Vastus Lateralis, (quad sweep)

[NotThatUgly]

muscle shape is largely genetic but we can increase size in the specific heads with targeted exercise. In online searches I've found closed grip AND wide grip squads recommended for quad sweep. Along with other close grip squat or leg press variations, and toes in leg extensions.
Has anyone had any luck with any of these? I generally can only feel the teardrop when I flex, and that is becoming overdeveloped. In order to help target a muscle I've found stretching that muscle helps with the mind connection and flexing, which then helps target it during exercise. Are there any good Vastus Lateralis stretches I can try?

[MyEgoProblem]

Wider stance or knees flared hard is gonna be more focused on the quad med, adductors and hips.

Closer stance, knees forward will be more outer quad lat.

But the difference is a few % either way..
Stretching is of no use for any of that.

The deeper you squat the more you will build the full length of the quad. If you squat high /leg press shallow that gonna bias up to more

[NotThatUgly]

Well the stretching works in some cases if you get why I'm doing it, e.g. long head of tricep you don't really feel unless elbow is behind the body, getting into a stretch helps you understand how to get that muscle from fully stretched to fully contracted which you wont know if just going through motions on a cable pushdown or something of that nature. Or lats were another one, where I got much better results and connection when I really understood where the attachments were and how to position my body to get a full stretch during a pull down.

After doing some research the problem with quads is that the medius and lateralis both attach to the patella and top of the femur, the difference in the attachment is literally the width of the femur bone, so trying to stretch one over the other with even a small preference really isn't gonna happen. SO now I get why you say its only a few % difference.

[MyEgoProblem]

OK. By stretch you mean training the muscle at different lengths. Not Stretching. My bad.
But that's cleared up what you meant.

One option you can try is the sissy squat. That's probably the only quad movement that I can think of right now. If you can do them with hips pretty extended.
That will train the quads at long lengths that you don't generally get.

Won't really do much to push the ratio from medial to lateral. But will certainly 'stretch' the quads more than other lifts. May help get a little more growth

[jk202]

The best answer to this is to add 3 plates a side on your 8 rep hack squat to be completely honest.

Twisting and squeezing to bias different heads usually just results in using less actual load (ie muscle tension) than that part of the quad would get with a normal stance and heavier load

[MG5]

Wider stance or knees flared hard is gonna be more focused on the quad med, adductors and hips.

Closer stance, knees forward will be more outer quad lat.

But the difference is a few % either way..
Stretching is of no use for any of that.

The deeper you squat the more you will build the full length of the quad. If you squat high /leg press shallow that gonna bias up to more

This is a great answer. I usually tell people to not focus on it specifically. Just get your legs to grow. If someone were a top national or pro bodybuilder, that might be different, but in 98% of cases, it's not worth worrying about in my opinion.

[Hypernation]

Wider stance or knees flared hard is gonna be more focused on the quad med, adductors and hips.

Closer stance, knees forward will be more outer quad lat.

But the difference is a few % either way..
Stretching is of no use for any of that.

The deeper you squat the more you will build the full length of the quad. If you squat high /leg press shallow that gonna bias up to more

/thread

[BeginnerGainz]

The best answer to this is to add 3 plates a side on your 8 rep hack squat to be completely honest.

Twisting and squeezing to bias different heads usually just results in using less actual load (ie muscle tension) than that part of the quad would get with a normal stance and heavier load

Can confirm. Trying to isolate and of the 4 heads of the quads is usually a fool’s errand.