I have been going to the YMCA and doing machines for nine months...decided it was time to move on to REAL weight lifting. My husband has been doing Strong Lifts 5x5, and it looked pretty interesting, so I decided to give it a go. Anyone here doing Strong Lifts? Today was my second workout..and I just love how great I feel when I walk out, in half the time it took me to do the machines. If anyone is doing this program, I would love to hear how it has worked for you, and if you followed it to the letter, or used a smaller amount of increase per workout then recommended for the men. Thanks!

SL 5 x 5 is the most popular program on Reddit's female-oriented exercise sub: http://www.reddit.com/r/xxfitness - lots of feedback there!

It's really intimidating to get going with compound barbell lifts without a buddy and without someone showing you the right form and telling you "you're doing it right!"