Leg Exercises: Your Health Base
Many years ago there were quite a few “chickens” running around body building gyms. These are men that think that a big chest and biceps are all you need, and the supermodels will come running. After a time of working out, these poorly informed wannabes developed huge upper bodies with stick legs. The only thing they would get from a girl is a laugh.
Fortunately, most gym-goers are better educated today and understand that legs are your base from where your health, strength, coordination and general fitness levels/abilities are generated. Most athletes even down to amateurs, high schoolers and weekend warriors have a more holistic workout routine.
Leg exercises are essential to perform better and lose weight. Not only weights but resistance and cardio training will develop and tone the many muscle groups that make up your support. The weakest chain in the link is the knees. Many people that try to overdo squats, play too much basketball, run farther than they should, etc first feel it in their knees. Understanding the leg and proper leg exercises will help you to reduce chance of injury and better pursue your fitness goals.
There are five main muscle groups that make up what your legs do for you. The first group is one of the largest muscles in the body and is the quadriceps. Their job is to extend the leg for actions like kicking a gym ball. Under the quads are the hamstrings which curl your leg. For example, if you lift your heel to touch your rear end, you are using your hamstrings. The glutes job is to extend your hip as well as moving your leg away from your body to the side. There are three gluteal muscles, the most commonly known is the gluteus maximus which is the muscle you are sitting on if you are reading this article at your computer. The gluteus medius is above your rear end and the smallest of the gluteal muscles, the gluteus medius, is situated immediately beneath it, extending to the hip and side. Next comes the hip flexors which are the muscles which lift your knees. Lastly are the adductors which are in your inner thigh. Adduction is the moving of moving your legs away from your body.
One of the most common errors people make, which is a myth perpetrated by marketers in the fitness industry is the benefits of the leg extension machine. This is the machine that you sit on and lift your feet up and away from your body, like you were swinging on a swing. There is no muscle tasked with this job. This is what the knee does. People that often use this machine and put on excessive weights will injure their knees and joints. It is far better to use a tool like an exercise ball to do squats and lunges. A medicine ball will also help with balance and coordination so it has more benefits than a simple weight machine.
