Leg workout for men: 7 best complexes for powerful quadriceps, buttocks and thighs

To begin with, you need to understand that what works for your friend may not necessarily work for you, so ideally you should choose a training program that will fully meet your goals. “Leg day” is a phrase often used among athletes, which, first of all, evokes associations with nausea, “jelly” legs, painful waddling instead of a confident gait, and a host of other unpleasant concomitant factors.

Feelings after an intensive leg workout can be universal for everyone, while a set of workout exercises can be selected for a single bodybuilder, taking into account his physiological characteristics and preferences. While most leg workouts start with squats, the other components of the workout can vary depending on which muscle group you want to focus on.

Each of the seven workouts listed below has its own direction. Choose the one that best suits your needs and follow it for 4-8 weeks before moving on to another highly specialized complex. Or you can take the first option as the basis of your workouts, which is designed to increase the total mass of the legs and develop all the muscles at the same time.

Important!

Do not forget that we directly provide a set of exercises, and you already determine the intensity of their implementation yourself in such a way as to withstand a full-fledged high-octane workout and the pain that accompanies it. Consider such moments and make your workout so that it is as effective as possible for your muscles.

GOAL 1. INCREASE TOTAL LEG MASS

Mass recruitment involves the implementation of several important rules, namely: start the workout with the most difficult exercises and heavy weights, maximize the amount of training (total number of sets and repetitions), and the session itself should continue until the muscles are completely exhausted.

Changing the placement of the feet during the leg press will allow you to change the load on different muscle groups: by raising your legs higher, you will shift the emphasis from the quadriceps to the hamstrings and glutes, since the amplitude of flexion and extension of the legs will be greater. In addition, remember – you can not reduce the angle of bending of the knees, it should not be less than 90 degrees, because otherwise you will limit the participation of the buttocks and hips in the exercise. If you are not exercising according to the system of previous fatigue, then single-joint exercises should be postponed closer to the end of the workout.

The workout is built on the principle of a reverse pyramid, which allows you to do more approaches to failure. With each repetition, you need to reduce the weight with which you are working. As already mentioned, this type of workout involves 4 muscle groups – quadriceps, buttocks, back of the thigh and lower leg. To shorten your workout, you can eliminate exercises for the hamstrings or calves by moving them to another training day.

COMPLEX OF EXERCISES

1. Barbell Squats: 4 sets of 6-8, 6-8, 8-10, 8-10 reps. Reduce weight after your first 2 sets.A small river named Duden
2. Leg press: 4 sets of 8-10, 8-10, 10-12, 10-12 reps. Alternate 2 leg positions.
3. Walking lunges with dumbbells: 3 sets of 10, 12, 14 steps on each leg.
4. Leg Extensions: 3 sets of 10 reps. Don’t forget to do one drop set per set.
5. Romanian deadlift: 3 sets of 8, 10, 12 reps.
6. Leg curls: 3 sets of 8, 10, 12 reps.
7. Standing calf raises: 4 sets of 12, 12, 20, 20 reps.

GOAL 2. INCREASING MUSCLE RELIEF

Many people think that it is enough to perform more repetitions with light weight for muscle relief and burning excess subcutaneous fat. However, this is not entirely true. To maintain a high metabolism in the body, some kind of incentive is needed that will contribute to the recruitment and retention of muscle mass.

That is why most of the elements in this workout are performed according to the system of supersets with multi-joint exercises, while you need to shorten the rest time between sets as much as possible.

COMPLEX OF EXERCISES

1. Smith machine squats (superset): 4 sets of 8-10 reps.
2. Leg Press: 3 sets of 10-12 reps without rest. Kettlebell Squats (goblet): 3 sets of 10-12 reps, resting only as needed (superset).
3. Reverse lunges on the Smith machine: 3 sets of 10-12 reps per leg without rest. Leg Extensions: 3 sets of 12-15 reps, resting only as needed (superset).
4. Leg curls: 4 sets of 10-12 reps without rest. Exercise “Donkey”, or lifting on toes with a donkey (by the way, one of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s favorite exercises): 4 sets of 12-15 repetitions, rest only as needed (superset).

NOTES

As in the previous complex, the number of warm-up approaches is not limited, but you do not need to do them to muscle failure. Choose a weight that will allow you to complete the required number of repetitions. The first exercise is performed with heavier weights, which is key to maintaining muscle tissue and maintaining a high metabolism while dieting. Aim for the shortest possible breaks between sets, as this style combines both elements of cardio training and the principles of building muscle.