The Best Body Weight & Resistance Workouts for Girls Under 18
Building Strength, Confidence & Lifelong Habits—Without Needing Weights
If you’re a teenage girl—or a parent of one—wondering whether it’s safe or necessary to start strength training early, the answer is yes. And no, lifting weights or resistance training will not stunt your growth.
That myth has been long debunked by science. In fact, properly guided strength training during adolescence helps to improve bone density, prevent injuries, enhance coordination, and lay the foundation for long-term health.
At The Evolved, we safely support girls as young as 12 to start building strength with a focus on good movement, confidence, and fun.
Let’s break down how body weight and beginner-friendly resistance workouts can create powerful results.
Why Start Strength Training Young?
Teenage years are a prime time to build strength and movement patterns that set girls up for life. During this stage, the body is changing rapidly—and with the right approach, you can:
- Increase strength and muscle tone safely
- Support joint health and coordination
- Boost confidence and body awareness
- Build resilience for sports or daily life
- Prevent future injuries by learning to move well now
Strength training doesn’t have to be intimidating. When started early, it becomes a normal, empowering part of life, rather than something to fear or avoid later.
Not Ready for Weights? No Problem.
You can build serious strength using just your body weight and resistance bands. In fact, these are the tools we use to introduce strength training to our younger clients.
Here are the foundational moves we teach and why they matter:
Push-Ups
Develop upper-body and core strength while teaching stability and control. Starting with wall or knee variations helps build confidence while learning correct form.
Body Weight Squats
One of the most functional movements—squats strengthen the legs, glutes, and core. They also help girls understand posture, balance, and knee alignment.
Lunges
Great for coordination, single-leg strength, and balance. Lunges also teach how to control movement through different planes.
Planks
A full-body exercise that strengthens the core, shoulders, and glutes. It also trains posture and teaches the importance of breathing under tension.
Glute Bridges
An excellent way to activate and strengthen the glutes and lower back, supporting posture and athletic performance.
Banded Rows & Lateral Walks
With light resistance bands, girls can begin to strengthen postural muscles, hips, and back in a safe and scalable way.
All of these movements are simple to learn, easy to progress, and incredibly effective when taught with proper technique.
How We Help Girls Build Strength the Right Way
Every teen who begins strength training with us is met with encouragement, patience, and a plan tailored to her body. We focus on:
- Teaching proper movement before adding resistance
- Building self-awareness and confidence in the gym
- Avoiding pressure or comparison by creating a supportive, girls-only space
- Empowering young women to trust their bodies and grow stronger at their own pace
The goal isn’t just physical strength—it’s mental strength, consistency, and lifelong confidence.
Strength Training is a Lifelong Skill
When girls learn to move well, lift safely, and feel strong in their bodies from a young age, that confidence follows them through every stage of life.
Whether the goal is to perform better in sport, reduce injury, or simply feel more at home in their own skin, strength training is a skill worth learning early.
If strength training is a lifelong habit you’d like to learn, click here to find out how to get started in a beginner-friendly way.
