From an arsenal of several dozen exercises for training legs, only five to seven are really effective. All the rest are the lot of professionals who carve real sculptures out of their muscles to impress judges and win bodybuilding competitions. Here it is important to understand what they have, WHAT to grind out of, but often these leading and corrective exercises are adopted by people with a noticeable lack of muscle mass, after which they are surprised at the lack of results. Girls are especially guilty of this, doing all sorts of leg swings, fly-ups, cross lunges and other nonsense with very light weights and a large number of repetitions.
First we build muscle mass and only then work on form, if necessary. Although in most cases, with the right specialization for men and women, you won’t have to bother with the form. Well, less lyrics, more action. I'll talk to the lady first.
How to make beautiful and slender legs for women
There are several important rules.
First , in women, 70% of muscle mass is located in the lower body - buttocks, thighs - so in a weekly microcycle there should be (at least) two workouts focusing on the lower body. To develop and maintain the tone of the upper part, one workout is enough, plus some exercises can be scattered throughout the days of the legs.
The second is to use options for performing basic exercises that are aimed at developing the buttocks and hamstrings. The load on the quadriceps is sufficient and in most cases there is no need to train it specifically. In men, on the contrary, the emphasis is on the quadriceps. For example, women should opt for leg curls in the machine (as an additional “finishing exercise”), and guys should opt for leg extensions in the machine (similarly, “finishing” after any basic movement or warming up/pre-fatigue).
Third , before doing any specialized and isolated leg/glute exercises, perform heavy compound movements. In particular, any lunges, leg raises in the simulator, knees, bends, leg abductions in a block, pelvic bridges - all this is done after movements such as squats with a barbell on the shoulders or Plie squats (as an alternative or if compression load is contraindicated), deadlift , platform press.
I demonstrated basic exercises for developing legs, including those focusing on the buttocks, plus an example of a training program in this article:
- How guys can pump up their calves for summer, and girls - buttocks
I'll briefly go over the basic exercises.
Squats - women's version
The legs are set wide (wider than the shoulders), toes are 45° apart. Try to keep your knees from going over your toes, squat below parallel as far as flexibility allows, while making sure that your pelvis does not bend down (this can happen if the gluteus medius muscle is poorly stretched). The width of the legs depends on the length of the thighs and lower legs. If the legs are long and the thighs are noticeably longer than the shins, then the stance will be very wide; during the squat, you will have to significantly move the pelvis back and lean forward a little. Some of the best material on squats can be found here. Video of the female version of the squat below:
https://youtu.be/Bjr2soKbtgw
With this version of the exercise, the buttocks are well included in the work, the inner surface of the thigh and quadriceps are also tense, but to a lesser extent and in the upper part of the amplitude. By the way, this version of squats is also suitable for men with long legs, including me.
Alternative - Plie squats:
https://youtu.be/7-IO8783UoM
Or squats with a weight on a belt:
https://youtu.be/btU84padzOk
The last two exercises are suitable not only for variety in training, but also if the compression load on the spine is undesirable.
Deadlift (Romanian)
Ladies, if you don't know what to do in the gym, do squats and deadlifts. If life throws up difficulties and you basically don’t know what to do, go to the gym, squat and do deadlifts, and the problems will somehow resolve.
This is what I mean - in principle, squats and deadlifts are enough to develop beautiful legs and buttocks. By the way, this is also enough for men, plus leg extensions to get even more quads, but we’ll discuss the men’s aspects a little later.
The basis is discussed in the video by Yaroslav Brin:
https://youtu.be/jFC-wIcUgok
Among the features of performing the exercise, pay attention to the amplitude - it is small. There is no need to bend straight down to the floor, and even on straight legs - they are slightly bent so as not to overload the knee ligaments. Do not fully unbend, leaning back, while releasing all the load into the spine and relaxing the buttocks and back of the thigh. Pull the barbell along your legs literally like on a sled. And, most importantly, do not pull with your back extensors, but with your buttocks and hamstrings, moving your pelvis back. That is, extensors also work, but only as synergists, and not as the main motor unit.
Platform Leg Press
As with squats, girls need to focus on the buttocks and the back of the thigh. To do this, place your legs above the middle of the platform, wide stance (almost at the corners of the platform), spread your toes at 45°.
https://youtu.be/wiFDIIe1Z1M
Important details:
- Do not straighten your legs completely (do not insert your knees), maintaining tension in the muscles and not transferring the load to the knee joints.
- Press your pelvis and back firmly into the seat and bend your legs until you feel your pelvis begin to tuck. The amplitude may be small and depends on your stretch. Under no circumstances should the pelvis be tucked in - this is very dangerous! Only the legs work.
- Don't hold your breath. When you lower the platform down, inhale; when you push it up, exhale.
Lunges
They should be done only after basic movements on the legs or buttocks, since the purpose of lunges is to stretch the gluteal muscles.
The general technique for performing the exercise is described in the video below:
But here is the most hellish (and effective) version of the exercise - Bulgarian lunges:
https://youtu.be/Yy5wcN_9aQ0
Exercise with weights
It is ideally suited for physically developed people. The starting position is the same - lying on your back. Weights are placed on the ankles. It can be with constant or variable weight.
A dumbbell held by your feet is suitable as a weighting agent. The legs are raised at an acute angle and held for several seconds. Then they smoothly lower and, without touching the floor, move up again.
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The exercise can be performed in two or three sets up to 30 times.
The accelerated pace of execution perfectly builds endurance.
Men's leg workout
In men, the lower part of the body contains approximately 50% of muscle mass, so, unlike the fair sex, we don’t have to bother with them so much. One serious leg day with 3-4 basic exercises for them is enough, plus add one more exercise on any other day after a couple of days of rest for the lower extremities.
How it will roughly look like, for example, in a three-day split (for experienced ones):
Monday (Legs - Shoulders) (8-12 reps in 2-3 working sets):
- Squats.
- Deadlift.
- Leg extensions in the simulator.
- Leg curls in the simulator.
- Army press.
- Wide grip barbell row to the chin.
Wednesday (back - biceps) (8-12 reps in 2-3 working sets):
- Wide grip pull-ups.
- Barbell row to the stomach.
- T-bar row with emphasis on the chest or lever row.
- Shrugs with a barbell or dumbbells.
- Barbell curls for biceps.
- Lifting dumbbells for biceps while sitting on an inclined bench.
Friday (chest - triceps - a little leg) (8-12 reps in 2-3 working sets, excluding legs):
- Front squats with a barbell or hack machine squats (2-3 working sets of 15-20 reps), or sumo deadlifts.
- Bench press.
- 30° incline dumbbell press or dips.
- Information in a crossover or “Butterfly”, or lying dumbbell flyes.
- Close grip press or French press.
- Arm extensions in a block with a rope handle.
If you are a beginner and working on the FullBody program, then barbell squats, platform presses and leg extensions are enough to train your legs. The first two alternate from workout to workout, and you do extensions at each one.
Let's move on to the most effective male (relatively speaking) exercises for developing legs.
Squats with a barbell on your shoulders
The link to the article about squats is above in the women's section (universal article). As for the male version of the squat, it is not much different from the female one, except that the positioning of the legs is provided that your leverage allows you to do this and your knees do not go far beyond your toes:
https://youtu.be/I8B5cSjiTao
If the legs are long and the thigh is much longer than the shin, then we place them wider and the toes apart.
Hack squats
A good alternative with the ability to focus on the quadriceps:
https://youtu.be/MBOkwJT56Gw
Sumo deadlift
I focus specifically on sumo, provided that stretching the legs allows you to work this way. In addition, this option is well suited for tall guys, plus the main load falls on the legs.
https://youtu.be/qfes25oyboQ
In general, this is an excellent basic exercise that loads almost the entire body, with an emphasis on the legs.
Deadlift
Yes, yes - the good old “Romanian” is good for both girls and boys. Watch the video in the ladies section above.
Platform Leg Press
If leverage allows, then you can do this press with a narrow foot position to focus on the development of the quadriceps. They don’t allow me to do this, so I do it with a wide stance, which did not prevent me from pumping up my hip as a whole.
https://youtu.be/39rDFUPME7U
An important point - under no circumstances help yourself with your hands by resting them on your knees. If you don't have enough strength, finish the exercise or take less weight, but don't push your knees with your hands. This is very dangerous for both the knees themselves and the lower back, since the rigidity of the position is lost (the arms do not press the body against the seat).
Leg extensions in the simulator
An excellent exercise for both warming up or pre-tiring the quadriceps, and for finishing them off.
https://youtu.be/eT4thXaPR8w
Answers to questions about the programs...
Which scheme should I choose? Depends on your level of training + capabilities.
- I recommend complex 1 for beginners.
- For an average level, 2nd or 3rd is suitable.
- For advanced 4th.
- For home conditions (where there is no special equipment) 5th.
How often to train according to these schemes? 2 times a week strength training will be a head start.
For example, Monday and Thursday (or Monday and Friday).
At a more advanced level, this can be increased to 3 times a week.
For example, Mon, Wed, Fri or Tue, Thu, Sat (whichever is more convenient for you).
Rest between approaches: guideline 1-2 minutes (depending on how you feel).
Duration of strength training: no more than 45 minutes.
What weights to work with: what weight to work with in exercises? (how to choose weight, etc.)
I also highly recommend reading this article:
- How to pump up a gorgeous butt (for the gym)
- How to pump up gorgeous buttocks at home
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Beauty salons offer chocolate and algae body wraps, emphasizing the crazy effect of the procedure to get rid of orange peel. But if we look at this process from a scientific point of view, it turns out that the declared anti-cellulite session is just another money scam.
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Undoubtedly, after wrapping, you feel a feeling of tightened skin. Nutrients from kelp or cocoa butter fill small wrinkles on the epidermis, hence the feeling of an elastic body. Since the aroma of a sweet delicacy relieves fatigue and irritation, you can experiment with chocolate wrapping at home.
