If you want to add thunder to those thighs, this step-by-step guide on how to build leg muscles might be what you are looking for.
11 Steps on How to Build Leg Muscles the Right Way
Step 1: Warm Up Before Doing This Workout
Before you perform any workout, the first thing you need to do is warm-up your muscles. Do some stretching exercises and light jogging to get the blood flowing to the muscles. The goal is to loosen your joints to improve flexibility and prevent injuries.
Step 2: Start with Barbell Back Squats
The best way to build leg muscles is through progressive overloading and strength training. Barbell back squats are compound exercises that work your quads, hamstrings, glutes, and calves. When you do barbell squats, aim for weights you can only lift around 6 to 10 times. Here’s how:
- Stand with a narrow stance. Place a loaded bar on the back of your shoulders. Hold the bar with a wide grip.
- Slowly lower your body by bending your knees. Remember to keep your back arched as you squat.
- Continue all the way down until your thighs are parallel to the ground.
- Push yourself back up to the starting position.
Sets: 4
Reps: 6 to 10, 70-90% 1RM
Rest: 3 to 4 Minutes
Step 3: Do Dumbbell Lunges
Dumbbell lunges are great for improving strength and flexibility in your legs. They mainly target your quads, but they work the glutes too.
- Stand straight with your feet a little less than shoulder-width apart.
- Hold a dumbbell in each hand with your palms facing the thighs. Use a hammer grip.
- Step your right foot forward, then lower your body until the right thigh is parallel to the ground and your left knee almost touches the ground.
- Pull your body back up to the starting position.
- Alternate between your left and right feet, that counts as one rep.
Sets: 4
Reps: 12 Each Leg
Rest: 3 to 4 Minutes
Step 4: Build the Quads with the Leg Press
After doing squats, it’s time to move on to the leg press machine. The leg press is an excellent strength-building exercise for the quads.
- Sit down on the machine and place your feet at a shoulder-width stance on the platform in front of you.
- Lower the safety bars holding the weight in place and push the weight up until your legs are completely extended. All throughout the exercise, make sure not to lock your knees when pushing the weight upward.
- Once you’ve positioned yourself, slowly lower the weight down until your upper and lower legs form a 90° angle.
- Push the weight back up to the starting position; push through the heels.
Tip: If you want to focus on working your quad muscles, use a narrow stance.
Sets: 5
Reps: 10 to 12
Rest: 3 to 4 Minutes
Step 5: Target the Hamstring with Lying Leg Curls
Lying leg curls are isolation exercises that target your hamstrings. The trick here is to maintain your pacing and focus on doing the reps properly.
- Lie face down on the machine and place your feet under the pads. They should be just under your calves. The torso should lie flat on the bench.
- Once you’ve positioned yourself, firmly grasp the sidebars, then curl your legs as far up as possible. Make sure only your lower legs are moving.
- Lower the weight back to the starting position.
Tip: Using an angled leg curl machine is better for building hamstring muscles compared to a flat one.
Sets: 3
Reps: 12
Rest: 3 to 4 Minutes
Step 6: Perform Leg Extensions
Creating a regimen consisting of both isolation and compound exercises is the best way to build leg muscles. Leg extensions are good isolation exercises to target your quads.
- Sit upright on the leg extension machine.
- Place your shins under the pads and firmly grasp the sidebars.
- Push the weight upward using your shins until your legs are straight in front of you.
- Lower the weight back down to your starting position.
Sets: 3
Reps: 20
Rest: 3 to 4 Minutes
Step 7: Work the Calves with Standing Calf Raises
Calves are probably the most underrated muscle groups of all time. However, sculpting a well-proportioned body means doing your share of calf exercises. Plus, a strong pair of calves plays a vital role in most sporting activities, such as basketball, boxing, wrestling, and football.
- With your shoulders under the pads, place the ball of your feet on top of the platform with your heels extending off of it. Your toes must be facing forward.
- Once you’ve positioned yourself, lift your body upward using only your toes. Fully extend the ankles. You should feel your calves contracting. Keep the knees stationary.
- Hold the position for two seconds, then slowly lower your heels and bend the ankles.
Sets: 4
Reps: 12
Rest: 3 to 4 Minutes
Step 8: Isolate Your Glutes with Barbell Hip Thrusts
Barbell Hip Thrusts are great powerlifting moves that activate your upper and lower glutes.
- Sit on the ground with a flat bench behind you.
- Place a loaded bar over your legs just under your crotch.
- Roll the bar upward until it’s above your hips then lean your shoulder blades on the bench. This will be your starting position.
- By driving through your shoulder blades and heels, lift the weight upward as high as you can.
- Slowly lower the weight back to the starting position.
Sets: 4
Reps: 6 to 12 (with emphasis on rapid and explosive contractions)
Rest: 90 Seconds
Step 9: Explode with Plyometric Bulgarian Split Squats
Plyometric split squats work the different leg muscles. On the front leg, the thigh muscles, hamstrings, and glutes are engaged. At the same time, the hip flexors and the quads are engaged on the rear leg. Plyometrics are great exercises to shock the leg muscles at the end of a workout.
- Go into the tall half-knee position. Kneel with your right knee. Make sure the foot is straight, the shin line goes straight down, and the knee is positioned over the shin line. The back foot rests on a bench.
- Do 10 plyometric split squats on one leg and then switch legs.
Tip: Aim for control over intensity. Make sure that the front leg carries 85% of the load when jumping.
Reps: Descending Ladder (10 per leg, 9 per leg … 1 per leg to finish)
Rest: No Rest
Step 10: Sprint as Fast as You Can
To cap off our leg day workout routine, let’s do some sprints. Sprinting is a great way to build explosive leg power, plus, it’s known to substantially increase hamstring growth versus a traditional isometric leg curl.
Rounds: 10-15
Sprint: 15 seconds
Walk: 45 seconds
Step 11: Cool Down After Your Workout
After your workout, stretch, drink your protein shake, and rehydrate with water. You just finished an intense leg workout. Give your body some time to rest before heading out of the gym.
Try this explosive lower-body routine from Evertrain:
This workout will target all your leg muscles, which makes it the perfect routine for leg day. With the right guidance, learning how to build leg muscles shouldn’t be too hard. If you stick to these exercises, you will see an overall improvement in muscle growth and explosiveness in your leg muscles. And remember, never skip leg day!
What is your current leg muscle building workout routine? Share it with us in the comments section below!