Book Review: Strong Women Lift Each Other Up by Molly Galbraith

Cati brought this book to my attention.  She had an extra copy and had brought it to the gym for anyone that might want to read it. So, I decided to check it out.  Full disclosure this is a book written for women.  I am not saying that men might not want to read it, but you are not the target audience.  I’ll be sure to read something more inclusive next month. 

The author of Strong Women Lift Each Other Up (2021), Molly Galbraith a former body builder turned personal trainer, and co-founder of Girls Gone Strong, a fitness and wellness organization dedicated to evidence-based support for women. The book offers a compelling take on female empowerment, leadership, and community-building. Through a blend of memoir, motivational guidance, and social commentary, Galbraith addresses the pervasive challenges women face within systems shaped by competition, scarcity, and exclusion. Her central thesis—that sustainable empowerment arises not through individual advancement alone, but through collective elevation—positions the work within a broader feminist framework of mutual support and intersectional awareness.

The book is set up in an easy-to-read format. At the end of Each chapter there are exercises, reflective prompts, and “Lift Up” challenges designed to facilitate practical application of the book’s principles. Galbraith intermixes research with personal stories to make her points. There is also a free downloadable workbook that you can use if you don’t want to write in your book or if you are borrowing the book from a friend.  I will admit that while I did download the resource, I haven’t used it yet – but that doesn’t mean I won’t in the future. I am now following Girls Gone Strong on Social Media as one of the exercises was to unfollow 3 things that don’t align with your core values and to find 3 new things that do.  

Galbraith pulls from those key sources that I have been reading for the past several years, Atomic Habits by James Clear, Mindset by Carol Dwick, and all things Brene Brown. While I might not have read anything new in this book, I do like the way that she brings everything together.  If you are not familiar with all the works stated above or if you are like me and just needing a motivational boost, this could be a good read for you. 

The book wasn’t exactly what I expected and that is my own fault because it is a book exactly about what the title says it is about, that as women we need to do more to lift one another up.  Some take aways that I took from it where that we need to be careful not to caught in the comparison trap of thinking that we aren’t as good as other women. We need to judge less and complement more.  We need to remember that true strength is found not in standing alone, but in lifting together.