Fuel Your Strength

If a pull-up has been sitting on your goal list for what feels like forever, this one's for you. In this episode, you'll learn 4 things that should be on your to do list if you want to do a pull-up, the exact things I work on with my lifters in Strong with Steph.
You'll also hear the flip side: the three things to not do if a pull-up is the goal, because a lot of well-meaning advice (and a lot of self-talk) can actually get in the way. Whether you're chasing your very first chin-over-bar moment or you're stuck at the same plateau you've been at for months, this episode will help you reframe your approach, training shifts, and mindset around what "progress" looks like.
What you'll learn in this episode:
The movement pattern to focus on for strength building for pull-ups
Why pull-ups aren't just a strength movement - and what to also work on
One of the most underrated tools for tracking pull-up progress
Should you use bands or assisted pull-up machines?
How to reframe your pull-up progress into process goals
Enjoyed this episode and want more? 
If this episode resonates and you're ready to stop guessing in the gym, take the StrongAF Quiz: https://stephgaudreau.com/quiz 
Get the performance meal prep guide at https://go.stephgaudreau.com/mealprepguide
Please share it with a friend and subscribe to Fuel Your Strength so you don't miss future episodes like this one.

Ever hauled fitness equipment onto a plane just so you wouldn't miss a workout on vacation? This episode dives into that story, and if it sounds a little too relatable, you're not alone. If you're a high-achieving woman over 40, chances are you've felt like a single missed session is the beginning of the end.
If life's curveballs – travel, injuries, family stuff, midlife hormone chaos – have ever left you feeling like you're wrecking your progress in the gym, this one's for you. You'll learn why rigid all-or-nothing thinking backfires, what "customizing" your training actually looks like in practice, and why the math on taking time off is way more forgiving than your brain wants you to believe.
What you'll learn in this episode:
Why high achievers are especially prone to this training trap — and how it shows up without you even noticing
What percentage of the year two weeks off actually represents (the number might surprise you)
The mindset shift that turns "I failed" into "I customized"
How to handle the truly unpredictable stuff – injuries, emergencies, poor sleep – without spiraling into rigid all-or-nothing thinking
Why training is a practice and an art, not a pass/fail test with one right answer
Enjoyed this episode and want more? 
If this episode resonates and you're ready to stop guessing in the gym, take the Strength Gap Quiz: https://stephgaudreau.com/quiz 
Get the performance meal prep guide at https://go.stephgaudreau.com/mealprepguide
Please share it with a friend and subscribe to Fuel Your Strength so you don't miss future episodes like this one.

You're showing up and putting in work, so why does it feel like your training just isn't clicking? In this episode, you'll continue through the strength gap series by digging into one of the most common and most misunderstood reasons athletic women over 40 are struggling to see progress: program mismatch...the program you're following was probably never built with someone like you in mind.
You'll learn why so many popular programs (think bodybuilding splits or powerlifting templates) look great on paper but don't fit well for your life when you're juggling a sport, a packed schedule, and it's more challenging to recover. And you'll hear about what a truly matched program accounts for, why switching programs isn't the same as starting over, and what it actually feels like when your training works in harmony with your life.
Curious which of the four strength gaps is holding your training back? Take the free Strength Gap Quiz at https://stephgaudreau.com/quiz 
In this episode, you'll learn:
Why sweet spot of effective training gets smaller over time
Why some of the most popular, highest-reviewed programs out there might not be the right fit for you
The specific mismatch pattern I see over and over with athletic women over 40
What a program has to account for to be a true match for your goals, your schedule, and your sport
The sneaky mental cost of sticking with a mismatched program, even when you're "trying your best"
Why switching to a better-fit program isn't quitting even though it can feel that way
Enjoyed this episode and want more? 
If this episode resonates and you're ready to stop guessing in the gym, take the Strength Gap Quiz: https://stephgaudreau.com/quiz 
Please share it with a friend and subscribe to Fuel Your Strength so you don't miss future episodes like this one.

You're showing up consistently and not looking for shortcuts. So why does it feel like you're just staying busy but not actually getting stronger or building muscle? This episode, the last in the Strength Gap series, has nothing to do with effort or discipline. It's about whether your body has a reason to change from the workouts you're doing.
You'll dive into the difference between exercising and training, why your body stops adapting when the stimulus never changes, and what it means to have progression deliberately built into a program instead of just showing up and doing random things. You'll also hear about the biggest fear that comes up around this gap: that a program with real structure has to be rigid, perfectionistic, and completely inflexible. 
Curious which of the four strength gaps is holding your training back? Take the free Strength Gap Quiz at https://stephgaudreau.com/quiz 
In this episode, you'll learn:
The biggest thing your body needs to get stronger, and why simply showing up isn't enough to provide it
The difference between movement and training
What it means to be stuck in the "endless middle" of your training, and why that's different from overtraining or a mismatched program
The house-building analogy that reframes what structure and flexibility actually look like together
Why you're afraid that a program with progression built in means giving up all flexibility (and what's actually true)
What changes mentally and physically when you start training with a plan
Enjoyed this episode and want more? 
If this episode resonates and you're ready to stop guessing in the gym, take the Strength Gap Quiz: https://stephgaudreau.com/quiz 
Subscribe to Fuel Your Strength so you don't miss future episodes like this one.

If you've been lifting consistently but still aren't seeing the strength gains you expect, this episode is for you. This episode kicks off a brand-new series on the four main strength gaps keeping athletic women over 40 from making progress in the gym – and this first installment tackles the most common one: total training load.
You'll learn why the "sweet spot" of effective training gets narrower as you age, how everything from your sport to your lifting sessions to your active lifestyle all draws from the same recovery reserve, and why more workouts don't automatically add up to more results.
Discover what's really happening when your lifting plateaus despite consistent effort, why fear of losing progress often keeps people stuck overtraining, and how a smarter, more strategic approach to training volume can actually get you better results with less burnout. Whether you're training for a half marathon, deep into jiu-jitsu, or just love being active, this episode will help you understand why your current program might be working against you – and what to do instead.
Curious which of the four strength gaps is holding your training back? Take the free Strength Gap Quiz at https://stephgaudreau.com/quiz 
In this episode, you'll learn:
Why your lifting program might be sabotaging you without you even knowing it
The real reason the training "sweet spot" gets narrower after 40
Why more lifting days can actually mean less progress
What recovery is really doing behind the scenes of every strength gain
The fear that keeps so many women stuck overtraining
How to organize a program that flexes with your sport instead of fighting it
Enjoyed this episode and want more? 
If this episode resonates and you're ready to stop guessing in the gym, take the Strength Gap Quiz: https://stephgaudreau.com/quiz 
Please share it with a friend and subscribe to Fuel Your Strength so you don't miss future episodes like this one.