The following details my primary leg workout from this past Saturday morning at Kirkland Gold’s Gym. I’m doing my own programming for a few weeks and listening to my body after dieting for such a long time. I trained alongside my bride. Here is what we did…
Lying Leg Curls
Set 1 x 15 reps with 50lbs
Set 2 x 12 reps with 65lbs
Set 3 x 10 reps with 80lbs
Set 4 x 8 reps with 95lbs
Set 5 x 6 reps with 140lbs -> drop to 80lbs x 8 reps -> drop to 50lbs x 10 reps
*Sticking with the theme of lower volume I worked my way up in weight and down in reps, essentially warming up for the first 4 sets. The 5th and final set I did a tough weight for 6 reps, dropped the weight roughly 40% and did 8 reps, cut the weight again by roughly 40% and finished with a final 10 reps.
Leg Extensions
I used this to try and keep my knees closer together throughout the movement: https://www.elitefts.com/sling-shot-hip-circle.html.
Set 1 x 15 reps with 100lbs
Set 2 x 12 reps with 115lbs
Set 3 x 10 reps with 130lbs
Set 4 x 8 reps with 205lbs
Set 5 x 8 reps with 205lbs
Set 6 x 8 reps with 205lbs
*I wanted a good amount of blood in my quads before the next exercise so I did some super slow eccentric work here. Start with light weight and get in a few sets to warm up your knees. On Set 4-6 the key is to extend to the contracted position, pause briefly flexing your quads and then begin a slow 5 second eccentric. Use this tempo on all reps of each of the 3 working sets.
Here is a video:
[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SH743WLvsUY]
Reverse Banded Hack Squats
I used this band: https://www.elitefts.com/pro-light-resistance-band.html.
Set 1 x 10 reps with 2 plates/side
Set 2 x 10 reps with 3 plates/side
Set 3 x 8 reps with 3 plates + 25’s/side
Set 4 x 8 reps with 4 plates/side
Set 5 x 6 reps with 4 plates + 25’s/side
Set 6 x 6 reps with 5 plates/side -> drop to 3 plates/side x 8 reps -> drop to 2 plates/side x 10 reps
*I worked my way up in weight and down in reps until I got to a tough set of 6 reps. Make small enough jumps in weight to ensure several sets before your final drop set. On my Set 6 I did 6 reps, dropped approximately 40% of the weight, did 8 reps, cut roughly 30% of the weight and did a final 10 reps. The idea here is similar to what I did on the lying leg curls – FYI.
Hip Thrusters/Glute Bridges
Set 1 x 10 pause reps + 5 pump reps with 135lbs
Set 2 x 10 pause reps + 5 pump reps with 135lbs
Set 3 x 10 pause reps + 5 pump reps with 135lbs
*The key here is to hold the contraction for a 2 second count while flexing your glutes as hard as possible at the top without hyperextending your back. Do this on every one of the first 10 reps and then simply pump out the remaining 5 reps. I sank down into a deep squat position for 30 seconds to stretch my hips and glutes immediately after each set of hip thrusters – FYI.
Walking Lunges
Set 1 x 25 yards with bodyweight
Set 2 x 25 yards with bodyweight
Set 3 x 25 yards with bodyweight
*Take long strides and pause for a 2 second count with your trailing knee gently touching the ground. Alternate steps until you’ve reached roughly 25 yards.
That concluded this leg workout.
Train hard!
Mark