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Sunday, December 14, 2008

Best Muscle Building Workouts, Legs

By Ricardo d Argence

Whether you are a professional bodybuilder, contact sports player or just someone getting your body in shape, it is imperative that you don't neglect your legs for many reasons. The legs are often over looked when working out, as people tend to work towards the bigger chest and arms. There are important reasons to work your legs just as much as the rest of your body.

If you have read at all, you know that muscle burns fat. Gaining muscle weight helps your overall workout, and your legs have a very high concentration of muscle. By building your leg muscles, you are increasing your body's ability to work harder by simply adding a few pounds of muscle to your legs.

The amount of mass in your legs allows the release of anabolic hormones, and your legs muscles will provide more of this growth hormone than the smaller muscle areas of your body. The amount of muscle in your leg outweighs your arms easily, so this just makes sense. The reason you want to release these hormones is to stimulate muscle growth.

A person who is skinny on the bottom and built on the top can be hard to look at. Working out your legs provides a balanced body. If you're going to be working out you want every part of your body to look great.

The best way to do a leg workout routine is to push those leg muscles to near failure. Perform 8 to 12 reps per set, doing 2-4 sets per exercise. It's advisable to work each major muscle with 2-5 different exercises (depending on your tolerance level and workout experience). It is imperative to rest between sets. Rest 45-60 seconds between each set so that your muscles can recover. This allows you to life the heavy weight again, but not to get so relaxed the anabolic hormones stop getting released.

There are many exercises which can assist you in strengthening your legs. Once you have selected the goals for your legs (lean and strong, or muscled up for strength), you will be able to select the right exercises. When you work your legs it's crucial to warm up by either running or doing another cardio exercise for at least five minutes. By warming up your joints before hand you will help to prevent possible injuries.

Exercises you can do include leg extensions, power cleans, squats, Romanian dead-lifts, hamstring curls, and calf rises, seated and standing. The number or reps and sets can be changed to match your skill level.

Be sure to always consult a trainer for instruction on proper form, and exercise caution with any workout. You too, can sport legs that look amazing when you wear shorts with time and work. You will not just have a wonderful feeling, but your total performance in sports, exercise and basic activities will improve.

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