Leg Training Explained
by Adam Charles
The biggest muscle group on the body is your legs. That's one of the reasons some people say they are the most important to train. Whether or not you like the big leg look, it's best to train them at least as hard as the rest of the body. Quadriceps, hamstrings, and the calves are the muscles that make up the legs.
The quadriceps is located on the front of the upper leg, and consists of four different muscles. When exercising the quadriceps, I like to start out with leg extensions which hit only the quadriceps. After that I usually move on to the leg press, squats, or lunges. All of these exercises will hit the entire leg, but they mostly target the quadriceps muscles. I tend to worry about the quadriceps last due to the fact that they are the main leg muscle you use during most activity's that require leg movement.
In order to exercise the hamstrings, you will want to choose a workout that will target the upper back portion of the leg. Again, a compound movement will target this muscle group pretty well. There are ways to incorporate the hamstrings a little more than the quadriceps. When doing a squat, you will want to make sure and go down as close to the floor as you can. When doing the leg press you will want to make sure your feet are up at the top of the sled. I'm not going to get into detail about that, but those are two ways of targeting the hamstrings better. The hamstring muscles don't get as much work in everyday life, so it's good to train them hard in the gym even if you don't want huge legs. Make sure to warm up properly before any leg exercise.
The calf muscles are located on the lower portion of the leg. The calf has two different areas that can be worked with different exercise. In order to target the upper portion of the calf, you will need to do a standing calf raise. If you want to target the lower portion of the calf, you will need to do a seated calf raise. There are other calf exercises out there, but I have found these to be very effective.
Because the legs are such a big muscle group, and they get lots of use, it's good to use higher reps when exercising them. I usually stay between 15 and 30 reps, but it's ok to go higher or lower from time to time. The body was built to run and jump, so it takes a lot to burn out the legs. Work hard in the gym, but if something doesn't feel right stop. Many people get sick and feel like they are going to pass out during a leg workout. If this is something that occurs with you try adding a little baking soda to your pre-workout drink, this will settle your stomach most likely preventing this. Even if you don't want big legs, just remember that training your legs will help the rest of your body gain size.
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New Unique Article!
Title: Leg Training Explained
Author: Adam Charles
Email: ajsimonsecret@gmail.com
Keywords: body building,weight lifting,fitness,health
Word Count: 517
Category: Hobbies
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