Do You Need To Do Squats To Get Big Legs? | Straight Facts

Jerry Brainum discusses building big quads with barbell squats. He gives the pros and cons of their use and different variations of this exercise.

Day After Leg Day

Thought This Was Cute-And Relevant!

Rest-Pause Leg Training

Bodybuilders would be wise not to overlook training their legs. In addition to balancing your physique,leg muscles,which are the largest muscle group in your body,stimulate the release of the growth hormones testosterone and human growth hormone due their size.

Moderate to heavy weights should be used in most exercises to add size. Use a steady,smooth motion throughout to keep tension on the muscles and avoid injury. Pick three exercises and take all to failure.

Every other session, add one or two HIT variables to increase the intensity. If adding more than one variable,reduce the set count to a total of two exercises,one set each to compensate for the increased intensity.

A sample of a Rest-Pause Routine is:

• Leg press-1x8 single max reps,10-second rest between
• Rest 1 minute
• Leg extensions-1x12+3 forced reps at end of set
• Leg curls-1x12+3 static holds,bottom,mid,top,10 seconds each

Since we are using two variables while training the quads,we have reduced the volume to a total of two sets for that muscle. The hams are trained using one all out set with several static holds at the end.

It will be necessary to reduce the weight on each successive rep 10% during the Rest-Pause set to allow completion of the rep.

Do this routine one time per week for best results. All sets should end at muscular exhaustion. 

Training With Kettlebells

Kettlebells have been around for quite some time and have been used for training by strongmen, bodybuilders and fitness trainees with great success. In fact , there are major competitions where athletes compete in various kettlebell lifts to determine who is strongest and has the most endurance using lifts such as jerks,one-hand and two-hand snatch and swings.

Even if one isn't intent on competing in kettlebell competitions, there are many reasons to use them in your workouts. They offer a unique way to train for strength,muscle size and endurance/cardio.

For instance, if training for cardio I recommend rep ranges in 30-50. strength and size gains are realized in the 10-15 range, while pure strength is best built by using 5-6 reps.

It's best to utilize rep ranges for all three in either the same session or vary your routines, doing low reps one session and higher reps another.

Here is a good routine for the development of general aerobic conditioning and muscle growth:

• warm-up
• kettlebell swing-1x15 (one kettlebell, two-handed)
• goblet squat-1x12 (one kettlebell held with both hands at chest)
• kettlebell bent-over row-1x10 (alternate arms with two kettlebells)
• clean and press-1x12 (two kettlebells)
• kettlebell swing-1x25 (two kettlebells)

Take all sets to failure after becoming acclimated to kettlebell training. Use good form in all exercises, avoiding the use of momentum. Unfortunately, many kettlebell enthusiasts use weights that are too heavy and injury themselves for the sake of bragging rights to the use of heavy poundages. This is counter-productive and does nothing for strength increases or conditioning if injury results.