Hailey Happens Fitness, Boulder, CO (2026)

Photos from Hailey Happens Fitness's post

07/14/2026

Another common strength imbalances I’ve seen in the thousands of midlife women I’ve coached is quadriceps that are much stronger than the hamstrings.

If you’ve followed me for a while, you know how much I stress a balanced body. This is especially true for my runners and cyclists. If we look at common exercises, they usually include leg press, lunges, step ups, squats.

These are all fantastic exercises, but they place a huge demand on the quadriceps, particularly on the patellar tendon that connects your kneecap to your shin.

If the hamstrings aren’t strong enough to share the load, the quadriceps will take over.

The simple fix is to bring up the hamstrings by biasing posterior chain exercises for a while.

Here are my faves to build up the hamstrings:

➡️ Nordic Negatives

➡️Suspension leg curls

➡️Swiss ball leg curls (bilateral AND unilateral)

➡️Wall Sit (obvi an isometric quad exercise to help the tendon). Try single leg too!

➡️2 up/1 down - no patient needed here!

➡️Single leg horizontal back extension OR use a 45 degree back extension (wicked hard)

➡️Barbell Romanian Deadlift (swap out for dumbbells if needed)

➡️Another 2 up/1 down (gym version)

➡️Deadlifts- (not shown)

A stronger posterior chain helps create a better balance between the quads and hammies allowing the knee to share the load more efficiently.

Your body works best when there is muscle symmetry. My foundations programs build up weak links like this. Try it free in membership for 10 days. Link in bio!

07/13/2026

We all know mobility and is important as we age. I’m always asked what women should do before or after a workout.

Mobility is individual. It’s specific to your body, your goals, and the exercises you want to perform.

If your hips are super mobile, don’t spend your limited time on hip mobility.

Instead ask yourself:

“Where am I actually limited?” And start there. While you can never go wrong with any mobility, most of us have limited time, so every minute counts.

I do not do mobility every workout, and if I do, it’s mainly the thoracic spine and the shoulders because that’s what I need most.

Don’t forget that strength training works on mobility too! If

Here are my faves….

➡️Kettlebell Cossack Lunge- I ❤️this one. Don’t worry if you don’t have the range that o have here. Your anatomy can dictate how this drill looks.

➡️Kettlebell Arm Bars- this is great for your thoracic spine

➡️Banded (or pipe) over and backs- use a PVC pipe for this drill and keep trying to walk your hands in a little closer as your mobility allows. You can make this easier by using a long resistance band.

➡️Prayer Stretch- this stretch is great because you are not only hitting the thoracic spine, but also the lats and the triceps. Note: Focus on moving the thoracic (middle) spine, not the lumbar.

➡️Plank with alternating reach to the toes- this is a great thoracic drill too

➡️Wall Slides- I threw this one in because it sucks. Notice how my left hand can’t even touch the glass. Clearly this is what I need to work on.

➡️Foam roller thoracic extension- by far my fave and the one I would do everyday if I had to choose only one. Mainly because it feels good;)

➡️Foam Roller Wall Slides- this targets the shoulders and upper back. It helps improve your overhead reaching ability and reinforces moving the shoulder blades correctly.

➡️Barbell Front Foot Elevated Lunge- a great drill for ankle mobility. Hang out at the end range to promote this mobility.

➡️Kettlebell Deep Squats- great for the hips and ankles. Notice how I’m rocking a bit as I’m trying to push the knee forward to work on the ankles.

I shoot for about 3 sets of each drill around 60 sec each.

Pick what wor

07/11/2026

The question I get asked more than any other is...

“What program should I be doing?”

My answer is always the same. It depends on your goal. One program can’t build everything.

As midlife women, we need to train for a lot more than just a great physique.

We need to build muscle.

We need maximal strength to protect our bones and maintain independence.

We need power and speed because those are the first qualities we lose as we age.

We need interval training to improve our VO₂ max and cardiovascular health.

And we need foundational phases to build movement quality, symmetry and eliminate weak links before we layer on heavier loads.

Plan out your training year. Focus on one priority for a period of time, then move on to the next.

That’s exactly how all of my members inside the HHF Membership train.
We work in 12-week phases, with each phase having a specific purpose. Every block builds on the one before it, so by the end of the year we’ve covered everything that matters. Nothing is left to chance.

The greatest investment you can make in your future self isn’t finding the perfect workout. It’s committing to a long-term strength training plan.

Because the strongest women I know didn’t get there by guessing what to do each week. They got there by following an intelligent plan.

Comment “HHF” to try my app free for 10 days.

07/10/2026

Hunger has always been thought of as a willpower problem. It's not. There are very real, very specific reasons why you crave what you crave, when you crave it, and none of them mean something is wrong with you.

Hunger Decoded is a full breakdown of the science behind appetite, cravings, and hunger, plus a simple audit tool to figure out your own patterns. Reviewed for accuracy by Mikki Williden, PhD, the nutritionist behind all of my education courses, so you know it's solid.

This guide is live NOW for all members.

Join the membership to check it out, along with every other guide, workout, and resource designed to help you understand your body instead of fighting it.

Link in bio. 🍎

07/09/2026

Creatine isn't just for athletes anymore. For women navigating menopause, it's becoming one of the most important tools for protecting muscle, bone, and brain. But misinformation is everywhere, and a lot of women are skipping it based on myths that simply don't hold up.

This week on The Best of the Body Pod, we're revisiting a rapid-fire Q&A with Dr. Darren Candow, the industry's leading expert on creatine. Few people know creatine like Dr. Candow, and in this episode he gives clear, evidence-based answers that are hard to find anywhere else.

Get the clarity you've been looking for on creatine. Catch the full episode by searching "The Body Pod Darren Candow" on YouTube or https://www.thebodypodpodcast.com/ to listen.

07/08/2026

I always workout when I travel. The gym doesn’t have to be impressive, I just get in and get it done. My goal is to grab a workout from my Travel Happens Programs. This one I’ll be adding to the collection! Today I wanted to hit unilateral work and focus on some power. Mission accomplished.

Here’s what I did today: 3 x 8-10 Reps

➡️Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift with Power (slower tempo down, power up)

➡️DB Incline Biceps Curl

➡️Dumbbell Seated Incline Overhead Press

➡️Swiss Ball Single Leg Hamstring Curl to Bridge

➡️Dumbbell Side Lying Hip Raise

➡️ Military Sit Up

➡️Incline Push-Up 1 1/4 Reps

➡️Dumbbell Bulgarian Split Squat 1 1/4 Reps

➡️Bulgarian Split Squat Jumps

➡️Broad Jumps

Don’t over complicate it. Just work to effort!

07/07/2026

The Front Squat is one of the best bang for your buck strength exercises you can do.

Mechanically, the front squat and back squat are very similar. Both build strong quadriceps, glutes, adductors and a bit of hamstrings (to some degree).
The difference is everything happening above the waist.

When the bar moves from your back to the front of your shoulders, it places a unique challenge on the upper body and the core that you simply don’t get with a back squat.

The quadriceps work harder because your knees are free to travel further forward while your torso stays much more upright.

The erector spinae have to work continuously to keep your spine extended.

The thoracic extensors prevent your upper back from rounding under load.

Your external rotators stabilizes the shoulder while you maintain the front rack position.

The muscles between your shoulder blades, the rhomboids and middle/lower trapezius, work to keep the scapulae stable and your chest lifted.

At the same time, your deep core has one job: resist your trunk collapsing forward.

That’s what makes the front squat such a beautifully challenging exercise. It develops mobility and strength at the same time.

But here’s the catch...
You have to earn the right to front squat.

One of the first things I look at is your elbows.

If your elbows point toward the floor as you lower into the squat, it’s usually a sign you don’t yet have the shoulder, wrist or thoracic mobility to achieve a strong front rack.

If your elbows flare out, it often means you don’t yet have the upper back strength, particularly between the shoulder blades and through the spinal erectors, to hold the position.

Tips:

✔️ Elbows up and in. ✔️ Upper arms parallel to the floor. ✔️ Bar resting across the front of the shoulders, not held in the hands. ✔️ Knees allowed to travel forward. ✔️ Torso staying relatively upright.

If you can’t maintain those positions, don’t force the movement. Build the mobility and strength first. A goblet squat is often the perfect place to start until you are ready for this squat variation.

All of this info can be found in my membership under breaking down the ba

Hailey Happens Fitness

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