Final month, I talked about how I’ve reincorporated weight machines into my strength-training exercises to good impact.
This 12 months, we’ll be doing a little articles on methods to use numerous weight machines correctly. One of many advantages of utilizing machines is that they’ve a a lot simpler studying curve than lifting barbells. However there are some things it is best to learn about utilizing every in an effort to keep away from ache and harm and use them most successfully for constructing measurement and energy.
First up in these tutorials is the leg extension machine, which targets your quadriceps and your quadriceps alone.
There may be some folklore on the market that the leg machine could cause accidents and places an excessive amount of stress on the knees. However this isn’t borne out by analysis, which has discovered that leg extensions are protected, together with for ACL rehabilitation.
There’s additionally a delusion that leg extensions aren’t practical. However quad energy interprets to every little thing from strolling to operating, and notably to explosive actions like leaping and reducing. Additionally, as a result of individuals typically use compensating muscle tissue when doing different leg workout routines (particularly in the event that they’re coping with accidents), leg extensions, by isolating the quads, will help appropriate energy imbalances created by these compensating methods. That is helpful in stopping new accidents, in addition to re-injuries, notably a second ACL tear.
Not solely are leg extensions a protected strength-building train, in addition they assist provide you with outlined and meaty legs, so you possibly can confidently put on your shorty shorts round city. And, because you’re solely shifting a single joint, they carry out this perform with out requiring the type of restoration you want after doing the squat or leg press.
However since leg extensions, like all workout routines, are solely protected to do if you happen to do them proper, let’s get into methods to carry out them correctly.
Setting Up the Machine
My dwelling fitness center, plate-loaded leg machine doesn’t have as many adjustment choices as one you’ll discover in a industrial fitness center, so I couldn’t dial in my place as a lot as you would possibly be capable to, however this a usually good set-up place.
The leg extension itself is a straightforward motion. The large factor it’s important to take note of is organising the machine earlier than you begin doing them.
There are a number of changes to make to the machine earlier than you start this train to make sure ergonomic consolation, maximization of strength-producing, hypertrophy-creating power, and the prevention of undue ache and pressure in your joints:
Weight stack/plates. There are totally different colleges of thought on what weight it is best to use for leg extensions. One is that it is best to go together with decrease weight since you’re solely utilizing a single joint to maneuver the load, and also you’re not in a position to exert that a lot power with out kind breaking down. To get the hypertrophic stimulus with decrease weight, you’ll must do excessive reps within the 15-20 vary. When you’re going to go the excessive rep route with leg extensions, carry out them on the finish of your exercise, so that you don’t fatigue your self for the principle leg train just like the squat.
The opposite college of thought is that so long as you possibly can carry out the reps with good kind and with out ache, you possibly can follow the standard 8-12 rep vary prescribed for hypertrophy and go heavier.
Experiment and discover what works for you.
Seat again distance. The seat again will be adjusted forwards or backwards. Positioning it accurately will decrease undue pressure in your knees and assist you to produce most power. You wish to transfer the seat again in order that if you sit down, your knees will not be too far in entrance of the sting of the seat’s base, nor too far again. Your knees ought to align with the leg bar’s pivot level. The creases on the backs of the knees ought to sit towards the sting of the butt pad.
Leg pad top. The pad that can sit on high of your decrease legs can generally be adjusted up or down. The pad ought to relaxation the place the ankle flexes. Not up in your shins or down in direction of your toes.
Leg bar vary of movement. The leg bar will be adjusted in order that it sits roughly underneath the seat’s base. The additional again it sits, the higher the vary of movement that might be doable in your leg extensions. Regulate the leg bar to full depth to maximise the vary of movement.
There may be generally additionally a pad that may be adjusted over the thighs to lock them down. As your butt/legs shouldn’t come up if you happen to’re positioned accurately and do the train correctly, this pad isn’t obligatory.
When you’ve acquired all these changes in place, chances are you’ll wish to make a remark someplace of the numbered positions of every piece, so the subsequent time you utilize the machine, you received’t need to spend time fiddling round and making the changes by way of trial and error.
Doing Leg Extensions
Now that the machine is about up proper, it’s time to do a correct leg extension:
Sluggish and managed. The large mistake individuals make with this train is bouncing/swinging the leg bar up, utilizing momentum, and letting it drop again down. As an alternative, you wish to carry the bar up and produce it down in a sluggish and managed method. Sluggish and managed is the trail to hypertrophy.
Elevate the bar. As you elevate the leg bar, you’re not lifting your butt and hips up. You’re not rocking backwards and forwards; solely your legs are shifting, not the higher half of your physique. Butt stays involved with the seat’s base pad; again stays involved with the seat’s again pad. Lean again somewhat. Grip the handles to maintain your butt down.
Steadily convey the bar up till you attain full knee extension/peak contraction. Pause for a second throughout this high maintain. Squeeze. Really feel and relish the burn.
Decrease the bar. A lot of hypertrophy occurs in the course of the eccentric section of a carry, so decrease the bar in the identical sluggish and managed method that you simply lifted it — its descent ought to take a full one to 2 seconds.
Relatively than slamming again down, the load ought to simply gently contact the load stack because it returns. When you hear it flippantly clang, carry the bar up once more and do one other rep.
Toe place makes little distinction. Retaining your toes straight forward versus angling them somewhat inwards or outwards can create small variations by which elements of the quads get labored. However except you’re an elite bodybuilder, this isn’t one thing it’s good to fear about. Retaining your toes straight or tilted barely in is okay. Do no matter feels most comfy for you, as it will make it easier to produce most power.
Go for full vary of movement. Go all the best way up and all the best way down with every rep. When you can solely carry the leg bar midway up, the load is just too heavy.
Go arduous. Don’t simply mindlessly crank out leg extensions, tacking them on to the tip of your exercise with out giving them a lot effort. Simply going by way of the motions received’t construct muscle. You ought to be doing units that convey you inside one to 2 reps of failure.
Certain it hurts, nevertheless it hurts so good, child.
Leg extensions will be achieved utilizing only a single leg at a time, which will be helpful for addressing energy imbalances.
As a result of leg extensions solely work the quads, they need to be achieved in a program that features different leg workout routines like squats, leg presses, and lunges.
