How to run the Strong Curves program

Who Is This Program For?

Bootyful Beginnings is for beginners, primarily women, who want to build strong, developed glutes along with a stronger whole body. No prior barbell experience is needed: block 1 is mostly bodyweight, and the barbell lifts are earned block by block.

The program focuses on:

• Glute-first ordering: hip thrusts and bridges open every session, when you are freshest
• Full-body coverage: every workout also trains back, legs, upper body, and core
• Progressive equipment: bodyweight first, then dumbbells and kettlebells, then barbells
• Skill building: 12 weeks that end with you hip thrusting and squatting a barbell confidently

If you want a proven glute-focused introduction to lifting, this is it.

Program Structure

The 12-Week Layout

Each block has three workouts, A, B, and C, performed once each per week (for example Monday / Wednesday / Friday) with at least one rest day between sessions. From week 5 onward, you can optionally add a 4th day by repeating Workout A for extra glute volume.

How to Read the Workouts

Exercises are paired (A1/A2, B1/B2): perform one set of the first exercise, immediately one set of the second, rest 30-90 seconds, and repeat until all sets are done. The remaining exercises are done one at a time.

Weeks 1-4, Workout A

Weeks 1-4, Workout B

Weeks 1-4, Workout C

Weeks 5-8, Workout A

Weeks 5-8, Workout B

Weeks 5-8, Workout C

Weeks 9-12, Workout A

Weeks 9-12, Workout B

Weeks 9-12, Workout C

The Hip Thrust Progression

The program's signature lift is built deliberately across the 12 weeks:

1. Glute bridge (weeks 1-4): floor bridging, learning full hip extension
2. Single-leg glute bridge (weeks 1-8): one leg at a time, more load per glute
3. Bodyweight hip thrust (weeks 5-8): shoulders on a bench, full range of motion
4. Barbell hip thrust (weeks 9-12): external load, the strongest glute exercise there is
5. Paused and single-leg hip thrusts (weeks 9-12): harder variations at the same load

On every rep, drive through the heels, reach full hip extension, and squeeze the glutes hard for a second at the top. If you don't feel your glutes doing the work, lighten the load and fix the movement before progressing.

Why Glutes Come First

Every session opens with the glute exercise because you are strongest and freshest at the start. Training the target muscle first, three times per week, is the entire philosophy of the program: roughly 36 glute-first sessions in 12 weeks.

Progression: How Weights Increase

Strong Curves uses double progression within every rep range:

• Start at the bottom of the rep range with a weight (or variation) you fully control
• Add reps each session
• When all sets hit the top of the range, add 2.5 kg (5 lbs), or move to the next harder variation for bodyweight movements, and restart at the bottom of the range

Example:

Week 9: Barbell Hip Thrust 3x10 @ 40 kg (90 lbs)
Week 10: Barbell Hip Thrust 3x14 @ 40 kg (90 lbs)
Week 11: Barbell Hip Thrust 3x20 @ 40 kg (90 lbs) (top of range)
Week 12: Barbell Hip Thrust 3x10 @ 42.5 kg (95 lbs) (increase weight, restart)

For bodyweight exercises, progress reps, then range of motion, then the next variation in the chain (for example step-up to high step-up, glute bridge to hip thrust).

Get Your Form Right First

Everything below assumes your form is already solid. Finding your working weight, adding weight, chasing reps, all of it only works if you can perform the lift correctly. While your form is not locked in, that is your only job. Make good form the goal of every set, not the weight on the bar. Drilling the movement with an empty bar beats loading plates onto a lift you cannot control yet.

To learn, don't hesitate to search Google and YouTube (there is a lot of good free material) and record yourself from the side to compare against a proper demonstration. In general, good form means a full controlled range of motion, a braced neutral spine, no bouncing or momentum, a consistent setup every rep, and ending the set when technique breaks down rather than grinding sloppy reps.

Finding Your Starting Weights

Block 1 needs almost no numbers: bodyweight movements plus light dumbbells. For the weighted exercises:

1. Start with a clearly easy weight, such as 5-10 kg (10-20 lbs) dumbbells for rows and presses
2. Perform a set at the bottom of the rep range
3. If you finish with more than 2-3 reps in reserve, go up one dumbbell size and repeat
4. Use the first weight that feels like honest work as your starting weight

When barbell lifts arrive in blocks 2 and 3, begin with the empty barbell (20 kg / 45 lbs), or a lighter training bar for pressing if needed, and progress from there. It's better to start too light than too heavy; the double progression catches up within 2 weeks.

Warming Up

Before each session, do 5-10 minutes of general preparation: light cardio, glute activation (a set of bodyweight bridges and clams if the day starts with a loaded thrust), and hip and ankle mobility. Because the first working sets in each pair are high-rep and moderate weight, they act as their own ramp-up. Once you reach the barbell blocks, take 1-2 lighter sets of the barbell lifts before your working weight:

Rest Times

Sessions should take about 45-60 minutes. If you are far over, tighten the rests; if your form is degrading, lengthen them.

Deload / Stall Protocol

The block changes every 4 weeks act as built-in variety, so full deloads are rarely needed in 12 weeks. If an exercise stalls (same weight and reps for three sessions):

• Check recovery: 7-9 hours of sleep, enough food, 1.5-2.2 g of protein per kg of bodyweight (0.7-1 g per lb)
• Drop back one variation (barbell hip thrust to bodyweight hip thrust) for a session and rebuild
• Or reduce the weight by 10% and climb back through the rep range

Never push through pain in the hips or lower back; drop to the easier variation and master it first.

Program Duration

This program is designed to run for 12 weeks (three 4-week blocks at 3 sessions per week, totaling 36 workouts, up to 48 with the optional 4th day from week 5).

Why 12 weeks?

• Each block builds the skill needed for the next; the barbell lifts arrive when you are ready for them
• 36 glute-first sessions is enough volume for visible development
• By week 12 you can hip thrust, squat, and hinge with a barbell, which unlocks every intermediate program

Access the Original Program

If you would like to read more about the original program and its spreadsheets:

Strong Curves Spreadsheets and PDF on Lift Vault

The complete program with coaching detail is in the book Strong Curves by Bret Contreras and Kellie Davis.