The four day workout - Thursday, legs

This week we’re going to go over a relatively basic 4 day workout. This workout has a good general makeup that allows a person to cover all the major muscle groups. It’s not geared towards any specific goal and it uses a minimum of specialized equipment. When I do this workout, I usually do four sets of each exercise with ten reps in each set. That means a single set is ten repetitions of the same exercise without a break for rest. After those ten you rest, do another set and so on for a total of four sets. By the way, even though the article titles are going to have specific days in them, there’s no reason why you can’t change the days around. Feel free to make Tuesday your legs day put some of these workouts on a weekend day. Remember, the best schedule is the one you’re comfortable with. Now let’s take a look at today’s workout.

Legs

Legs are an area that either gets too much attention, usually from women, or not enough, usually from men. Many men seem to believe that it’s all about the upper body while many women seem to believe all they need are toned legs. The result is a mismatch between our bodies’ needs and what we actually provide. The reality is that legs are a vital part of our support system. They provide us with the strength and stability to perform other physical activities. Legs also take a lot of abuse from activities like walking and running. So it’s key to give our legs the right balance of exercise and rest.

For me, that means working on my legs once a week. That might sound low but remember that most of my cardio involves leg work of some kind, plus I do a great deal of walking. So my legs get quite a bit of activity. If you’re not quite as active, you may want to add an extra day of legs workout to your schedule.

Workout Basics

I like to alternate my muscle groups as I work out. That means one exercise will work a specific area and then I’ll move on to a different area with the next exercise. For legs day, that means the exercises will alternate between different areas of the legs. First you’ll be pushing and then you’ll be pulling.

As with biceps, make sure you keep an eye on your form. With legs, the tendency some people have is to move too quickly. They launch into any exercise putting all their energy into the initial movement. They then coast for the rest of the exercise, allowing their momentum to keep them going. This is very bad form which provides poor exercise and is prone to injury. As always, keep your movement slow and steady. If you need to decrease the weight, do so. It’s far better to exercise with good form and a low weight than bad form and a high weight.

The exercises

Lunges - We start with what I think is the best legs exercise ever made, the lunge. Lunges work your entire upper leg and also engage your lower leg to provide stability. They’re a relatively simple exercise that can be done at home. You can do them with simple body weight or you can use a pair of dumbbells to add difficulty.

Leg curl - We move on to the back side of your leg, the hamstring. This exercise is meant to be done in a gym since you’re unlikely to have access to this machine at home. If you are doing this workout at home, you may want to substitute the Dead Lift here. It’s not quite as good for your hamstrings, but it’s very good nonetheless. Yes, even women can do the dead lift. I realize the name is a bit silly, but it actually refers to the fact that you’re lifting the weight up from a dead stop, without any help from your legs. Trust me, it’s a good exercise.

Squat - Anther great leg exercise. Like the lunge, this one engages your entire upper leg. It can be done at home with just your body weight or you can add dumbbells or a barbell for added difficulty. Make sure to keep your movement slow and stable on this one. Many people seem to jump straight up when they start the squat. This is bad and can lead to injury. Just move up and down slowly and with consistent speed.

Calf raise - Now we move down the leg a bit to work on calves. This exercise can be done with just body weight, but you can add dumbbells for added difficulty. If you do add dumbbells, you may want to add a step of some kind to position your toes on. Trying to do this on a level floor without the benefit of leaning up on a wall will make it impossible for you to go through the full range of motion.

Thigh abduction - Of course, one can never forget about the butt. Guys, if you think you’re too good to work on your rear end, keep in mind that most studies show women appreciate this part of your anatomy far more than they like big biceps. If you want to add difficulty to this one, just add reps. Although to be honest, 4 sets of 10 of these is more than enough for me.

Lying leg adduction - And the opposite of the previous exercise, the lying leg adduction. Another great exercise that guys tend to ignore. I like to alternate sets of these with sets of the thigh abduction. Again, for added difficulty, just add reps. By the way, this is another exercise that tends to have bad form. People tend to do it too quickly because the range of motion is so narrow. Just keep your motion slow and steady and remember that it’s not about speed, it’s about form.

Summary

That’s it. A complete leg workout, from top to bottom. On Saturday, when I review the cardio that goes along with this workout, you’ll note that legs day is also my lightest cardio day. That’s because by the time I’m through with this workout, my legs are sore and need some rest. However, if I manage to get to the gym a fifth day in a week, I do this legs workout again.

Series Navigation

«The four day workout - Wednesday, biceps and tricepsThe four day workout - Friday, chest and shoulders»

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