POWERFUL LEG ROUTINE WORKOUT GUIDELINES
1. Warm-up with 5-10 minutes on the bike, Stairmaster
or treadmill, followed by 5-10 minutes of stretching.
On your first exercise for each muscle group, do 2-3 warm
up sets before jumping up to your heavy sets.
2. Perform each leg exercise in strict form, using a
slow, controlled speed. Utilize a combination of different
repetition ranges (both high reps with lighter weights
and low reps with heavy poundages) to produce the best
results.
3. On high-rep sets, select a weight with which you can
perform at least 15-20 reps. Your goal every workout is
to constantly strive to increase the number of repetitions
you perform with a particular weight. Build up to as many
as 30-40 reps. When you reach the upper end of this rep
range, increase the weight, drop the reps back down and
continue to progressively work up the reps with the heavier
poundage. If you have a training partner, challenge each
other to bet your rep records at every workout.
4. On your heavy sets, select a weight with which you
can barely perform 6-10 reps. Progressively increase the
weight with each workout as much as possible, provided
you can perform a minimum of six reps with good form.
5. The ever-popular pyramid method of increasing weight
and decreasing reps with each successive set is a great
system for size and strength development, especially if
you are working up to very heavy weights in basic exercises
like squats and deadlifts. A system that may be even more
effective is the regressive pattern or reverse pyramid.
Begin with your heaviest weight when you are fresh and
the strongest, then decrease the weight and increase the
reps each set until you are finishing with at least 20
reps on your final set. To use this system safely, you
must be sure to warm up thoroughly.
6. Back squats are the core exercise in this routine.
Leg presses are fine, but nothing compares to squats.
For some variation, occasionally try front squats. These
help develop a nice shape to the frontal thigh and lower
quads, while reducing the stress on the hips, butt and
lower back. They are, however, more difficult to perform
than regular squats because the bar is held high in an
awkward position on the front of the shoulders, so use
caution.
POWERFUL LEG EXERCISES
Back Squats
Position the bar on the back of your shoulders holding
on with a medium, overhand grip. To avoid injury, keep your
torso rigid at all times. Inhale as you begin to descend,
squatting to a point where the thighs come to parallel or
just below parallel to the floor. Lower yourself slowly
and always maintain control. Hold your breath momentarily
as you begin to ascend, then exhale as you rise through
the sticking point. Keep the torso erect and push through
with your legs, avoiding the tendency to lean forward and
use the lower back. Do not look up or down; look straight
ahead at all times.
Elevating the heels under a one-inch board or mat will
help you maintain your balance if you lack flexibility.
Alternate heavy and light days every other workout. On your
heavy day, do 2 - 3 light warm up sets followed by for 3
- 4 "work" sets of 6-10 reps. Increase the weight
in a pyramid fashion with each successive set. O
n your light day, do your warm up sets, then perform 2
high reps sets of 20-40 reps. If you put 100% into your
high rep sets two sets is plenty. On both days, finish with
a final "pump" set of 15-20 reps with a light
weight performed very slowly with constant tension. Each
rep in the pump set should take 10 seconds: Five seconds
up and five seconds down. Do not lock out and do not stop
moving.
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Hack Machine Squats
Position yourself on the hack squat machine with your feet
in the center of the platform. Your heels should be about
one to two inches apart and your toes should be pointing
out at a 45-degree angle. Slowly lower yourself to a full
squat position with your knees kept in line with your toes.
You should squat deep enough so that the back of your calves
touches your hamstrings. Provided that you are fully warmed
up, you use good form and you have no pre-existing knee
injuries, you should have no fear of doing your hack squats
to below parallel.
Lower yourself slowly and under control and do not bounce
out of the bottom position. Driving through with your heels
(not off the balls of your feet), rise back to the starting
position, but do not lock out your knees at the top. Since
you are already warmed up from your squats, you should use
a regressive weight pattern, starting with a heavy weight
you can perform for a 6-8 rep max. Perform two more sets,
decreasing the weight and increasing the reps with each
set. (Example: 1 X 300 lbs. X 6-8 reps, 1 X 250 lbs. X 10-12
reps, 1 X 200 lbs. X 15-20 reps)
Sissy Squats
Stand upright with your feet a few inches apart and your
toes pointing straight ahead. Grasp an upright support with
one hand and place the opposite hand on the hip or across
the chest. Push the knees forward and lower yourself into
the squat position until you break just below parallel.
Push back up to the top position, never fully locking out
the knee. As you rise up, push through with your weight
on the balls of your feet.
To keep maximum isolation on the quadriceps without involving
the hips, maintain a straight line from the shoulders to
the knees (do not flex at the hips). Perform 10-15 reps,
holding a weight if necessary so you reach failure prior
to 15 reps. As you become more advanced, hold a weight plate
in the free arm across the chest. For extra intensity, go
to failure with the weight, then drop the weight and continue
to do reps with bodyweight until you reach failure again.
Stiff-Legged Deadlifts
Grasp an Olympic bar with an overhand grip slightly wider
than shoulder width. Starting in the upright position, bend
forward from the hips, slowly lowering the bar towards your
ankles until your torso is parallel to the floor or close
to parallel. Keep the bar close to your thighs and shins
during the entire movement. To avoid injury, do not round
your back; maintain a rigid torso and a flat or slightly
arched lower back. Keep your head up and look straight ahead
at all times.
Alternate heavy and light days every other workout as
you did with squats. On your heavy day, do 2 - 3 light warm
up sets followed by for 3 - 4 "work" sets of 6-10
reps. Increase the weight in a pyramid fashion with each
successive set. On your light day, do your warm up sets,
then perform 2 high reps sets of 20-40 reps. On both days,
finish with a final "pump" set of 15-20 reps with
a light weight performed very slowly with constant tension.
Each rep in the pump set should take 10 seconds: Five seconds
up and five seconds down. Do not lock out at the top and
do not stop moving.
Lying Leg Curls
Lie prone on the leg curl machine with the roller pad positioned
on the back of your ankles. Curl the weight all the way
up through the full range of motion until the pad touches
your buttocks. Lift the weight under control with the strength
of the hamstrings only. Make sure you keep your hips firmly
down on the pad. Raising your hips in the air during heavy
leg curls puts pressure on the intervertebral disks in the
lower lumbar area and can be an invitation to injury. Lower
the weight slowly and repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Perform your leg curls as you did your hack squats; with
a regressive weight pattern. Start with your heaviest weight
for 6-10 reps, then decrease the weight and increase the
reps for 3-4 sets.
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