leg training frequency

cvBaby · 09-29-2008, 01:03 PM

hi!

ive been blessed with favorable genetics in terms of building muscle, especially in my legs. now, in terms of maintaining their shape/size (dont want them to grow nor do i want to lose muscle) would you ladies think it is wise to train them a little more frequently (2x a week plus running) or turn down the frequency (1x a week-once every 2 weeks and just include running). ive heard things from both ends:

on the higher frequency end i hear that if you give them less time to rest between working them there is less growth

on the low freqency end i hear that if you dont use it you lose it

any good articles out there that would help explain some ideas? share your experiences. thanks for reading

spefitness · 09-29-2008, 10:16 PM

If you want awesome legs, train them 2 to 3 times per week. Change wrkouts each time.

cvBaby · 09-30-2008, 11:13 AM

Am I correct in thinking that as long as you are in a caloric deficit then muscle cannot grow any larger?

mavrick77 · 09-30-2008, 12:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cvBaby

Am I correct in thinking that as long as you are in a caloric deficit then muscle cannot grow any larger?

you are correct in most senses.... extermely difficult to put on any muscle if you are in a caloric deficit..

as for a poster saying you should train your legs 3x a week...they are crazy. If you are truly hitting your legs hard, there is no need to train them more often then every 5-7 days. your legs are your largest muscle group and WILL take the longest to recover.

Here is a good routine I would suggest:

squats
leg presses or hack squats
lunges
leg extentions
leg curls or stiff legged deads
standing or seated calves
*8-12 reps on each exercise to faliure, 3 WORKING sets for each exercise.

Ahubb · 09-30-2008, 01:33 PM

I'm maintaining what I have by training legs once a week right now. I tend to gain muscle easy in legs too, but the issue I have right now is I also have a nice layer of fat on top of that muscle

kimm4 · 10-01-2008, 04:51 PM

I would never train my legs 3x a week. I can keep my legs lean and muscular by sticking to a clean eating plan, training them 1x a week and a little bit of cardio.

disneydiva21 · 10-01-2008, 05:43 PM

oh!!
you keep legs lean by training them less ?
what about thighs?

Iron_Sweetie · 10-01-2008, 06:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mavrick77

you are correct in most senses.... extermely difficult to put on any muscle if you are in a caloric deficit..

as for a poster saying you should train your legs 3x a week...they are crazy. If you are truly hitting your legs hard, there is no need to train them more often then every 5-7 days. your legs are your largest muscle group and WILL take the longest to recover.

Here is a good routine I would suggest:

squats
leg presses or hack squats
lunges
leg extentions
leg curls or stiff legged deads
standing or seated calves
*8-12 reps on each exercise to faliure, 3 WORKING sets for each exercise.

Excellent advice. This is exactly what I do...hit em hard once a week and then let them recover. I cant even imagine trying to do 2-3 times. YIKES!

jsmircich · 10-01-2008, 06:18 PM

I usually only train legs once a week, and that leaves me sore and walking funny for about 3 days

I have trained them twice a week before, but thought it was overkill. The first day would be heavy with lower reps, and mainly squats and presses. The second was lighter weights with higher reps and a focus on glutes and hamstrings. It's been years since I've done that though and I've learned a lot since then.

freebirdmac · 10-01-2008, 06:22 PM

If I do the complete lower body in one session, then it's once a week for me. Once I split lower body up into quads and hams/calves, then I could train each group twice a week. But there's always a minimum of 2 rest days between retraining the same group.

kimm4 · 10-01-2008, 07:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by disneydiva21

oh!!
you keep legs lean by training them less ?
what about thighs?

Yes I train legs once a week. My workouts are heavy and intense and the only bodypart I train alone. I do keep a workout journal here if you want to get an idea of different leg routines...mine change weekly.

As for keeping legs lean it goes back to what you're eating.

cvBaby · 10-01-2008, 08:23 PM

thanks everyone for the replies. i am going to keep my leg routine for once a week and continue to focus on my diet and cardio.

Carerman · 10-03-2008, 12:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mavrick77

you are correct in most senses.... extermely difficult to put on any muscle if you are in a caloric deficit..

as for a poster saying you should train your legs 3x a week...they are crazy. If you are truly hitting your legs hard, there is no need to train them more often then every 5-7 days. your legs are your largest muscle group and WILL take the longest to recover.

Here is a good routine I would suggest:

squats
leg presses or hack squats
lunges
leg extentions
leg curls or stiff legged deads
standing or seated calves
*8-12 reps on each exercise to faliure, 3 WORKING sets for each exercise.

I would agree with this workout however, depending on the long term goal.
If you are looking for more definition and no real growth I would suggest that you increase the frequency without going even remotely heavy on the weight. We did a study on this at the University of Texas Med centre and found that with lighter weight and higher frequency you had little to no muscle loss and a good solid definition for the muscle groups.