4 Excercises Enough 4 Good Leg Development?

[the_general64]

If I do Squats, Deadlifts, Calf Raises and Hyperextensions and only those excercises and vary the # of sets, reps, etc. can i achieve good leg development....overall good size and strength? Or do i have to incorporate other excercises?

 

[Arnold]

you could achieve good leg development with squats alone.

 

[Gazhole]

Agree with Prince. Squats are king.

You have the best two down, Squats and Deads. Couldnt hurt to do some unilateral work aswell e.g. 1 legged hypers, and lunges. One or two sets of calve raises to finish off and you're pretty much done.

 

[Ben dur]

deadlifts lunges and squats are all you need


anything else is supplemental

 

[Hoglander]

The fact that you are training legs at all makes you better than most. Add the fact that you are concerned how to train them puts you on a path way above your average man at the gym.

Good Job

: )

 

[DesertFox]

deadlifts lunges and squats are all you need


anything else is supplemental

Feels good to say I have those 3 exercises in my workout plan. Man I love doing those lunges with 70lb dumbbells on each hand...my legs from knee up feel so pumped I can't even sit down correctly.

 

[camarosuper6]

I rotate heavy squats/leg press/hacks

followed by a 20 rep exercise.

2 total sets. My legs have never been stronger.

 

[Ben dur]

i personally would stray away from the leg press

you use the same muscles in a squat and many more stabalizing muscles

not to mention its hard to cheat a squat if you have proper form and such
but on the leg press machine ive seen some pretty bazzar shit

aside from that a squat is a natural movement... a legpress is a machine controlled motion...

still a compound movement, but far inferior IMHO

 

[KelJu]

deadlifts lunges and squats are all you need


anything else is supplemental

I disagree. Where is your calf work?


Squats are king, lunges are good, I don't do hyper extensions, and calf raises of one kind or another are essential.

I like SLDLs, but I only do them every other workout. Leg curls are a good substitute on the weeks when you don't do SLDLs.

 

[Ben dur]

sprints are all the work my calves need

it isnt exactly a natural movement to lift 300 lbs with your calves only...
calves are more or less a stabilizing muscle in squats and lunges (natural movements)

doing isolated calf work is like doing forearm work
ineffective for most, and short on causing micro trauma.


if your calves NEED the supplemental work, and have hours to spend in the gym every day
go right ahead...

 

[KelJu]

sprints are all the work my calves need

it isnt exactly a natural movement to lift 300 lbs with your calves only...
calves are more or less a stabilizing muscle in squats and lunges (natural movements)

doing isolated calf work is like doing forearm work
ineffective for most, and short on causing micro trauma.


if your calves NEED the supplemental work, and have hours to spend in the gym every day
go right ahead...

Why so much hate for calve work? Calve work amounts to between 12 and 15 minutes of every 5 days for me which just also happens to be the amount of time I spend on any other muscle group.

There isn't a body builder in the profession that doesn't train calves. what do you mean calve raises aren't a natural movement? 90% of what I do isn't a natural movement. That is why it took me years to perfect them. Bench pressing 400lbs isn't natural. Military pressing my body weight isn't natural. That doesn't mean I shouldn't do them.

Calve work is just like forearm work. That much I agree with. And when I did wrist rolls religiously, my forearms were nice. Thanks for posting what you did, because it got me to thinking of why I need to be doing them again, because my forearms are looking puny these days.

Isolated calve work is not ineffective for anyone who is doing them correctly. Isolated calve work is why I have big thick diamond shaped calves now, by the way I got complemented this last weekend for mine. Calve work does not fall short in producing micro trauma. I know this for a fact because I haven't ran a sprint in over 4 years, and my calves are at least a 100% bigger from only my work in the gym.

I don't understand. you are usually on the ball, but that post couldn't be more wrong.

 

[Ben dur]

i dont know... just not my thing

i wouldnt structure a routine around them
id put them after the pinnacle compound movements

the question was if the 4 stated exercises where enough for good leg development...

in my opinion squats, lunges, and dead lifts; in that order are sufficient
along with a fare amount of non specific training (sprints)

i guess it depends more on your idea of "good development"
and if one isnt doing sprints/running, calve work would be a good supplementation

its all subjective to what works for an individual, in a given routine
calve work isnt in my routine
but i guess i wont rule it out of my future pool of exercises

 

[Ben dur]

Bench pressing 400lbs isn't natural. Military pressing my body weight isn't natural. That doesn't mean I shouldn't do them.

this is totally my idea... you stole it
you scorpion woman you

post #18

 

[Merkaba]

sprints are all the work my calves need

it isnt exactly a natural movement to lift 300 lbs with your calves only...
calves are more or less a stabilizing muscle in squats and lunges (natural movements)

doing isolated calf work is like doing forearm work
ineffective for most, and short on causing micro trauma.


if your calves NEED the supplemental work, and have hours to spend in the gym every day
go right ahead...

Yea I'm gonna have to call you on this one too!

"natural" is one of those loaded words. I mean is it natural to drink protein? What makes squats and lunges natural? Is it natural to overload the muscle with more than your body weight? If you need to push things around or up a hill to build or hunt or other "natural" things then that would be hell on the calves. Its not practical to workout by pushing things around in the gym so calve raises are arguably just as essential. Some people have great calves naturally and don't need to do much but I think youre just giving your own taste and opinions on this one.

forearm work and micro trauma....???

 

[Ben dur]

as for forearms and micro trauma

i was just trying to illustrate that doing such an isolated movement doesnt really recruit very many muscles


the whole idea with doing compound movements is to cause as much muscular micro trauma as possible, while recruiting an entire group of muscles, rather than one specifically

and you cant really "call" someone on there opinion

 

[Ben dur]

and i even went so far as to say

"all I need is"

and

"if YOU need supplemental work"


you guys should really not take things so literally

 

[KelJu]

i dont know... just not my thing

i wouldnt structure a routine around them
id put them after the pinnacle compound movements

the question was if the 4 stated exercises where enough for good leg development...

in my opinion squats, lunges, and dead lifts; in that order are sufficient
along with a fare amount of non specific training (sprints)

i guess it depends more on your idea of "good development"
and if one isnt doing sprints/running, calve work would be a good supplementation

its all subjective to what works for an individual, in a given routine
calve work isnt in my routine
but i guess i wont rule it out of my future pool of exercises

Well, then it amounts to goals. Also, what does "sufficient" mean in this argument? To me, sufficient, means well rounded, with no major weaknesses. Not performing resistance training on calves would give many people a bird leg look. Half of the big guys at my gym do not know how to work their calves, so they have these huge thighs with tiny calves. They are too embarrassed to wear shorts most of the time.

 

[soxmuscle]

Kelju,

Squats don't hit your calves?

 

[KelJu]

Kelju,

Squats don't hit your calves?

Not enough to make them grow.

 

[Gazhole]

My calves dont grow for shit, but my forearms go mental at the drop of a hat. I need to use my grippers more often.

Just as an aside, any calve training tips? Squats dont cause growth there for me either for some reason.

 

[IronAddict]

Just as an aside, any calve training tips? Squats dont cause growth there for me either for some reason.

The gastrocnemius is the more superficial muscle of the two muscles that make up the calves. This means that it is the one that is more visible when a person is wearing shorts. The soleus runs underneath the gastrocnemius. The gastrocnemius is the more active of the two muscles when the leg is fully extended or straight, because it is the longer muscle. The soleus is relatively less active when doing standing calve raises or any type of calve raise where the leg is fully extended. The way to target the soleus is simple, have the knees in a bent position. The gastrocnemius will be relatively relaxed when the leg is flexed or shortened due to the shortened position it is in. So, the simple formula is standing calve raises to target the gastrocnemius and seated calve raises to target the soleus.

The calves are a thick, dense muscle made up of both fast and slow twitch fibers. They are constantly in use with everyday walking around. They can handle a fairly high training volume for being a small muscle group. That being said, they should be given ample rest between training sessions. As a generalization, the soleus is composed of a higher percentage of slow twitch muscle fibers compared to the gastrocnemius, which has a higher percentage of fast twitch fibers. It would be wise to train to these characteristics and perform in the 8-12 rep range for the gastrocnemius and anywhere from 20-50 for the soleus, with little rest between sets. These ranges and training methods are not the golden rule, just a guide as to where to start. Learn to read what your calve muscles respond to and ride it out until the response is minimized, at which time, switch it up and provide the muscle with a new stress.

 

[KelJu]

The gastrocnemius is the more superficial muscle of the two muscles that make up the calves. This means that it is the one that is more visible when a person is wearing shorts. The soleus runs underneath the gastrocnemius. The gastrocnemius is the more active of the two muscles when the leg is fully extended or straight, because it is the longer muscle. The soleus is relatively less active when doing standing calve raises or any type of calve raise where the leg is fully extended. The way to target the soleus is simple, have the knees in a bent position. The gastrocnemius will be relatively relaxed when the leg is flexed or shortened due to the shortened position it is in. So, the simple formula is standing calve raises to target the gastrocnemius and seated calve raises to target the soleus.

The calves are a thick, dense muscle made up of both fast and slow twitch fibers. They are constantly in use with everyday walking around. They can handle a fairly high training volume for being a small muscle group. That being said, they should be given ample rest between training sessions. As a generalization, the soleus is composed of a higher percentage of slow twitch muscle fibers compared to the gastrocnemius, which has a higher percentage of fast twitch fibers. It would be wise to train to these characteristics and perform in the 8-12 rep range for the gastrocnemius and anywhere from 20-50 for the soleus, with little rest between sets. These ranges and training methods are not the golden rule, just a guide as to where to start. Learn to read what your calve muscles respond to and ride it out until the response is minimized, at which time, switch it up and provide the muscle with a new stress.

Great post! Anybody interested in calve growth should pay close attention to what he was saying about keeping bent knees to target the soleus. I learned this by accident. I realized by keeping bent knees I could get better ROM and better growth. When I wear shorts, I ball up the front bottom of my shorts in my fist to hold the position. I then do slow muscle contractions squeezing as hard as possible at the peak of the contraction. I respond better to a 20-30 range, but it may be different for other people.

I adjust the range periodically. sometimes I work in the 1-15 range, 20-30, and 30-50 on days where I feel like abusing myself.

 

[Gazhole]

Good stuff, ill try that next time

 

[Merkaba]

The gastrocnemius is the more superficial muscle of the two muscles that make up the calves. This means that it is the one that is more visible when a person is wearing shorts. The soleus runs underneath the gastrocnemius. The gastrocnemius is the more active of the two muscles when the leg is fully extended or straight, because it is the longer muscle. The soleus is relatively less active when doing standing calve raises or any type of calve raise where the leg is fully extended. The way to target the soleus is simple, have the knees in a bent position. The gastrocnemius will be relatively relaxed when the leg is flexed or shortened due to the shortened position it is in. So, the simple formula is standing calve raises to target the gastrocnemius and seated calve raises to target the soleus.

The calves are a thick, dense muscle made up of both fast and slow twitch fibers. They are constantly in use with everyday walking around. They can handle a fairly high training volume for being a small muscle group. That being said, they should be given ample rest between training sessions. As a generalization, the soleus is composed of a higher percentage of slow twitch muscle fibers compared to the gastrocnemius, which has a higher percentage of fast twitch fibers. It would be wise to train to these characteristics and perform in the 8-12 rep range for the gastrocnemius and anywhere from 20-50 for the soleus, with little rest between sets. These ranges and training methods are not the golden rule, just a guide as to where to start. Learn to read what your calve muscles respond to and ride it out until the response is minimized, at which time, switch it up and provide the muscle with a new stress.

I know a good cut and paste job when i see it! At least give some credit before we start giving you smart-points! Calves Training - Exercises To Add Size To Your Calf Muscles

 

[KelJu]

I know a good cut and paste job when i see it! At least give some credit before we start giving you smart-points! Calves Training - Exercises To Add Size To Your Calf Muscles

Busted!

 

[MCx2]

Both my forearms and my calves are pretty big and I don't specifically train either.

 

[IronAddict]

sure guy's. this is repitive stuff here, just trying to save myself some time. I didn't realize that kind of behavior will not be tolerated!

 

[Ben dur]

ok

so this is the conclusion

squats <<center your workout around them>>
deadlifts <<dont leave them out of your routine>>
lunges <<my personal fav, but nothing you couldnt get from an otherwise well rounded routine>>
calves <<supplemental... many swear by them, some do not>>

 

[KelJu]

ok


calves <<supplemental... many swear by them, some do not>>

That is not saying anything, and could be said about any exercise. P-funk once said that bench presses were supplemental. Well, for his training program at the time, they were. But you will be hard pressed to convince joe blow meathead that bench presses are supplemental.

"Some swear by them and some do not." Again, Joe Blow meathead with 21 inch arms and 18 inch quads might swear by leg presses as a primary form of leg training. That doesn't mean he is right.

 

[Ben dur]

at least we can agree that leg press is inferior