LEG TRAINING BUILDING A SOLID FOUNDATION

by: Joe Lyons - July 3rd, 2007

When you look at your legs, what do you see? Do you see a solid foundation for a powerful body, or do you see stilts that are used to keep your upper body out of the mud puddles?

Leg day is the most grueling day in the gym. It’s the day that separates the champion bodybuilders and the wannabe bodybuilders. Leg days challenge us physically and mentally. The physical aspect is self explanatory, but having the mental toughness to push through the pain, push through the feeling of vomiting, and get 1-2 more reps is what it takes to build big legs.

Physically, leg training can be tricky for some people. Many Pro Bodybuilders legs will grow just looking at the squat rack. Normal people like you and me have to figure out what works for us. Old school bodybuilders will tell you “ahh just get in there and squat”. That may work for some, but then comes the questions; How many reps? How much weight should I use?

How many reps it takes to build big legs will vary from person to person. Some athlete’s legs grow using low reps with heavy weight. They will often train in the 4-8 rep range and their legs will respond. On the other hand, there are people who have been training legs like that for years, and their legs don’t seem to respond. For those people training legs at a high rep scheme is much more beneficial. They would benefit from training in the 10-15 rep range with days as high as 20+ reps per set.

It all has to do with your genetic make up. People who have been fast runners throughout their lives get great results from training in the lower reps schemes. People that are not as blessed with speed do well with moderate to higher rep schemes. Listen to your body, and look at how your body reacts to the different training rep schemes to figure out what works best for you.

One more thing, to continue to grow, using a higher or lower rep scheme, switch it up once in a while to shock your legs into additional growth. If you’ve been training one way, change it up and do it the other way. After training for 4-6 weeks with low reps, then switching to a high rep day, your legs will blow up with a skin splitting pump.

You’ll be sore in the morning!

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