Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Arrgh!!! Thigh me Up and Calf me Down





Tie me up and Cuff me down! (pic from http://devilsfoe.com/golden-eye-point-of-insanity/)
I know the title sounds like an S&M post but let me assure you, it’s not. Although there’s a lot of pain involved, it’s not that kind of S&M that you’re thinking of. I call it the S&M of bodybuilding. The pain or obsession of pain that goes hand-in-hand with lifting heavy weights, which results in achieving bubble glutes, thunder thighs and monster calves!
 
Bodybuilder Kang Kyung Won working on his bubble glutes, thunder thighs and monster calves
 (video from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzBc3NWMQZs)
I am a diligent gym goer, in fact almost to an extent of obsession. I just love the gym and in fact, I go to the gym almost everyday! People go to the gym for different goals and reasons but ultimately to maintain and increase their health and fitness level. So besides the latter, why do we go to the gym? I would dare to say that most do because of VANITY’s sake! Yes, we want to look better. Look more attractive regardless of how old we are.
Cute Korean Bodybuilder with Huger pecs, shoulders and arms (pic from  http://forum.bodybuilding.com)
In my more than 20 years of weightlifting, and aside from the serious semi-pro and pro bodybuilders, one thing that struck me was that most gym goers worked on their upper body the most: to have bigger pectorals, shoulders and arms. The few machines and weights that were always occupied are the bench press and shoulder raise machines as well as free weights.
Muscle dudes with nice upper body (pic from http://forum.bodybuilding.com)
 
Although having a big and strong upper body and arms are without a doubt very masculine and tough looking, this will not be the case if your lower half of your body is small and undersize. The ignorance of not exercising your legs and therefore not having a balance body symmetry will result in the “chicken leg” syndrome.

Same muscle dudes with chicken legs! (pic from http://forum.bodybuilding.com
So what is the “chicken leg” syndrome? The obsession of having huge pectorals and upper body that leads to a visually unpleasing, top heavy and a relatively insignificant bottom. If the result is so unflattering, the next question will be why are some of us still not doing anything about it?
Who has chicken legs? (pic from http://forum.bodybuilding.com)
One of the main reasons I realized is that most guys don’t really bother because they think that their bottom halves are covered with long trousers most of the time, while they are at work and some even at the gym with long track pants. So it’s not that important after all, you may think. But wait a minute; what about those times that you decide to wears shorts, Bermudas or swimming trunk? Wouldn’t you be exposing your skinny legs then?
It's TOO TOUGH!!! (pic from http://www.bodybuilding.com)
The other common excuse of not working out the legs is that the exercises that involved the leg muscles are tough and painful, and they don’t see results as fast. Yes, unfortunately that’s is very true. For most men, both the thighs and calves are the most difficult muscles to make them grow. The simple reason for that is our leg muscles are always being exercised everyday, working out every time when we walk and run. So to make them to grow, we need to work them extra hard, with higher reps and weights.
Never Give Up! (pic from http://musclemaximizerpromo.com)
The process of getting a stronger lower body is lengthy, not just for the muscle growing part, but also the exercise regime. Most men are impatient and want to have results fast. So after a few weeks of hitting the lower half body muscles, they expect miracles to happen! And when the results are not obvious or as significant as they anticipated, most will just give up altogether and stop exercising their legs.
No shortcuts to success (pic from http://www.belindagracia.com
Sorry guys, unfortunately it really doesn’t work this way. There’s no shortcuts to having a muscular lower half body. If you’re looking for magic, I can give you three: They are consistency, perseverance and endurance. If you exercise those muscles regularly, keep at it consistently and tolerate the pain throughout, then only you’ll see results in the end. The No Pain, No Gain philosophy really applies here and believe me, the final results are definitely worth the effort and pain that you will have to go through.
Bust my ASS! (pic from http://www.musclemag.com)
So you may think that alright, I am ready now to bust my ass for this, but just how to? Google it and you’ll find many leg exercise routines to enhance your buttocks, thighs and calves. Most of these leg exercises have been tried and tested by professionals hence to make things simpler, I suggest you to choose the exercises that work on these four muscle groups namely glutes, quads, hamstrings, and calves.
Full Squat (video from http://www.youtube.com)
As explained in my previous post, the king of all exercises, which is the Full Squat, works on almost all the muscle groups of your legs. The close second, has to be the Dead Lift. This is especially good for working out the glutes and hamstrings as well as the lower back. One more exercise that you should include in your routine is the lunges, which is great for “carving” your legs and buttocks so as to achieve a more define look. As for calves, nothing works better than the calf raise and remember to alternate with the different available variations.
Maybe I should just stick with Dead Lifts! (pic from http://www.ironmind.com)
Most important to remember though is that to get the muscles to grow, you have to lift heavy and until failure. My suggestion is to start with the first set of 10 reps with a lighter weight and continue to increase the weight until you can only perform 6 reps in a set. For the last set, increase the weight further (can be additional 5 to 10kg), and lift until muscle failure (which may be only a few reps) and immediately drop to a half-weight set of 12 reps. For example, if the maximum weight to perform the last few reps is 50kg, then the drop set will be a 25 kg weight in correlation.
Filling the trousers with fuller buttocks and bigger thighs to achieve a manlier look! 
So besides looking like a complete and balance man-beast with huge pectorals, shoulders and arms coupled with strong buttocks, thick thighs and calves, what are the benefits of working out your legs? Well, firstly you will have a better and stable posture. Training the lower half will assist in stabilizing your core. You will walk and stand better. The other benefit is that you’ll be able to lift heavier things without hurting your back. Squatting down will no longer be a challenge and your feet will not be in chronic pain as you are able to carry your body weight better. In addition, your clothes, specifically the trousers will fit better. The fuller buttocks and bigger thighs will fill the breathing space of your pants resulting in a more manlier and stronger look.

Still training hard to be a muscle bear!
So guys especially those who wants to be muscle bears, the next time you exercise, please remember not to neglect your lower body and spend as much time working your legs as your upper body. Get rid of your “Chicken Legs” once and for all, then only you can achieve the balance body symmetry that you have always longed for. In no time, you’ll be proud to show off your legs and will not be afraid to hide them behind your long trousers anymore.

Say NO to chicken legs! (pic from blackouttrainer.com)
Before I sign off, I would like to remind my readers that I'm not a qualified Personal Trainer and I am only sharing my personal experience in weightlifting and being a muscle bear. Please exercise with caution and don't start any routine without consulting professional advise especially for those who have prior medical conditions and problems. Till the next time, this is Jimen signing out! Be happy and be safe always! Cheers.

No comments:

Post a Comment