The foundation of all athletic strength is the lower body. In most movements, the lower body generates power. This generated power is then transferred through the core to the upper body. The lower body also plays a key role in providing balance and stability. Ensure that you have a healthy pre-workout meal before embarking on this lower body workout. 

What are the Main Lower Body Muscles?

The lower body comprises of five primary muscle groups. They are the glutes, calves, tibialis anterior, quadriceps, and hamstrings. The tibialis anterior muscle, which is located along the shin bone is often ignored. It is a mistake. A weak and overlooked tibialis anterior muscle causes shin splints. This is also known as medial tibial stress syndrome.

When the tibialis anterior is weak, it is unable to counterbalance the calves. This causes pain along your tibia. The tibia is the long bone in the front of your lower leg or shin. Shin splints is a cumulative stress disorder that is often experienced by runners and athletes who ignore tibialis anterior training.

Why We Give You the Choice of Several Exercises?

Research has shown that rotating exercises from workout to workout enables the trainee to hit the muscle from many angles. It also prevents overuse injuries. However, it is also important to stick to the basic brick and mortar exercises like squats and stiff-legged deadlifts. For these exercises, the weight can be lightened occasionally to guard against overuse injuries. 

Why Do We Call This Favorite Workout?

You can use the choice of exercises from one workout to another to make one workout different from the other while sticking to the same basic structure.

How Do We Structure This Favorite Workout?

The best way is to start with your glutes and then take a ground-up approach. The glute and hip muscles play an important role in moving your legs. The best exercise sequence is glutes, calves and tibialis anterior. This should be followed by alternating exercises for the quads and hamstrings. In the previous era, trainees would train calves last. This left them with little energy for calves. However, all that has changed now.

How Many Sets And How Many Repetitions?

For the repetition range, start with a weight that allows you to do 15 to 20 repetitions. Add weight after each set and finish off with a weight that allows you to do 8 to 10 repetitions. Do at least two sets of each exercise. However, do not do any more than four sets per exercise.

How Much Weight Should You Attempt to Lift?

Leave your ego outside the training arena. Under all circumstances, do not let the pride of lifting heavy weight lead to poor exercise form. Say “no” to the greed of the short term ego boost. Jeopardize your Long Term Gains. Ensure that you let your exercise form take priority.

Which Are the Glute Exercises you Should Do?

Why start with a glute exercise? It is important to activate your glutes to prevent injury. Your glute and hip muscles maintain the correct alignment of your knees. Start with free non-weighted hip thrusters as a warm-up. This will activate your glutes. The next exercise you should do, must either be a weighted hip thruster or a Jefferson squat. You ought to follow this up with glute sidekicks and glute back kicks to fully work your glutes from all angles.

What is the Structure of Our Favorite Calf Workout?

The calves are comprised of two muscles. They are the gastrocnemius and the soleus. The soleus muscle gets activated when the knees are bent. The key exercise for the soleus muscle is the seated calf raise. After the seated calf raises, any one of the following exercises has to be done to fully work the gastrocnemius muscle. The exercises for the gastrocnemius muscle are leg press, machine toe presses, standing calf raises, donkey calf raises, etc.

Why We Structure the Thigh Workout Differently?

Your thighs comprise of two primary muscles. They are the quadriceps and hamstrings. Your hamstrings consist of three main muscles: the semimembranosus, the semitendinosus, and the biceps femoris. The biceps femoris includes two separate heads, a long head, and a short head. The biggest cause of knee problems is the hamstrings being disproportionately weaker than the quadriceps. The hamstrings should be in the priority muscle group. The act of standing up requires your hamstrings and quadriceps to fire simultaneously. Therefore, we do 1 quadricep and 1 hamstring exercise alternately.

Why Should You Incorporate Unilateral Exercises?

It is human nature to take the path of least resistance. The stronger side tends to get stronger and causes imbalance. Even the competitive powerlifters and strength athletes who compete on bilateral lifts incorporate unilateral movements to balance their musculature and strength.

We Keep the Cardio at the End of the Lower Body Session

Keep the cardio session at the end of your leg workout. Lower body exercises done for repetitions are extremely challenging, to begin with. Adding some cardio at the end of the session with your legs fully pumped will challenge your cardiovascular system and make it even stronger. However, it is not for the faint of heart- literally, practically, and virtually.

The Exercise for The Ignored Tibialis Anterior.

Do one exercise for the tibialis anterior. Gyms rarely have tibialis anterior exercise apparatus. Do this exercise for your tibialis anterior. Sit on a bench or chair high which should be high enough so that your feet does not touch the ground. Get someone to place a light barbell on your feet. Lift the barbell with your feet and then extend your feet to go back to the starting position. This counts as one repetition of seated barbell tibialis anterior raise. If you are new to tibialis anterior training, get used to the movement before adding weight. Remember to train your tibialis anterior. They are the most ignored muscle in the body.

Summary

Make sure that you have a healthy post-workout meal to replenish your muscles. As aforesaid, these workouts are not for the weak-hearted. These exercises will add to your overall strength and fitness.