You’ve made the decision.. You WILL work out today.. But it’s Sunday.. No no I should be in the gym.. then again, I could always go tomorrow?
Here’s some words to make that internal debate settle itself.. Trust me, even us all-weather motivational machines have this strangely vocal conflict of interest day in day out.
Why you NEED to make this Sunday leg day..
A lot of us put leg day in the same category as warts and sores as a horrible thing to have to deal with, let alone CHOOSE to have to deal with. But why? Here are some facts to clear your biased mind.
- On average per week people will only work out their legs once, stop and think for a moment.. That means 3-5 times a week you’re doing a back, shoulder, arm, chest workout (upper body) then you separate just ONE day for legs (thats a 4:1 split upper-lower body)… you’re trying to support all that mass on a pair of carrot sticks, and you know everyone in that gym knows it..
- Your calves recover over the same timescale as abs – roughly 36 hrs for a full recovery (you probably smash abs every other day)
- One of the top 3 things people I speak to wish were more developed is their legs
- You actually secretly love leg day, but you’re too vain to realise it.. (neglecting your glutes for chest when youve already had chest day is nothing but aesthetic greed)
- Performing some HIIT on a Sunday will kick start your metabolism and burn fat even AFTER you work out, meaning you feel a tiny bit less guilty about that carby roast with extra carbs (usually 2-3 hours after exercising youll still be burning)
Okay… I work my legs, you took wayyy too much of my time up preaching, why should I be there today??
In my mind Sunday is THE training day.. Got plans? They better be taking place under 50kg of iron.. Sunday is a day where not many leave the comfort of home, and mostly spent with the family flicking through the TV until you settle for Takeshis Castle.. Let’s flip that around and you’ll realise it’s prime time, the gym is NEVER full, you have 22 hours of unrelenting rest ahead of you, and it’ll kickstart your week with a feeling of motivation thatll take you through the next 7 days shouting about how dedicated you are.
lets break that down.. You have 2-3 hours a day in the gym, thats 180 minutes to work on YOU, all that time spent throwing weights around is THE only time in your life 100% of your energy is being spent burning fat, building muscle and NOBODY but you can make that happen.. You’ve found your why, (why am I working out, why do I push myself, and where do I want that to take me) so use it.. Think to yourself “what betterment can I gain from sitting around, when I could be doing the same thing with a pair of dumbells at my side, and a sense of pride coursing its way through my body”
And here is how to make it work..
FIRST, the prep.. If you don’t use a supplement (this is a life saver when laziness hits – pre workouts highly recommended) do an initial all body session, at home, Mix some sit ups and push ups and stick your favourite tunes on.. If this doesn’t get your blood pumping and push you out of the door, you might want to try searching “motivational exercise speech” these have been a gem for me, and many feature on my playlist while I’m mid workout, to reaffirm my adrenaline and push me to go one rep further.
The Workout:
Heres an allround workout to make you limp in the morning with pride.
Leg Extensions – 4 x 12 (moderate)
Leg Press – 3 x 10 (heavy, increasing weight)
Calf raises – 4 x 15 (plate on the floor, balls of feet resting on the edge so you are off the floor, lifting heels off the ground and squeezing calves at top, then slowly back down) – use a moderate bar on your shoulders.
Barbell squats ( with 2 second pause at bottom) – 4 x 8 – heavy, free bar, do NOT use smith machine, this limits range of motion
Barbell lunges – 3 x 6 each side, moderate weight (practically rest time)
Kettlebell squats (moderate) – 4 x 12 – I always try and add some kettlebell in as ive become a bit addicted to this brilliant tool lately..
step ups with calf raises at top – barbell on back (light) – 3 x 14
N.B I smash calves for reasons explained earlier, and they’re fun to do
For a fun variation do what I like to call Cradle Squats – barbell resting between forearm and bicep, cradled, with full squats – provides a different kind of burn and although trickier, it really gets you PUMPD
This is a intermediate workout and explanations included as Im afraid many do the routine but can slip up with some small mistakes.. Feel free to add classic deadlifts etc. to your own preference.. NOW GO DO SOMETHING USEFUL INSTEAD OF READING THIS, I’VE DONE MINE, I CAN AFFORD TO!
The Body Forum 