I have heard that "if you want a big upper body you must also train legs". Is there any truth to this? Reason I ask is because I have a bum knee and doing legs sucks.
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I have heard that "if you want a big upper body you must also train legs". Is there any truth to this? Reason I ask is because I have a bum knee and doing legs sucks.
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No, you can get a big upper body and still have small legs...it just looks stupid.
I have the same problem as you. Minor knee problem, and a major back problem. Legs are tough for me too. My upper body is starting to look good, but I haven't kept up with my legs. I am just now working on getting my legs up. Figuring out how to deal with the discomfort and identify exercises I can do without damaging my back.
Last edited by JohnnyVegas; 10-12-2011 at 06:56 PM.
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suck it up!Originally Posted by yeahbuddy289
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Have you ever been in a gym? 80% of dudes only work upper body....
Can you do deads?
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Yes and 80% of dudes will never be on the level I want to be on. I am going to "suck it up" I did legs tonight and man, it didnt take much before I could do no more. I plan on doing squats, deads, and lunges. I would like to do quads but I dont have a leg extension set up at my house... I have heard front squats hit the quads more... is this true?
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Doing legs is a must I think its the biggest muscle group in the body and hitting legs hard your body creates more natural test so i think there is some truth to it
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Thats what i've heard Mike. Im trying to get big and legs are a big muscle so I think it will help me tip the scale a little more if I grow them.
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True^, but also the knees.
Forget about leg extension, unless for warm ups or high rep finishing pump sets, doing them heavy is a killer on the knees. If you can squat, then squat....if your knees give you grief squatting, try a wide stance.
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I have bad knees and I can still do squats. This is going to sound counter intuitive but going ass to heels has seemed to take some of the pressure off. Of course you will have to lighten the weight to do that but it works for me.
9/11/2001~343 Never Forget!~E-HOF~RETIRED
Funny how many people have wrist/elbow/shoulder/back pain yet always find ways to work chest yet so many peoples injuries prevent them from training legs.
That don't kill me, can only make me stronger
bingo...if you dont like doing legs at least do Squats..do lighter weight and go low as possible..will actually strengthen the knee
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I actually love squats and use to do them all the time. Last year I tried to push through the pain and do them and that stopped when I had to be basically carried out of a movie theater by my friends because my knee locked up. But im gonna give it another shot.... use light weight and go deep. We'll see how it goes....
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Yes must do legs. Narrow stance squats will help quads. I also have knee issues I've learned that if I step about 5-6 inches forward on smith machine it helps. Also if I stand on 5lb plates under heels doing free motion squats that helps. Or if my knees really suck I leg press. But I always warm up on leg extensions super light 5 sets 20-25 reps to get knees ready b4 squats
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Make sure you get some blood flowing before starting. Grab some knee wraps, crank that belt down, and get it in the squat rack.
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Talking from experience I would not do the leg extensions if you have a bum knee. I have nagging knee pain from an ACL/meniscus injury I suffered from basketball and leg extensions aggravate it every time i used to do them. So I wouldn't do leg extensions if you have other methods of working your quads. Squats are probably one of the best exercises for developing quads. I do front squats and it seems to me that my knee doesn't bother me. Remember that doing a front squat is harder than doing a back squat because of how the weight is distributed. If doing front squats, I would start out with 30% of your 1rm back squat and then work your way up.
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Excuse the image edit.. but OP... .. Do you like this photo????
If yes.. then it doesnt matter..
If no.. then it does... .. then you wear your shorts.. hit the beach and let the chicks stare!
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I was also very negligent on my legs. I'm now doing squats, deads and power cleans.
I would avoid the leg extension machine. Squats will do what your looking for. Oh....and do full squats (just below parallel). It will actually strengthen your knee.....just start light and always warm up before doing your working weight. Heels shoulder width, feet angeled out about 30 degrees.....knees at the same angle when you get low.
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+1 i really love squats!!!
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I neglected legs for too long. Only been hitting them seriously for past 2 months.. They are coming on great, and starting to look in proportion to my upper half. I do think they promote more natural test production too
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I'm light on legs so I'm gonna take the advice here and hit squats, deads, and single leg presses
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Whether or not you should hit legs is an absolute no brainer. I love watching guys walk into the gym with huge torso's, but spaghetti legs underneath! hahaha
FG is right though, people always have excuses for legs, yet never for upper body LOL I love lifting legs. There is nothing like walking around with huge calves and explosive stumps!
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I personally am much more willing to train through an upper body injury than a lower body injury. For me it's all about longevity. When I'm 80 I'd much rather have a bad elbow than a bad knee
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speaking of injuries, if one were to train their upper body only, they would then be prone to lower body injury as their itsy-bitsy legs wouldnt be able to hold the top part of their body. Your legs are the most important part of your body, so use them, and use them properly so you dont have injuries, and when your old and shitty you will still be able to walk. When i see guys at the gym with arms bigger than their legs and who bench more then they squat i just laugh, they look stupid and will have problems when they are older. No successful athlete, excluding those who are paraplegic, got by without doing legs, so if you wanna be successful do your legs, if you wanna be a funny looking useless set of unecessary biceps go right ahead and do biceps 5 days a week.
Last edited by jypoll; 12-11-2011 at 06:33 PM.
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Guilty of neglecting legs in the past. Have never seen the progress that I have seen in my whole body since I have not missed a leg workout. I've heard doing squats increases test; not sure if that is scientific. I now look forward to leg day. when I am doing heavy squats and presses I use some knee support bands that keep them tight.
'everything louder than everything else'
not necessary unless one is going for extremely heavy trebles, doubles or maxs
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legs is a must. in fact unless your body is quite seasoned i would suggest ALWAYS incorporating some compound movements in your training sessions...
whether its rows, deads, pull ups, squats, bench, you see? all of that pretty much takes care of your whole body...
a guy with a big upper and a well neglected lower just reeks of a guy who has issues lol...
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oh yeah and ive come across plenty of people who can give a great excuse for why they can not do an exercise, i usually just tell em they are out of luck then..
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Squats till you gotta throw up. "If you wanna grow, u gotta squat low"
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Guys with pretty big upper bodies and chicken legs pretty much look ridiculous imo... but if you just want the fratboy big arms look then by all means..
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Just update: Have been doing squats and deadlifts since starting this thread. Knee is holding up pretty well so im pretty happy. And man, let me tell you... when you train legs hard you feel like more of a man lol its great.
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Doing legs is completely necesary!
Anabolic Member
many newbs, includg mysf years ago, are only interested in developing those muscle groups most noticeable in a TShirt. But if YOU want to be strong, then your WHOLE body needs to be strong.
I remember in Highschool these dudes would put glass pak headers/mufflers on their ride because they thought it made their car sound fast. But when it came time they had to shut up because sounding fast doesn't make it fast
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I hate leg days, but its a must!!
i move heavy things!
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