START LIFTING!

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 Warming up is essential for any training program. Warming up helps reduce the
risk of injury along with wear and tear on your joints, but it also increases your
performance and the intensity of your session. I am a huge believer in warming
up- not only to increase your heart rate but also to prevent injuries, increase
flexibility and movement range and increase your lifting ability.

Start with a cardio based warm-up: Complete 3-7 minutes of a low intensity
exercise at 50% of your maximum heart rate, or around half of your maximum
potential. Try jogging, riding the bike, skipping, rowing, cross trainer etc. This will
increase your heart rate and warm up your body’s core temperature.
For each muscle group you need to warm up the joints that you will be using
for the session. This should be non-weight (or LOW weight- i.e. 1kg) loaded
Warming Up

movement for each of the joints that you will use for your training session.
For example, warm up the knees with squats, knee circles and knee figure
eights. 10 reps each is a good guide to follow. When training shoulders,
I always ensure I warm up with a variety of different LOW weight movements to
minimize the risk of injury! Finally, before jumping right into a super set lifting at
your maximum weight,
start by performing
low weight (50% of
your max) and half
the reps, for the
first few exercises in
your program before
beginning the exercise
as your maximum
weight.

Breathing:
Ensure that you
remember to breathe
throughout every
rep, every exercise.
Breathing is one
aspect that a lot
of people tend to
forget when they
begin weight training,
however is one of the
most important factors
when lifting! Exhale
whilst pushing;
inhale whilst pulling
is a simple guide
to remember.

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 Legs
Within this legs workout
it will have exercises
targeting everything from
quads, to your glutes
(booty!) right through
to your hamstrings to
ensure that your get that
toned, defined leg all the
way up to your bottom!
There are also exercises
that work your entire leg
muscles, even including
the ever-stubborn inner
thighs!

A few muscle names to

familiarize your self with:
Biceps Femoris
Semitendinosus
Semimembranosus
Soleus
Gastrocnemus
Gluteus Maximus
(Glutes, bum, booty,
bottom)
 Muscles Worked
Quads, Hamstrings

Equipment Needed
Leg Extrension Machine

Difficulty Level

Description
Using a leg extension machine, position the
Leg Extensions
machine so that the weighted roller is just on
your shin. Adjust the weight to ensure it is
the right weight for your goals. As a warm up
exercise I like to begin with single leg extensions
with high reps and a lower weight. Lift until
your legs are straight, hold, squeeze and slowly
lower before repeating. Try not to rock your
body and ensure you hold for a second whilst
your legs are contracted before slowly lowering
back down for the next rep.

Tips
I personally like to follow a routine of single legs
as my warm up exercise; I try and focus on
the negative. Not all body parts are equal and
I certainly have a stronger side, to counteract
this, I train them individually so I can change the
weight for my lagging side. My warm up single
leg extension is 15-20 each leg x 3. Before
moving on to other exercises, I then come back
to complete double leg extension after doing
my larger, dynamic exercises such as squats.

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 Muscles Worked
Hamstrings, Glutes, Lower Back

Equipment Needed
Barbell

Difficulty Level

Description
Stiff-Legged DeadLift
Stand with your torso upright and your feet
shoulder width apart, your knees will need to
be slightly bent to begin with. Imagine that
your body is a 90-degree lever (or like a door)
Imagine your torso is the top half and your
legs are the lower half. Bend your torso down
to grasp the barbell using an overhand grip
(palms facing down). Once you have the bar
in your hands, start to the bring the bar, close
along your legs, back upwards by straightening
your hips, pushing through using your glutes
and lower back. Keep the bar as close to your
legs on the way up as possible. Once you
have reached a locked out mid section, slowly
release the bar back down, again following
along your body.

Tips
Ensure you keep the weight on your heels
throughout the exercise. Once you have locked
out your hips squeeze your glutes together
before releasing.

Variations
Under/Over Grip
Dumbbells

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 Muscles Worked
Quads, Hamstrings, Glutes

Equipment Needed
Barbell, Squat Rack

Difficulty Level

Description
Lunges
Lunges can be completed in a variety of ways,
walking, stationary, alternating legs, isolating 1
leg by placing1 leg resting on a bench or chair,
using dumbbells, barbells, body weight or even
on a smith machine. The variation I have found
to be most effective is walking lunges using
dumbbells, however when I first started weight
training I found walking lunges using a barbell
to be an easier concept/weight. With walking
lunges ensure that you are placing your foot in
line or just outside of line with your hips. Take a
large step forward and follow through with your
other foot. I also incorporate stationary lunges
using the smith machine and a bench horizontal
(for my foot to rest on) this targets and isolates
your glutes and hamstrings really well.

Tips
Be careful to keep your upper body upright
and not slumped over. Ensure you go to your
body’s maximum range and go down as far as
possible.

Variations
Walking lunges, Stationary Lunges.
Different Weight Options:
Dumbbells, Barbells, Body Weight,
Smith Machine.

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 Leg Press
Description Tips
Sit down on the leg press Ensure your push through your heels.
machine and familiarize For your own safety, know how to
yourself with the machine so activate the safety bars.
you know how to lock securely
lock the weights using the Variations
safety bars. Place your feet on Wide, Narrow,
the platform using the desired One Leg
position, lower the safety bars and
allow your knees to go down to a
90 degree angle, power up through
your heels, ensuring you do not
lock out your knees. Focus on the
negative rep, being on the way down.
Ensure you lower the weights down
slowly to ensure the maximum benefits
of the exercise.

Muscles Worked Equipment Needed Difficulty Level

Quads, Calves, Glutes, Leg Press Machine
Hamstrings
(Different positions will result in
different muscles being worked:
Wide, Narrow, One Leg)

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 Muscles Worked
Quads, Calves, Glutes, Hamstrings, Lower Back

Equipment Needed
Barbell, Squat Rack

Difficulty Level

Description
Step underneath the bar, allowing it to rest on
the top of your shoulders. Lift the bar off the
rack and take a step backwards. Place your
feet inline with your hips (or slightly wider) turn
your toes so that they are facing outwards.
Push your hips back and bend your knees as
Barbell Squat

you squat towards the floor, ensuring your chest

remains upright and that your back is tight.
Go as low as you can go whilst maintain your
technique (also know as arse to grass) or until
your quads are parallel with the ground. Power
up through your heels, keeping your chest
upright, until your knees are almost locked out
and you are in the same position as you begun.

Tips
Make sure you back is kept tight throughout the
exercise. When powering up, ensure you push
through your heels.

Variations
Dumbbell Squat,
Kettle bell Squat

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 Muscles Worked
Quads, Calves, Glutes, Hamstrings, Lower Back, Abs

Equipment Needed
Barbell, Squat Rack

Difficulty Level
Front Barbell Squat
Description
Step underneath the bar, allowing it to rest on your
chest, cross your arms and keep them parallel to
the ground to keep the bar secure. Lift the bar off
the rack and take a step backwards. Bend your
knees and allow your upper body to slowly lower,
controlled until your thighs are parallel with the floor.
Slowly push the weight upwards until you reach the
initial position. Ensure your balance doesn’t shift
forward or backward, keeping your back as straight
as possible throughout the lift. Also, concentrate
on keeping your abs tightened throughout the lift
to support to your lower back. The following table
lists the muscles worked during front barbell squats.
Push your hips back and bend your knees as you
squat towards the floor, ensuring your chest remains
upright and that your back is tight. Go as low as you
can go whilst maintain your technique (also know
as arse to grass) or until your quads are parallel with
the ground. Power up through your heels, keeping
your chest upright, until your knees are almost
locked out and you are in the same position
as you begun.

Tips
Concentrate on keeping your abs tightened
throughout the lift to support to your lower back.
Make sure you back is kept tight throughout the
exercise. When powering up, ensure you push
through your heels.

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 Muscles Worked
Quads, Calves, Hamstrings

Equipment Needed
Barbell

Difficulty Level
Barbell Hack Squat
Description
Holding a barbell with your palms facing
backwards and standing upright, keep your
back straight and your chest upright, slowly
squat downwards until your thighs are parallel
with the ground. Pushing through your heels
and squeezing through your thighs until you are
standing again.

Variations
You can perform this with your heels elevated,
it helps for beginners who are not as flexible.

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 Muscles Worked
Quads, Calves, Glutes, Hamstrings

Equipment Needed
Dumbbells, Step or Flat Bench

Difficulty Level

Description
Standing upright whilst holding a barbell on your
shoulders (or a dumbbell in each hand- palms
facing towards your thighs) Place your right foot
on the step, using your heel to push the rest of
your body up onto the step. Step down wards
with your left leg and return to your starting
position before repeating.

Variations
Step Ups

This exercise can be performed by alternating

between the right and the left leg every time
until all repetitions have been performed for
both legs. Beginners can start with only the
bodyweight.

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 Muscles Worked
Legs, Glutes, Abdominals, Biceps

Alternating Leg Fitball Squats

Equipment Needed
Half Fitball, Weight - Advanced

Difficulty Level

Description
Using a half fitball, place it in the centre of an
open space, to make this exercise harder, use a
medicine ball held closely to your chest.
This exercise is a fast paced movement and
is a great cardiovascular exercise, along with
the amazing toning aspect. Starting in a semi
squat, place on of your feet on the fitball, as you
lift your body over and travel onto and across
the fitball, swap your feet with a burst upwards,
your other foot will now be on the fitball with
your free foot now to the other side of the fitball.
Continue back the other way to the starting
position, this is classified as one rep.

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 Muscles Worked

One Leg Smith Machine Squats

Quads, Glutes, Hamstrings

Equipment Needed
Smith Machine, Flat Bench

Difficulty Level

Description
Using a smith machine set at around should
height, position a flat bench behind the machine
so that your foot can be placed on it and your
leg is in a 90 degree angle. Position the bar on
the top of your back muscles, with your hands
equal wide distance apart. Place the top of your
foot on the bench behind you so that the sole
of your foot is facing upwards. Slowly squat
downwards keeping your chest upright and
your torso straight. Power upwards through
your heel and feel the squeeze in your glutes as
you push towards the starting position before
repeating.

Tips
Ensure your knees don’t go over your toes
throughout this movement. Keep your head
upright throughout the movement.

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 Fit ball
Glute Raises
Description Tips
Using a flat bench, position your Ensure you squeeze your glutes
body so that your bottom is toward throughout the exercise.
the end of the bench.
Lying on bench face down, place a
fitball in between your feet. Lift the Variations
ball upwards as you squeeze through If you are just beginning, try to do the
your glutes, hold at the top as you exercise with the ball in between your
squeeze and slowly lower back down feet. If you are working out from home
without touching the ground without a fit ball, use a balloon
before repeating. or soccer ball.

Muscles Worked Equipment Needed Difficulty Level

Glutes, Hamstrings Flat Bench, Fit Ball

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 Muscles Worked
Glutes, Hamstrings

Equipment Needed
Barbell, Flat Bench Horizontal

Hip Thrusts Difficulty Level

Description
Barbell
Place a bench horizontally behind you, sitting on
the floor in front of the bench; ensure the bench is
placed so that if you were to lean back it would be
in between your shoulder blades. Place the barbell
on your hips, roll it until you find a comfortable
position, hold in place with your hands, but do not
bare any of the weight on your hands/arms. Lift the
bar using your hips and squeeze through your glutes
throughout the movement. Hold at the top and
slowly release back down.

Tips
Place a towel under the bar for comfort, if needed.

Variations
Hip Bridge/Thrust, Description:
Lying on your back, bend your knees. Push through
your heels and lift your hips upwards keeping
your shoulders firmly on the ground as you push
upwards. Squeeze your glutes and hold at the top
before slowly releasing back down again.

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 Muscles Worked
Glutes, Hamstrings

Equipment Needed
Cable Machine, Heel Attachment
Difficulty Level

Description
Using a cable machine and a heel attachment,
place your foot inside. Stabilize your body by
placing your hands on your hips. Take a step
Cable Leg lifts
backwards, using the leg in the weight, lift on
of your heels backwards at a time in a straight
backwards motion. Squeeze in your glutes and
hold as you kick through your heel. Slowly bring
your knee back in towards your hips
before repeating.

Tips
Stabilize your body by holding on to a stable
piece of equipment. To perform this exercise
anywhere (non weighted) simply use a sturdy
chair or bench to hold onto!

Variations
Can also be performed kneeing on all fours,
and raising your bent leg into the air upwards

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 Muscles Worked
Hamstrings

Equipment Needed
Leg Curl Machine

Difficulty Level
Hamstring Curl
Description
Using either a seated (pictured) or lying
machine, adjust the positioning according
to your body. Using your legs pull your heels
towards your body, feel the stretch in your
hamstrings and allow to slowly release upwards
ensuring your concentrate on the negative rep
before repeating.

Variations
Lying leg curl

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 Muscles Worked
Calves

Equipment Needed
Seated Calf Raise Machine

Difficulty Level
Calf Raises
Description
Using a seated calf raise machine, lift the lever
(safety bar) to release the weighted pad, placing
your hands on top of the machine. Slowly lower
your heels by bending your ankles until you feel
the full stretch in your calves. Raise the heels by
extending your heels upwards as high as you
can and hold before repeating.

Variations
Using a bench and a barbell over your lap,
lifting your heels upwards.

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 Calf Press
Description Tips
Using the leg press machine, In most cases, you can keep the safety
position your toes at the bottom latch securely in place to ensure you do
of the pad, with your balls off the not drop the weight on yourself.
machine. Press upwards until you
feel a full stretch in your calves,
slowly lower back down through
your heels until your calves are fully
stretched again. Ensure you keep
your knees straight and stationary
throughout the movement.

Muscles Worked Equipment Needed Difficulty Level

Calves Leg Press Machine

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Now It’s time to plan
your own work out
designed around
achieving your goals.

Planning your workout

 Structuring your own custom personalized workout, according to your
goals and preferences! Now you have all of the exercises I personally
use in my workout routines, you can start to plan your own workouts!
First you need to decide whether you want to do a full body workout or
whether you are going to train certain muscle groups on different days.

This is known as a ‘training split program’

Training splits are beneficial due to a number of reasons:
Better recovery process for individual body parts
Your Workout

Workouts can be shorter in duration

You can focus on weaker or lagging body parts

Deciding whether to plan a full body workout or a split routine can be

determined by a few factors:

How many days a week you will get to workout- time!

Certain body parts you want to target
Personal goals
How long you have been training- experience!

For example, if you were going to the gym 5 days a week and you
started off every workout with squats, your legs/glutes/hamstrings
would feel very fatigued! Be realistic when planning your workouts, If
Structuring

you workout 3 days per week but you have 5 body parts you would like
toned, combine 2 body parts in the one session and ensure they are
split out across the week! Along with your training days, ensure you have
adequate rest days for your body to recover. Remember sleep, rest and
recovery are as important as working out and clean eating! I personally
find it necessary to do a training split so I can focus on lagging body
parts and to allow a full rest on other body parts.

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 Using the table, plan your weekly ‘training split program’.
Down the side of the page I have given an example.
SUN

Rest
Back
Training Split
SAT

Abs
FRI
Your Weekly

Arms
THU

Cardio
WED
TUE

Abs
MON

Legs
Example:

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 When planning your workouts, choose 4-6 of the exercises you find
appealing from the muscle groups you want to target!

Using the table to write your personalized training program, the higher
weight training program

the reps are the lighter the weight generally is.

Start with the beginner variation of the exercises and work your way up
to the more advanced, weight exercises.

Use the following steps to design your own custom weight-training

program, according to your own goals:

• Choose 4-6 exercises

• Read through the information on reps, sets and rest times.
• Using the table, fill in the desired exercises, reps, sets and rest
times according to your personal goals.
• Enjoy your new custom weight-training programs specially
designed to suit your individual goals!
your structured

MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT SUN

excersise
sets
Designing

reps
rest times

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 When planning your workouts there are a few key steps to follow:

REPS: (repetitions)
This is the amount of times you will do that exercise before you stop for a rest, the
total amount of reps will make up 1 ‘set’.
When planning the number of reps you wish to perform, work on a using this as a
simplified guide:
1-6 This rep range targets strength training- (1 being the absolute maximum
weight that a person can lift whilst maintaining correct form)
6-8 Is the range for a combination of optimal strength gains, along with
hypertrophy (meaning increase in muscle size due to the increased size of muscle
fibers)
The key Steps

8-15 Reps is the best rep range for hypertrophy (muscle gains) which in turn
leads to increased overall strength
15-20+ Reps are targeting endurance based strength gains.
So the lower the repetitions the more it is targeting your strength, mid range
repititions are a combination of strength and muscle gains and the higher reps are
for endurance based training.

Choosing the right reps ranges and exercises according to your goals:

Strength Training
Higher Weight, lower reps. Compound exercises develop strength faster than
isolation exercises as they naturally use heavier loads and require more energy
systems.

Hypertrophy (Muscle Gains)

For maximum results a variety of different weights and different rep ranges should
be included to stress all elements of the muscle cell and all types of the muscle
fibres. However stick to mixing up the mid-range repitition range of 6-15. By
constantly changing and using a variety of exercises your muscle fibres are forced
to constantly adapt and grow. Both compounding and isolation movements can
be used to increase muscle mass. Compounding exercises use a large muscle
mass which leads to more fibres being forced to adapt. Whereas isolation
exercises allow for a more focused, targeted muscle fibre breakdown.

Weight Management
The benefits of weight training to assist in fat loss occur in the period after your
workout when your body has had a metabolic response to the weight training
session. When weight training is combined along side my clean eating guidelines
the optimal fat loss results can be achieved.
The main goal in fat loss is achieving an increase in the total caloric expenditure
during your workout. More reps burn more calories due to the total amount of
work being performed. Larger muscle groups are most effective in burning more
calories as they utilize larger amounts of muscle mass.

Muscular Endurance
Higher reps target muscles endurance. Often for sports performance or athletes,
the main objective is within this training method is to develop the muscles ability
to continue to generate force or power when in a fatigued or tired state.

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 Now that you have
selected your rep
range you will need to
plan how many ‘sets’
you will perform.
Some people may
need to perform a
number of sets in
order to achieve
the results they are
working towards,
whereas others may
only do 2 or 3 sets.

As a rule of thumb, if
you are doing a lower
number of reps per
set you will need to
increase the amount
of sets you perform.
In return, if you are
doing a large number
of reps per set, you
will do fewer sets.
Sets

If you are a beginner,

start with a low
number of sets and
work your way up to
more. Injury may occur
if you are fatigued, so
ensure you listed to
your body.

As a rule of thumb, I
always train the largest
muscles first as they
will require the most
energy, along with
the more complex
movements next.

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 Ever see someone
sitting on a machine,
having a drink, looking
around?
Did you know that the
resting time in between
your set is actually
an important factor
when writing your
personalized plan?

Rest intervals are very

important and are
often over looked. A
rest in between your
set will allow your
energy system to
maintain more of a
complete recovery of
energy systems and
the nervous system to
ensure you perform
at your peak for your
next set.
Rest

Longer rest periods

in between your sets
(greater than 3 minutes)
will allow for an
increased testosterone
release, which is
desirable for those
whose goals is strength
training.

Shorter rest periods

of less than 1 minute
lead to an increased
release of human
growth hormone and
increase in waste
production. Short
intervals are therefore
recommended for
muscle growth.

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 Stretching and warming down after a workout is an
Stretching
essential to the completion of your workout please
ensure you allow time to stretch after weight training.
The body is given time to cool down and the muscles
are elongated after shortening during the workout.
Stretching is essential for muscle health and the
prevention of injury.

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 The 2 cardio choices that I include in my personal training programs are:

• High Intensity Interval Training

• Fasted Morning Cardio

Description
This is performed before you consume any food or drink.
Using a treadmill set the incline between 8%- 14% (depending on
personal fitness levels)
Set the speed at a moderate walk (around 60-70% of your maximum)

Time 30-45 minutes

Tips
If you get into a habit of doing this every morning, it becomes and
amazing routine that is a great way to start your day.

HIT (High Intensity Interval Training)

Cardio

I recommend this for those who do their cardio after weight training.
Using a treadmill, place your feet on the sides of the belt, set the speed
at a fast sprint/running speed. Between 11km/ph- 18km/ph.
Sprint for 20 seconds as fast as you can, then place your feet back on
the sides of the best. Rest for 10 seconds.
This combo is great, as you will essentially be hopping on at every
30-second interval, which is easy to remember.
It’s a short burst of running, so is great for the beginner right through to
the advanced fitness levels (at a faster speed)
Do this for 20-30 minutes, 3 times per week.

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 Choose which ones

4 Leg Extensions
5 Stiff-Legged DeadLift
Glossary of Exercises
6 Lunges
7 Leg press
8 Barbell Squat
9 Front Barbell squat
10 Barbell Hack Squat
11 Step Ups
12 Alternating Leg Fitball Squats
13 One Leg Smith Machine Squats
14 Fit ball Glute Raises
15 Barbell Hip Thrusts
16 Cable Leg lifts
17 Hamstring Curl
18 Calf Raises
19 Calf Press

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 Common terms that may be used throughout these workout guidelines:

· Anterior refers to the front

· Posterior refers to the back
· Medial is towards the midline of the body
· Lateral is away from the midline of the body
· Barbell (BB): Long bar with weights attached to the end
· EZ Bar: Similar to a barbell with bends in the bar to help support
wrists
Common Terms

· Dumbbell (DB): Short, hand held bar with weights

Attached
· Kettlebell: A metal weight with a rounded handle on the top-
different weights.
· Medicine ball: A soft rubber exterior usually with handles and
different weights.
· Fit ball: An air filled round ball
· Eccentric Action/ Negative Rep: Muscle lengthens under
tension, this is also known as the negative portion of an
exercise.
· Isolation Exercise: Exercise that involves the movement
of a single joint, this is designed to “isolate” a specific
muscle or muscle group.
· Repetition (Rep): One complete execution of a weight
training exercise through its full range of movement.
· Hypertrophy: Increase in muscle size due to an increase
in the size of the muscle fibres.
· Set: A pre-determined number of reps performed
consecutively
· Split Program: A method of resistance training, where specific
body parts are trained in different sessions.
· Strength Endurance: The ability to perform repeated
muscular contractions.

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