squats!!!!

**chamkila** · 06-14-2003, 10:20 AM

hey guys i have a cuzin whose been working out for 3 years now but never does squats ever!! the other day we were talking and I told him you wont get any bigger if you dont do squats, he said bullsh*t... thats all a myth, i remember reading not long ago that squats release GH or something to that effect, cuz someone just clarify this... is that true or is it a myth... ??

**xxxl83** · 06-14-2003, 01:22 PM

Yes it's true, squats do promote the release of gh.

As for can you get big without squats?

Yes you could get big without squats but, as far as I'm concerned no other single exercise can touch squats. So why not do them, no other exercise will give you the results squats will.

xxxl83

xxxl83

**Flynman** · 06-14-2003, 01:43 PM

A long time ago a training partner told me "If you want to get big you gotta squat" Well 15 years later so far so good!!!

**tdzzii72** · 06-14-2003, 02:00 PM

I have also heard that. In order for your upper body to get bigger your lower body must grow first.

**cwhid** · 06-14-2003, 03:19 PM

This has to be one of my favorite poems of all time. It pretty much sums up the answer to your question

Squattin

Way down this road, in a gym far away,
A young man was once heard to say,
“I’ve repped high and I’ve repped low,
No matter what I do my legs won't grow.”

He tried leg extensions, leg curls, and leg presses, too.
Trying to cheat these sissy workouts he’d do.
From the corner of the gym where the big men train,
Through a cloud of chalk and the midst of pain.

Where the big iron rides high and threatens lives,
Where the noise is made with big forty fives.
A deep voice bellowed as he wrapped his knees,
A very big man with legs like trees.

Laughing as he snatched another plate from the stack,
Chalking his hands and his monstrous back,
Said, “Boy stop lying and don’t say you’ve forgotten,
Trouble with you is you ain’t been squattin.”

-Dale Clark

At the gym at UF i absolutely never have to wait for a squat rack unless 5 people are doing shrugs, cuz noone squats...what a bunch of sissys! It's quite convenient tho-on the other hand, all 10 benches are full 24/7

Chris

**HiddenPotential** · 06-15-2003, 12:15 AM

Everyone's got their own theory of how to grow legs. But i've got two friend's who are proof that claiming that u won't have big legs without squatting is a myth. It's all a game of the mind and ur muscle. If u feel it with leg presses and/or leg curls, it should work. If u workout without having the mind and muscle coordination, i don't think that squats are gonna work for u either.
As for the two examples, one of my friend started out with 26 inch legs and he's up to 29 now, and he never does squats. I have another friend who just turned pro and posts on other boards and he has never done squats in his entire life, and if i were to say what is his best shot, it would be his legs. So, i beleive claiming that u won't have big legs if u don't do squats is a myth. I, personally, started out at 24 inch legs and now i'm up to 26 and i haven't worked on sqats either.
I'm talking based on my experience. many people strongly disagree with me but that's how it is.
Laterz,
~Pe@cE~

**NiceGuy** · 06-15-2003, 01:14 AM

totally agree with hiddenpotential... oh wait is he talking about me over there

yeah bros i have some of the sickest tree trunks

and i attribute this freakiness to leg presses personally. I dont think squats did much to me as far as thickness goes. Remember, i didnt say it didnt do anything

, i simply think it didnt work for me as welll as leg presses do! i am the leg press guy i guess! no routine is perfect but just like hidden potential i totall diasgaree that without squats you cant get huge quads...naaah...not true at all in my book.
anyhow, PEACE ;- )

**KeyMastur** · 06-15-2003, 01:25 AM

Originally posted by xxxl83
Yes it's true, squats do promote the release of gh.

Just to elaborate on this comment...

Since your legs are the largest muscle in your body, then they produce the most amount of GH when stressed upon. Therefore your buddy, cham, should incorporate some sort of leg routine to get the full effects of his body's naturally producing GH.

**Flynman** · 06-19-2003, 01:24 PM

Lets not lose sight of the of the question bro's! If you want to get big not just in the legs, but overall size in back,shoulders,AND legs ,the squat is king!! I've never seen a leg press yet than can develope shoulders and back???

**TheMudMan** · 06-19-2003, 06:27 PM

When my squat goes up so do all my other lifts. The squat is the king!

**markas214** · 06-19-2003, 06:47 PM

Do not forget stiff legged deadlifts for the hamstrings. If you want to add a couple inches to your thigh girth this is the best execise. Leg curls do not even get close. I have squatted heavy for years and my lower quads just don't get big enough to hang over my knee. I've seen guys squat for 3 months and get bigger lower quads than me. I am going to be hitting my legs heavy during this cycle and hopefully will find the right execise to get my lower quads to grow. In the end as with any other body part it comes down to genetics that are your ultimate limiting factor.

**bigol'legs** · 06-19-2003, 07:01 PM

Squats are the best overall excersice for legs. i dont think anyone could tell me different

**Juggernaut** · 06-19-2003, 07:24 PM

bigol, I could not agree more. I love them but I hate them too. There's just something about that felling you have after a killer set. That last set on that last rep where when you rack the weight and the knees start to give and you feel like you're about to ralf......

When someone in the gym walks up and asks how can they make their wheels look like that......makes it so worth it.

You know what will make your legs grow? Whatever you BELIEVE will make them big is whats going to do the trick for you. Everyone is different. Thank God!

Jugg

**Vibrantred94gt** · 06-24-2003, 01:56 AM

Be glad you have the chance to work you legs through squats. I have a bad lower back and really hurt it doing squats a couple moths ago. I have started doing them again, but after having to take 2 weeks off from the gym....I am careful to say the least.

I like to workout till failure and then some, there is no way I can do that right now, or maybe ever, while doing squats, well I can, but my failure point is a lot lower than it should be. I can't TRUELY give it every last bit of effort my legs have, because my back is on its last leg when my legs got more to give. Does that make sense? I like that feeling of almost throwing up from squats.

I have found that doing squats and supersetting them with lay down leg press works pretty good, but not as good.