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To wrap up this journey into leg pain without squats, this is the exercise where you can really target your Vastus Medialis, or the "drop" you can see above the knee of someone with low bodyfat. It's pretty cool to have this, in case you'd encounter some wise guy who accuses you of only training your upper body.
Leg extensions are generally regarded as a mere warm-up exercise. Says who? I do 240 lb. Leg extensions is one of the two main quad-killers of leg-sessions sometimes! Like with everything else, proper warm-up is not even a matter of discussion - it's a necessity, period. However, once that is over and done with, I don't see any reason not to make Leg-extensions a "real" exercise. The only problem, as I see it, is that you tend to be slightly stronger in one leg than the other, and you rarely get a chance to equal it out (as you would if doing dumbbell-presses for pecs, for example). Most leg-extension machines don't help in that way, but there IS a new breed out there, with individual pads for each leg instead of the classic one-pad-for-both-legs. So far I've only seen Hammer Strength and a H.S.-clone doing this, but believe me - in 10 years it'll be the standard, simply because it's a superior design! Having said this, there's really not much to add. The proper form of Leg-pressing excellence: Adjust the back-pad so that there's approx. 3 fingers width between the edge of the pad and the back of your knee when you keep the legs straight out (yes, BEYOND the edge, of course). The roll should be comfortable between the foot and the shin. As you sit down, make sure that both your butt and your back is firmly against the pads, and stays that way through the entire exercise. Grasp the handles and bring your feet up as far as they go. However, you must NOT, under any circumstances, kick your feet up so that the rolls bounces in the top position! Not only does it take away some of the strain from your muscles, which is the whole point of the exercise, but it puts it right on your vulnerable knee-joints instead. Nice and controlled is the way, and even though you might go fairly fast on your way up, I suggest slowing down considerable for the last 1-2 inches before you reach the top to make sure there's no bouncing going on. Go To Page: 1 2
The copyright of the article Substituting for the Squat (part 3 of 3) in Weight Training is owned by Matt Danielson. Permission to republish Substituting for the Squat (part 3 of 3) in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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