Road To a Better Physique: How to Build Stronger/Larger Legs With Cardio

 

 Road To a Better Physique: How to Build

 Stronger/Larger Legs With Cardio

Today is the fourth entry of how to build stronger and larger legs. Today, instead of resistance training for our legs, let us now use movement to our advantage. This includes cardio, sprints, and agility training. This method is unlike the others as we will be conducting our training through body movements instead of resistance training. This method is ideal for people who enjoy running-like activities or for people who find an advantage in training their legs through vigorous body movements.

Endurance Training - Cardio

To start, lets begin with an Incline Sprints. This workout requires a safe hill. A treadmill could also be used, however it is only limited to a top speed, or it may be deemed unsafe. First, start at the bottom of the hill, and warm up your legs by doing a few standing jogs. This helps prevent any injuries or sudden pulls of a muscle, specifically the hamstring. Begin by sprinting at full speed up the hill. Once you summit the top, slowly walk down the hill and repeat. This workout targets your explosiveness and speed, whilst working out the entirety of your legs.

Next off, another cardio workout that we can use can be the Shuttle Run. First, place two markers about thirty feet away from one another. The less grip you have on the ground, the more resistance you have. Start by warming up as usual, then begin sprinting from one marker to the other, then back within consecutive sets. This works out the entirety of the leg, but mainly focuses on explosiveness and speed similarly to the Incline Sprints.

Last but not least, the next cardio workout that we could use is called the Lateral Run. Ideally, grab an agility ladder and spread it across the ground. A two to four meter agility ladder is required. Begin with a quick warmup of the legs, then start at one of the ends of the ladder. Lower your center of gravity by bending your knees to a near 45 degree angle, and begin a side to side sprint from one end to the other, while constantly making your body parallel to the ladder. This works out your hip flexors and groin, as well as your overall balance, agility, and speed.

Bellow is a summarization of the amount of reps and sets you may need to do for each workout. However, everyone is different and you may choose to adjust each set or rep to your liking.

Cardio

Incline Sprints

• 1-2 reps of 1-5 sets
• 2-4 mins rest each set
• Optional: attempt with a weighted backpack to increase resistance
• Remember to stretch as this is a workout which requires sudden activation of muscles

Shuttle Run

• 6-10 reps of 1-4 sets
• 2-5 mins rest each set
• Optional: attempt on loose ground such as sand to increase difficulty
• Remember to stretch as this is a workout which requires sudden activation of muscles

Lateral Run

• 6-10 reps of 1-5 sets
• 2-4 mins rest each set
• Optional: attempt with a weighted backpack to increase resistance
• Remember to stretch as this is a workout which requires sudden activation of muscles

Doing these workouts with the required supervision and discipline may bring fourth expected results. Be sure to take precaution as working out sore muscles is not a good way to get stronger. Instead, it causes harm to your body.