Working On The Same Body Parts

[19-year-oldGirl]

I only usually work out on my lower body. What do you suggest if I want to increase size around my legs area? I have no problem with my upper body(except that I'd like to have a really tight tummy)
Well this is my training:
Tuesday- quad ext., hamstring curl, leg press, bi-ceps, wrist curls, tris, abs & lower back

Thurs- hamstrings curl, quad ext., buttocks, calf raises, abs

Sunday- same as Tuesday

Tuesday- do Thurs day work out^^^^

And i do the same pattern and so on

What do you all suggest????
I mean is my training okay to make my lower body bigger? ...So far I haven't seen much results...

 

[Mr.X]

Looks to me as though you're overtraining. For women especially, overtraining is a big issue. Plus, you are training the same bodypart too much.

Here is what you should do:
Workout 3 days a week only:
day 1:
abs, upper body big muscle grounds= chest +back
day 2:
quads/hams/glutes
day 3:
abs, upper body small muscle groups= shoulders + bi's+tri's / and add CALFS for the legs

Mr.X

 

[FitFossil]

If you want to increase size in the leg area, I'd recommend more "compound" exercises like squats and deadlifts. These are the major growth exercises for lower body, because they work several muscles together. Do your compound exercises before you do isolation exercises (like leg extensions/curls).

I know you said "I have no problem with my upper body(except that I'd like to have a really tight tummy)", but it's still important to work your whole body - you'll get better results AND you'll prevent injury due to muscle imbalance. (Are you involved in another sport where you work your upper body a lot?) Working your whole body will help tighten that tummy too (because your abs assist-esp in the compound moves). Plus, you really can't work your lower body to it's fullest w/o a strong upper body. Good upper body compound exercises include bench press, pull-ups, pull-downs, rows, and overhead press.

My training split changes every six weeks or so. Right now I work each body part 1x week (except calves/abs 2x/wk). I alternate betw light and heavy weeks as well. In other training splits I might do something like heavy legs early in the week and light legs later in the week, but never more than twice in a wk.

What rep ranges are you using?

 

[19-year-oldGirl]

If you want to increase size in the leg area, I'd recommend more "compound" exercises like squats and deadlifts. These are the major growth exercises for lower body, because they work several muscles together. Do your compound exercises before you do isolation exercises (like leg extensions/curls).

I know you said "I have no problem with my upper body(except that I'd like to have a really tight tummy)", but it's still important to work your whole body - you'll get better results AND you'll prevent injury due to muscle imbalance. (Are you involved in another sport where you work your upper body a lot?) Working your whole body will help tighten that tummy too (because your abs assist-esp in the compound moves). Plus, you really can't work your lower body to it's fullest w/o a strong upper body. Good upper body compound exercises include bench press, pull-ups, pull-downs, rows, and overhead press.

My training split changes every six weeks or so. Right now I work each body part 1x week (except calves/abs 2x/wk). I alternate betw light and heavy weeks as well. In other training splits I might do something like heavy legs early in the week and light legs later in the week, but never more than twice in a wk.

What rep ranges are you using?

I use quad ext for example- 4x of 7 reps on Tuesday, 4x of 8 reps the next exercise, then 2x of 9 reps and increase 10 pounds(decreasing my reps to 7) the next exercise. <<<<this is the kind of pattern I do also with my hamstring curls.

 

[FitFossil]

I use quad ext for example- 4x of 7 reps on Tuesday, 4x of 8 reps the next exercise, then 2x of 9 reps and increase 10 pounds(decreasing my reps to 7) the next exercise. <<<<this is the kind of pattern I do also with my hamstring curls.

I'm confused too
When you say 4x of 7 reps on Tuesday, does this mean you do 4 sets of 7 reps on the quad ext? Are you keeping the weight the same for all 4 sets of 7 reps, or do you increase/decrease the weights on the other sets for this exercise?

And when you say 4x of 8 reps the next exercise, then 2x of 9 reps and increase 10 pounds(decreasing my reps to 7) the next exercise does this mean you're still doing quad ext, or another exercise(s)?

Also, when you do a rep range like 7, 9, or whatever, are you using such a weight that by the time you reach that final rep, would you be able to lift any more reps than the number you planned for?

I'm not saying anything is wrong, I just want to be sure I get a clear picture of what you're doing. There are inumerable possibilities and combinations with weights, reps, sets, etc.

 

[TheProject]

http://boards.elitefitness.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=175972

 

[spatts]

19yearold, did you realize that you and babygirliy/.\h have the same IP address? You might want to check into that. I'd hate to see a false complaint registered against you with Broward's IT department.

 

[BabyGirliy/.\h]

19yearold, did you realize that you and babygirliy/.\h have the same IP address? You might want to check into that. I'd hate to see a false complaint registered against you with Broward's IT department.

Is there something wrong wit having two names???? I like this name better though

 

[BabyGirliy/.\h]

I'm confused too
When you say 4x of 7 reps on Tuesday, does this mean you do 4 sets of 7 reps on the quad ext? Are you keeping the weight the same for all 4 sets of 7 reps, or do you increase/decrease the weights on the other sets for this exercise?

And when you say 4x of 8 reps the next exercise, then 2x of 9 reps and increase 10 pounds(decreasing my reps to 7) the next exercise does this mean you're still doing quad ext, or another exercise(s)?

Also, when you do a rep range like 7, 9, or whatever, are you using such a weight that by the time you reach that final rep, would you be able to lift any more reps than the number you planned for?

I'm not saying anything is wrong, I just want to be sure I get a clear picture of what you're doing. There are inumerable possibilities and combinations with weights, reps, sets, etc.

I was just talkin about quad exts. and I increase the weights 10 pounds more each week. Remember I do quad exts. 3x a week. To me this helps me get stronger and increase weight the following week.(10 pounds more)

What do you think?

I mean I get a lil stronger but I don't see any size gain.

 

[Burning_Inside]

woo i luv chicks with flabby or skinny upper bodies but have decent lower halves...NOT.

For da luv o god, do a normal lifting routine, please.

 

[FitFossil]

When you do a rep range like 7, 9, or whatever, are you using such a weight that by the time you reach that final rep, would you be able to lift any more reps than the number you planned for? If yes, about how many more?

 

[BabyGirliy/.\h]

When you do a rep range like 7, 9, or whatever, are you using such a weight that by the time you reach that final rep, would you be able to lift any more reps than the number you planned for? If yes, about how many more?

I probably could but with DETERIORATED form....cause my form already deteriorated during my 6th or 7th rep.

p.s. when I said 4x I meant 4 sets

 

[FitFossil]

I asked that question because I wanted to know if you're using heavy enough weight to get close to failure, and it sounds like you are, so that's good. If you're looking for muscle growth, then sets of 8-10 reps are usually good. You can also experiment with different rep ranges like 6-8, 12-15, etc. since everyone responds differently.

What I do is alternate between heavy weeks and light weeks. On heavy weeks I lift amounts where I'll reach failure in the 8-10 range, and the following week I lift in the 12-15 range. I've seen better results with this than I did when trying to go heavy each time.

Something else you can do is split your leg workouts into a quad day and a ham day. This way you'll be able to hit those muscles harder AND give them more time to recover. Along with sufficient stimulation, muscles need sufficient rest so they can repair - that's when they grow.

 

[BabyGirliy/.\h]

I asked that question because I wanted to know if you're using heavy enough weight to get close to failure, and it sounds like you are, so that's good. If you're looking for muscle growth, then sets of 8-10 reps are usually good. You can also experiment with different rep ranges like 6-8, 12-15, etc. since everyone responds differently.

What I do is alternate between heavy weeks and light weeks. On heavy weeks I lift amounts where I'll reach failure in the 8-10 range, and the following week I lift in the 12-15 range. I've seen better results with this than I did when trying to go heavy each time.

Something else you can do is split your leg workouts into a quad day and a ham day. This way you'll be able to hit those muscles harder AND give them more time to recover. Along with sufficient stimulation, muscles need sufficient rest so they can repair - that's when they grow.

Thanks for the tip

I think I need to change my resting time between sets also so I could lift heavier weights. How long do YOU usually rest between sets?

 

[FitFossil]

How long do YOU usually rest between sets?

I don't really know, I just go by how I feel, resting long enough so I can get through the next set w/o being too long, since I'm pretty pressed for time. Generally though, if I'm doing sets of fewer reps with heavier weight, I rest longer than I would if doing high rep sets of lighter weight. Sorry that's not a very straight answer.

In my previous post when I was talking about sufficient rest for muscles to grow, I really meant rest days. I'm thinking if your current workout of working the same leg muscle groups several days a week is not giving the results you want, it could be because 1) you're not giving them time enough to recover, so they never get a chance to grow; and/or 2) you're not working them hard enough since you're able to work them again so soon. When I do a heavy leg workout, I can barely sit on the toilet, much less think of training them w/ weight for at least 5 days. (It's a good sore though.) Light running and working them w/ elastic bands help alleviate the soreness and speed recovery.

Check out this thread on elastic bands for active recovery: http://boards.elitefitness.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=138023&highlight=active+recovery

 

[BabyGirliy/.\h]

I don't really know, I just go by how I feel, resting long enough so I can get through the next set w/o being too long, since I'm pretty pressed for time. Generally though, if I'm doing sets of fewer reps with heavier weight, I rest longer than I would if doing high rep sets of lighter weight. Sorry that's not a very straight answer.

In my previous post when I was talking about sufficient rest for muscles to grow, I really meant rest days. I'm thinking if your current workout of working the same leg muscle groups several days a week is not giving the results you want, it could be because 1) you're not giving them time enough to recover, so they never get a chance to grow; and/or 2) you're not working them hard enough since you're able to work them again so soon. When I do a heavy leg workout, I can barely sit on the toilet, much less think of training them w/ weight for at least 5 days. (It's a good sore though.) Light running and working them w/ elastic bands help alleviate the soreness and speed recovery.

Check out this thread on elastic bands for active recovery: http://boards.elitefitness.com/forum/showthread.php?threadid=138023&highlight=active+recovery

I got cha what you were talking about rest periods. lol.

Anyways, you think you rest MORE or LESS than 3 mins between each set?

 

[FitFossil]

Anyways, you think you rest MORE or LESS than 3 mins between each set?

Less.