Opposite of big legs, How about small legs???

[treilin]

I seem to have just the opposite issue... I quit running and I have been hitting heavy weights lower reps (squats, leg press, lunges, etc...) and still I can't get them to catch up wth my upper body. Any suggestions? Sassy the body fat is about 16%...
How about a split of working them twice a week? How many extra calories should I be eating to gain the muscle mass? I know everyone is different just a rule of thumb....

 

[Quadsweeps Sister]

I am sure Sassy will have great advice.

I had the same problem awhile back. My legs never would catch up until I did two things:

- Ate about 1500 more calories a day
- Trained heavier than I ever had before

Of course at that time I was getting ready for Jr Natls and AAS, and all that...blah, blah - but the good thing is I think you are already headed in the right direction. Its harder for women to get leg growth which is why many local and State BB shows are all upper-body comparison.

The twice weekly split is something to give a try. Because I was training so heavy on my legs - it helped to break the quads away from the hammies. I would work heavy quad, light hams one week - then heavy hams, light quads the next week. It really helped a lot. Just make sure your eating enough/correctly to provide the fuel for the lean mass growth. Take care.
__________________
Mythicwrld

"We deceive ourselves when we fancy that only weakness needs support. Strength needs it far more."

 

[MrsJnuts]

I have the same prob. asI've been a runner and taught aerobic/kick-box classes for 20 years. My upper body comes in nicely but my legs are straight w/no def. I will try this lifting plan. How much cardio should i be doing w/heavy lifts and when? If I'm taking in 1400 now, I need a total of 2900 to see a diff?

 

[Quadsweeps Sister]

I have the same prob. asI've been a runner and taught aerobic/kick-box classes for 20 years. My upper body comes in nicely but my legs are straight w/no def. I will try this lifting plan. How much cardio should i be doing w/heavy lifts and when? If I'm taking in 1400 now, I need a total of 2900 to see a diff?

Its a nice split to try. I don't know about uping the calories that much, LOL - I was taking a lot of stuff back then getting ready for the Jr Natls and was able to support 3500cals/day, my weight was 150 @ 10%. I could never eat like that now - I'd be huge!!

I do not know how much you weigh, your height or anything, but I can surely read your posts/logs and find it there. I think 1400 calories is such a small amount, but maybe you are a lean, tiny lady.

IMO - I think you would need more calories for growth. Strength will increase as the food intake does and with that....more growth! Pretty simple statement, but I hate all that technical talk. I'll look around for your stats. Take care.

 

[Sassy69]

OMG 3500 cals?? That sounds like a light binge day for me! My body doesn't know how to cut on anything more than 1800 cals. It all seems to sit on me above that.

I personally think I have less than great legs as well. I always thought I had big legs but it was really fat. Seems I'm also predisposed to 'loose skin' on my thighs as well. (Mom has that issue & i can show you pix of my legs not so much fat as no muscle from even back when i was 20.. before I really found the right way to train...)

My last show I also broke out legs into hams + back day and quads day. I used to lift way heavy w/ smaller reps, but this past time I lifted less heavy wiht crazy reps like sets of 50/40/30/20 -- but also keepigin in mind I was cutting too.

I did get really nice ham development from doign 21's on the leg curl -- lying or seated -- which ever you find easier. (I did primarily lying.) First 7 at bottom to mid range, second 7 reps at mid to top range then final 7 full range. Major burnage.

 

[treilin]

Thanks ladies for the advice. I never thought about doing 21's on the hams! I do them with my biceps maybe that's why they got more growth more quickly. I'll try the leg split as suggested (Harder quads, lighter hams and alt).
I went to my first competition tonight as a specatotor of course. I tell you what the short girls has ridiculous quads, and one girl in the taller class had about medium size quads in comparison. When it came down to it the black girl with the breast implants, and smaller quads came in first. The girl that won overall looked like she should have been competeing with the teenage boys. She looked sooooooo boyish. I was like yikes. Apparently they liked what she offered. I mean the hair looked like a chopped off mullet and all you could see was white teeth showing... no make-up, no sparkley stuff... just her body with no breast implants. I don't know about that look....