Beefing The Legs

[PhilM1]

Well im going to start lifting again and this time around i'd really like to beef up my legs. I am a skinny guy at 5'7" 125 so beefing the legs wont be that easy but i sure as hell would like to make them stronger and bigger. I hate having twigs for legs.

 

What exercises would you guys reccomand for beefing up my legs?

[Ironberg]

Squats, leg extensions, hamstring curls, calf raises, the abductor machine (if one's available), etc.

[SevenStar]

leg extensions aren't that great, nor are hammy curls. for mass, you want compound exercises - squats and deadlifts.

[PhilM1]

haha whats funny is when i used to lift a lot i would never dead lift or squat but i would do curls and leg press everytime.

[Rich67]

Leg curls and extensions are good only for toning and definition if done in high reps. Squats and deadlifts are the main staple of mass. You are a thin guy, so don't expect to have Paul DeMayo's quads after a few months of working out. The best us long legged guys can hope for are some good hamstring development and some good separation in the lower quad near the knee. But you won't bulk up too much. I'd recommend you try this for starters:

 

Work out your legs HARD twice a week to start (trust me, if you work out hard you won't want to hit em more than twice):

 

SQUATS: 3 warm up reps using a light weight you can pump out for about 12 reps. 4 work sets using progressive weight, doing no less that 8 reps.

 

DEADLIFTS: 2 warm up sets using light weight for 12 reps.

 

3 work sets at 8-12 reps each.

 

Work up to 20 reps on the squat using a decent weight. In reality, high reps for the legs using moderate weight is more effective than heavy low rep work. You can still do the extensions and curls, but don't rely on them alone.

 

If the squats bother your knees or back, don't go so low and always focus your eyes on a high point on the wall or near the ceiling. Your weight should be on your heels, and your head should be up. Keep your back straight, rest the bar on your traps, not on your neck. DO NOT round your back on deadlifts. I use straight-legged deads, keep my eyes forward and head up as I go down, forcing my back to stay straight.

 

Good luck, and EAT PROTEIN.

[WolverineGuy]

20 reps is going to be too much. If you do decent weight, 3 sets of eight will do you for the week.

[SevenStar]

not true - do a search 20-rep squats. there are various programs for it, and it's supposed to be an awesome mass builder. FWIW, I've done 20 reps with 225, and it was murder. I didn't stick with a 20 rep program, only did it that once. However, I have been considering starting the 20 rep program.

 

I know it goes against what is taught - high weight, low rep, etc. but I've heard only good things about it so far.

[WolverineGuy]

Once again, you risk overtraining. Some people can do it. Most cannot.

[SevenStar]

you don't risk overtraining anymore than you would anything else. It's merely a two day a week squat program. you will be sore as hell the first few times, but I wouldn't call it an overtraining risk unless you are doing several other super intense exercises in conjunction with it.

 

you don't do 20 rep squats, heavy deadlifts, hamstring curls and leg presses all at the same time. If you are doing the 20 rep squats, that's all you do - one set of 20 reps. you won't overtrain from it.

[Rich67]

http://www.hardgainer.com/articles/11-55.html

 

Overtraining is a possibility with any program-even 8rep programs. That's why you need to significantly cut down the days you train legs if using the 20 rep routine. To be honest, a legs-once-a-week program is actually more appropriate, providing you BLAST the legs on that one day, and don't do any other body parts on the same leg day. Hardgainer- I think the https://www.hargainer.com site is now defunct- was an awesome resource for drug-free bodybuilders, because it gave you programs that would work great for non-chemically assisted regular guys. Natural bodybuilders can't use the same routines they see in FLEX magazine, or MUSCLE AND FITNESS. If you did, you'd be overtrained in one week. The 20 rep routine is great for squats. It almost goes along the lines of POWER FACTOR training by Sisco and Little, sans the partial reps. Their philosophy is the more work you can do in a given time period stresses the muscles as good (if not better) than low reps in fixed sets. Just cut down on the days you do the leg work, sometime just 1x a week is fine.