Advice to bring my legs to acceptable levels

EndlessCritic

Titanium Belt
@Titanium
Joined
Jan 14, 2013
Messages
35,571
Reaction score
26,680
Background: Under 30. 6'2, 190lbs. Trained in BJJ for about 10 years, still train 2-3x per week.

I have always had badly underdeveloped quads/hamstrings/glutes. I have wanted to work on this for a while, and for Christmas, my wife got me what I wanted: A 7 foot bar/squat rack/plates.

I'm not looking to become some sort of elite lifter, and more importantly, I want to minimize any chance of fucking up my back. My only goal is to get my quads/hamstrings/glutes to a decent level. (Which, we'll define as 10 squat reps at 250 pounds.)

So, sherdoggers, what say you in terms of getting me to my goal? Are squats alone enough to properly develop my legs, or should I be throwing anything else in? What should I be aiming for in frequency (every other day too much?) How many sets/reps should I be aiming for?

-Clueless.
 
250 for ten at 190 is a pretty low bar, dude. So just I guess just do SS. I mean, a beginner program should achieve that after awhile.




God this post reeks of cuntyness and I apologize.
 
You have no desire to do any other lifts? If that's the case, you can probably just run 5 sets of 5 something 3-4 times a week starting really low and adding 10 lbs per session. I think you can get to 250 lbs x 10 fairly quickly if that's the only lift you are working on.
 
250 for ten at 190 is a pretty low bar, dude. So just I guess just do SS. I mean, a beginner program should achieve that after awhile.




God this post reeks of cuntyness and I apologize.
I can currently only do about 10 reps of 140lbs. My legs are absurdly weak.
 
Another approach. And this approach will not mess up your back since you're worried about that.

Get some football cleats, soccer cleats whatever. And run up a really steep hill. Multiple times.

Walter Payton had a hill that he ran to build his legs.

It also gets you out of the garage or wherever you put your home gym.

And it doesn't have to be as steep or as long as this hill.

walterpaytonhill.jpg
 
Last edited by a moderator:
I hit weighted lunges with barbells as well as Romanian deadlifts as assistance exercises for Squat.

Box squats also to generate power at the bottom.

I dunno, I just see stuff I like the look of and copy.
 
If you train 3 times a week heavy squats will hinder you performance, try alternatives like weighted jumps, step ups..
 
Just start doing leg training and progress with the weights whilst eating enough.,That's all you really need to worry about.

Since you've got a nice squat setup, squats and DLs will cover it, SLDLs are a good ham builder but can be hard on your back, as can squatting obviously. As for how many times a week, how many reps sets etc - take your pick really. At least once a week, possibly up to 3 depending how much volume etc. There's no scientific method despite all the claims by the gurus. If you're looking for size and worried about your back then it would make sense to operate in around 10 reps rather than say 5 reps but even that varies depending how many sets and rest periods. Some people get injured from higher rep squats due to form fatigue, I'm the other way and high weights irritate my disc bulges.

Pick the legs part of any well known weights program and give it a shot for a few months and see how you get on. Maybe you'll find your BJJ is down because your legs are too tired - so lower the leg training, maybe you won't.
 
People are good at overcomplicating things. At your current squat levels, you can probably start as low as 95 lbs x 5 x 5 sets. Obviously since you don't really train your legs, soreness will be an issue at first. Just add 10 lbs per workout and spread it out as long as you feel necessary to not hinder you in BJJ. I wouldn't wait more than 3 days though. Your body will adjust and you'll build up a work capacity. Run that as long as you can until stalling and then check back.
 
I'd do what Oblivian suggests. Start out twice/week and then maybe increase to 3 times/week if needed. Once you stop being able to add 10 lb per workout drop to 5 lb per workout.
 
I can currently only do about 10 reps of 140lbs. My legs are absurdly weak.


Get yourself on a basic strength program like Starting Strength or Stronglifts. Run it for as long as you can, and you'll be fine. Make sure you squat correctly and hit parallel at the least. Don't cheat on your reps and you'll make amazing gains in a quick fashion. You'll find your goals to be easy to achieve. You should be squatting, deadlifting, and pressing to keep your body balanced.
 
Get yourself on a basic strength program like Starting Strength or Stronglifts. Run it for as long as you can, and you'll be fine. Make sure you squat correctly and hit parallel at the least. Don't cheat on your reps and you'll make amazing gains in a quick fashion. You'll find your goals to be easy to achieve. You should be squatting, deadlifting, and pressing to keep your body balanced.
For some people those 3 will get their body out of balance and could cause problems. If you have weak abs, and kyphotic posture, those 3 alone will make your body less balanced.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Get yourself on a basic strength program like Starting Strength or Stronglifts. Run it for as long as you can, and you'll be fine. Make sure you squat correctly and hit parallel at the least. Don't cheat on your reps and you'll make amazing gains in a quick fashion. You'll find your goals to be easy to achieve. You should be squatting, deadlifting, and pressing to keep your body balanced.
My body is out of balance. My upper body/core strength is fine.
 
My body is out of balance. My upper body/core strength is fine.

With a 145 lbs squat, your body is definitely unbalanced. You'll be fine though if you use a beginner strength program as I suggested. You'll be making gains each session until you get balanced out, then you'll naturally slow down. You'll easily jump 10 lbs a session on squat until you get to a reasonable level, then you'll need to readjust. The beginner strength programs like Starting Strength and Stronglifts have you squatting three times a week because almost all beginners need it. Just do the program and smile at the gains.
 
When it comes to squats, practice the lift. You don't have to follow any program, just get comfortable with it and then gradually increase the weight over time. Don't ego lift, keep the form. You might want to warmup with a few ankle mobility and hip mobility exercises before each session. Post a form critique video if you feel like it.

You should throw in a few assistance exercises as well. Leg curls/prone leg curls, glute ham raises, glute bridges, (deadlifts), sumo squats, romanian deadlifts, lunges/backwards lunges, lunges with stepups and band work targeting the different glute muscles are all good options. Just pick a few you like.

Have fun!
 
For some people those 3 will get their body out of balance. If you have weak abs, and kyphotic posture, those 3 alone will make your body less balanced.
You're not going to have weak abs after heavy squats, deadlifts and presses.
 
Back
Top