lagging legs

[benchthis]

my legs aren't small by any standards but I'm tall and it seems like my upper body has started to out grow my lower body.. I'm not those guys who do legs once a year i do legs every week i have squatted below parallel over 625 now whats best for size should i change up my routine for more of a volume training or should i try doing hit or should i do legs twice a week once easy once hard right now my routine goes like

squats 5x 10,8,5,5,3

hack squats 3x15,10,5

leg extension 5x 30,20,20,10,10

stiff leg 4x10

leg curls 4x10

[coltrane]

I was doing heavy squats etc for years, and my legs wouldn't grow either...Then for sometime, I switched to sets of 20 on the leg press...MAN did my legs grow....however, those last 5 or so reps need to be HARD AS SHIT to complete--i.e.  make sure you use enough weight...my last set is 9 plates aside for 20 reps.....legs are toast after.  Don't forget to do your other leg exercises though!

[ryanhard]

this might help,                                                                                                            10mins on bike to warm up.                                                                                             leg press-4x50,40,30,20 use as much lbs as possible.                                                          hack squat-3x8-10                                                                                                        thats it!if you can still stand,use more weight next time,do not lockout on any reps.do hams on a seperate day.this routine will blast your quads and force them to grow.(each set of leg-presses should be all out to reach the target reps).

[triple_pickle]

try higher reps for a change.  i usually do

squats, 3 warmup sets, then 20-15-12-8-4-1 (last one depending on how i feel)
leg press 30-20-20-15
lunges 3 sets
stiff leg dl 12-10-8
leg curls 20-15-10-dropset (some 20-30 reps)

there's no hack squat machine in my current gym, in my old gym i would do hack squats right after regular squats 4 sets of at least 20 reps, sometimes as high as 40.  the burn was incredible.

also supersetting may be an option, and drop sets are awesome too (on squats, leg presses, and leg curls)

[candidate2025]

well first of all...you shouldnt do hams on the same day as quads...unless you can got o the gym twice.  becausea good quad routine will have you so drained that any ham work done after will really be useless.

as for the quad routine itself...stick with the basics: back squats, hack squats, unilateral  leg press, leg extensions. all 4 sets, heavy weight, 10-15 reps.

for hams...lying hamstring curls, sitting hamstring curls, standing hamstring curls. all 4 sets, alll moderate weight, all for 20 reps.

[buffbong]

hey dude leg routine sounds solid just on first exersize it seems like reps are kinda low
i train at home so here is my current routine and the one i switch it up with every 5 week then do that one for five weeks.
barbell hack squats 15-12-10-8-6
leg ext 12-12-12
stiff leg barbell deads 15-12-12-12-12
leg curls 12-12-12
or
barbell squats 15-12-10-8-6
walking dumbell lunges 3sets x set distance back and forth
stiff leg dumbell deads 15-12-12-12-12
one leg lying curls 12-12-12

[JPM]

If you squated with 625+...raw? (which is near world record class...depending on the bwt) than your legs, hips, glutes,hams and lower back are in almost perfect muscle balance for that lift. No one muscle group is going to dominate over the other, they all work as a balanced unit.. And if those legs don't seem to be responding like you think they should, after handling those huge weights, than you might consider hitting the quads ( I think that may be your main concern) themselves from a different angle.

Might try front squats, which are a prime quad builder. Also BB Hack squats, with the heels resting on a 2" block (or a pair of Olympic plates) ,to shift the focus on the quads section just above the knees (tear drop's). Keep the back straight throughout the lift, no leaning forward until it becomes more like a DL than a squating exercise. Can even use a block under the heels when doing front and regular squats. 

A suggestive workout:
Front squats
BB Hack squats
GMornings
or
Leg press..alternate.... one leg at a time.
BB Hack squat
Ham standing leg curl

2 to 3 sets each of 10 - 15 reps. You do not need a lot of endless sets for legs just because their a larger muscle group. Feel free to hit hard the quads & ham's in the same workout. No logical reason to split them up in two different workouts.  Approach each leg workout with serious intent.  A max effort applied in the shortest period of time. Time the workouts, allowing 90 seconds between each set. And 2 1/2 to 3 minutes between each exercise. Good Luck.

[triple_pickle]

doing quads and hams separately never worked for me.  surprisingly or not, my hams were not significantly stronger when i hit them on a separate day, and it took extra time to warm up, so in the end it was only a waste of time.

[candidate2025]

doing quads and hams separately never worked for me.  surprisingly or not, my hams were not significantly stronger when i hit them on a separate day, and it took extra time to warm up, so in the end it was only a waste of time.

dont care about strenght..just the aded size.   gotta have meaty hams in the side chest or else it looks stupid.

[sarcasm]

dont care about strenght..just the aded size.   gotta have meaty hams in the side chest or else it looks stupid.

squat and leg press deep and pull deadlifts off the floor and your hamstrings will be as big as you'll ever need them, the key is to do squats and leg presses DEEP.

[candidate2025]

squat and leg press deep and pull deadlifts off the floor and your hamstrings will be as big as you'll ever need them, the key is to do squats and leg presses DEEP.

ill agree that this helps them grow, but, not as big as you need them.    you cant have huge hanging slabs of meat from your femur without isolating them.

[benchthis]

If you squated with 625+...raw? (which is near world record class...depending on the bwt) than your legs, hips, glutes,hams and lower back are in almost perfect muscle balance for that lift. No one muscle group is going to dominate over the other, they all work as a balanced unit.. And if those legs don't seem to be responding like you think they should, after handling those huge weights, than you might consider hitting the quads ( I think that may be your main concern) themselves from a different angle.

Might try front squats, which are a prime quad builder. Also BB Hack squats, with the heels resting on a 2" block (or a pair of Olympic plates) ,to shift the focus on the quads section just above the knees (tear drop's). Keep the back straight throughout the lift, no leaning forward until it becomes more like a DL than a squating exercise. Can even use a block under the heels when doing front and regular squats. 

A suggestive workout:
Front squats
BB Hack squats
GMornings
or
Leg press..alternate.... one leg at a time.
BB Hack squat
Ham standing leg curl

2 to 3 sets each of 10 - 15 reps. You do not need a lot of endless sets for legs just because their a larger muscle group. Feel free to hit hard the quads & ham's in the same workout. No logical reason to split them up in two different workouts.  Approach each leg workout with serious intent.  A max effort applied in the shortest period of time. Time the workouts, allowing 90 seconds between each set. And 2 1/2 to 3 minutes between each exercise. Good Luck.

yea butim tall and i have wide shoulders so i ts getting hard to fill out my legs compared to my upper body

[brianX]

I would just do leg presses twice a week, 5-10 sets per workout, 8-12 reps per set. The leg muscles respond more to endurance training.

[blondmusclhunk]

Ive done squats and leg presses.  My legs react so much better to presses now.  Ill go heavy pressses 5x10, extensions 5x10-12,  curls 5x10 calves twice a week.  Sometimes ill go lighter and more reps.  mixing it up really helps.  Since your legs are constantly in use you need to shock them everyonce in awhile.

[Cold]

i know i will get flamed for this, but the leg press machine has done so much more for my legs than squatting. maybe u should try it.

[pumpster]

Too many exercises, too many sets. Shorter, more explosive workouts focusing on squats & leg presses. Hacks & leg extensions especially aren't needed for a while, if the focus is  size. A lot less sets, but about the same amount of work by making each set more intense. Get some spotters or use a machine (a machine's often better for maxing out), in order to gut out some reps to failure and sometimes beyond using rest-pause reps. The nice thing with leg press is that you won't need spotters to do this. The best results on squats from my experience come from doing box squats to about parallel.

Try both the sets/reps you're doing and either every second workout or every few weeks, try the higher reps some have suggested. No need to go with light/heavy workouts other than varying the reps if desired.

Two workouts a week. 1.5-2 mins. max. between sets.

ill agree that this helps them grow, but, not as big as you need them.    you cant have huge hanging slabs of meat from your femur without isolating them.

At 16 you're in no position to know this; experience coupled with knowledge is key and you don't have it. Keep working out, learn more. In the meantime you can share your experiences but save any of what i'm seeing here as if you know. You don't.

[benchthis]

Too many exercises, too many sets. Shorter, more explosive workouts focusing on squats & leg presses. Hacks & leg extensions especially aren't needed for a while, if the focus is  size. A lot less sets, but about the same amount of work by making each set more intense. Get some spotters or use a machine (a machine's often better for maxing out), in order to gut out some reps to failure and sometimes beyond using rest-pause reps. The nice thing with leg press is that you won't need spotters to do this. The best results on squats from my experience come from doing box squats to about parallel.

Try both the sets/reps you're doing and either every second workout or every few weeks, try the higher reps some have suggested. No need to go with light/heavy workouts other than varying the reps if desired.

Two workouts a week. 1.5-2 mins. max. between sets.
At 16 you're in no position to know this; experience coupled with knowledge is key and you don't have it. Keep working out, learn more. In the meantime you can share your experiences but save any of what i'm seeing here as if you know. You don't.

   thanks i heard about maybe doing one heavy leg day and one easy light day for legs would that work??

[SLYY]

Try front squats....

[Geo]

my legs aren't small by any standards but I'm tall and it seems like my upper body has started to out grow my lower body.. I'm not those guys who do legs once a year i do legs every week i have squatted below parallel over 625 now whats best for size should i change up my routine for more of a volume training or should i try doing hit or should i do legs twice a week once easy once hard right now my routine goes like

squats 5x 10,8,5,5,3

hack squats 3x15,10,5

leg extension 5x 30,20,20,10,10

stiff leg 4x10

leg curls 4x10

I'll call bullshit on this one..........


if you're squating 6 something you would'nt be on the internet askin for advice !


sell it somewhere else asshole !

[candidate2025]

At 16 you're in no position to know this; experience coupled with knowledge is key and you don't have it. Keep working out, learn more. In the meantime you can share your experiences but save any of what i'm seeing here as if you know. You don't.

i may not be in a position to know this, but i do; nonetheless. so please, either correct me, or shut the fuck up. im sick of you idiots flaming me for no reason.

[benchthis]

I'll call bullshit on this one..........


if you're squating 6 something you would'nt be on the internet askin for advice !


sell it somewhere else asshole !

 sell what

[mesmorph78]

deep squats.. and deep legpresses....
DEEP as in below paralell...
hams to calves.. if your sqauttin 625 that deep.. there i no way ur legs can be small

[Jr. Yates]

deep squats.. and deep legpresses....
DEEP as in below paralell...
hams to calves.. if your sqauttin 625 that deep.. there i no way ur legs can be small

sometimes weight isn't everything for size....some people with their legs need to do super high reps and super sets....I know a guy that can squat 600lbs easy but he legs didn't grow until he started doing 225 for like 20-30 reps and just always changing it up like doing one legged leg extensions into walking lunges....ya know fun wacky shit like that. either way leg day is always a challenge and everyone needs to do what works for them not what works for others and squats don't have to be done every time...sometimes ill do front squats on a smith. good luck man!

[KTMckay]

i may not be in a position to know this, but i do; nonetheless. so please, either correct me, or shut the f**k up. im sick of you idiots flaming me for no reason.

Calm down Charles Glass 

[candidate2025]

Calm down Charles Glass 

dont put me and that piece of garbage charles glass in the same sentence.


















hahaa...      just kidding.