Leg Training (POST 18)
March 7, 2012
Leg Training: Not many people enjoy training legs, it’s the biggest muscle and it’s the furthest away From the heart so it really takes it out of you. The fact is with leg training you get a good overall workout on the body because the heart is working overtime and squats, like bench press and dead lift are great for developing strength.
Lots of people shy away from leg workouts and just want to look good in a vest or t-shirt but they are not what I would class ‘proper athletes’ and do nothing to advance the sport which is a pity because if you knuckle down and do you squats etc your development will really begin to show. I see it as a lost opportunity!
After a good stretch we started our squats,30 for a warm up and 15-20 under load. These are full squats with my backside touching my calves before returning to the up right position. Guys who overload the bar but only squat down a few inches tend to be doing it out of vanity more than anything else.
In-between sets we do 20 pullovers to open our chests and get the air flowing.
Next exercise was leg press, again full movements and reps ranging from 15-20, followed by leg extension with the same amount of reps. Each exercise consists of a minimum of 4 sets. With all exercises Patrick insists that I use steady movement and not a fast movement, I must go down at the same pace that I go up and not to simply let the weight fall. I must also not lock out buy keep the tension on, better still if you pause on full contraction for a second or two. This way there is no cheating and you get the full benefit of every rep. If my style is not strict enough Patrick imposes a penalty and I have to do more Reps. If you get to the bottom when doing a rep the tension is off and in effect that momentary pause is cheating and it is a waste of time and energy. You see once you come off the point of tension not only is it a very small rest but you the have to get back up to the point of tension which is wasted time and effort because your muscle is no longer under load.
Remember: slow strict movements both up and down, pause at peak contraction, don’t lock out and keep the tension on. Try it on all exercises and feel the difference.
The last exercise was leg curl super set with straight leg dead lifts to really stretch the leg biceps. I detest leg workouts but it brings huge overall benefits so its something I have to live with if I want to compete again. When you look at guys in contests the most common thing to lack is legs because it is the hardest body part to train so I look at the guys with big legs with admiration because they are true athletes.
Flu Bug: due to the flu bug and a nasty chest infection that has been going around I haven’t made an entry for around a week however I’m back and I hope you enjoy learning with me.