Leg building exercise is very important for developing a good physique and has become high on demand as well. Right from bodybuilding to playing different sports, a person should develop strong thighs to get high endurance. Leg exercises are gaining importance in the present times and more and more people are realizing that strong legs are the need of the hour. The muscle development of the leg should be all round - i.e., a person needs to train thighs, hamstrings as well as calf muscles. In the following lines, we provide some leg building workouts that would help a person build muscle mass in the lower portion of the body.
Leg Building Workouts
Squats
This is the best exercise one can do to build the leg muscles. In this exercise, the feet should be shoulder-width apart. The first step to perform the exercise would be to step on the rack, so that the Barbell rests across the back of the shoulders. Keeping the back straight and head upright, bend your knees and lower yourself. Make sure that the thighs are parallel to the ground. Using the power of the thighs, raise the body. Repeat 10-15 times.
Leg Press
The basic purpose of this exercise is to build the muscle mass of the thighs. For people with a back problem, the leg press is just the ideal exercise to build the thigh muscles and tone it. There are two ways to do the leg presses. In the first type, weights are attached directly to sled mounted on rails. A person sits below and pushes the weights upwards, with his feet. For the other type, a person sits upright and pushes the feet forward. He bends the knees, until they form 90 degree, to lower the weight. Repeat 10-15 times.
Leg Curls
The target of this exercise is to build the muscle mass in the hamstrings. It can be done either by lying down or standing upright. Lie on your stomach, with legs extended under the support pads. Now, curl the legs until the heels of the legs touch the buttock. It is advisable to hold the handles to prevent yourself from lifting off the bench. Come back to the starting or original position and repeat the whole exercise.
Barbell Lunges / Dumbbell Lunges
This exercise is meant to build thethigh or the butt muscles and can be done either using barbell or dumbbells. The first step would be to stand upright and hold a barbell behind the neck. Now, with the back upright, bend the knees and get them as close to the floor as you can. Get back to the start position and repeat the whole process, altering the foot.