Updated Leg Day Routine

I LOVE leg day. I love working my legs and sweating so much I look like I just got caught in the rain. Leg day is the one day where I push myself so hard that I can barely walk when I'm leaving the gym. If you want to better your butt, hammys, quads, and calves, I can help! But remember, along with training is healthy eating and not stuffing your face with a cheeseburger and fries after you leave the gym. No, you don't "earn" a greasy meal, you'll literally put just as many cals and fat back in faster than you burned them at the gym. A typical leg day for me lasts an hour- and hour and half, and I burn close to 1,000 calories according to my polar FT4. Anyways, on leg day, I burn the most calories and leave the gym technically crippled. 

SO to start, I warm up with lunges.

I do alternating lunges or walking lunges if space permits, I hold a 45lb plate in front of my BUT feel free to start out with a 25 lb plate or 10lb dumbbells (held at your sides) if you haven't really done legs before. Use enough weight to feel the burn but not too much where you can't complete a set.

I'll do 20 lunges (10 on each leg)

rest for 30

20 lunges (10 on each leg)

rest for 30

20 lunges (10 on each leg)

Then I go and grab a 40-45 lb dumbbell (again, go lighter if you're not ready for the heavy weight but at least use 15lb dumbbell) and do sumo squats. They look silly but you'll feel them! I do 3 sets of 10. and I go as low as I can! See pic below..... I usually hold my dumbbell up near my chest so I can go lower with the squats.

Then I head over to the smith machine! I stay here for a while doing a few different exercises. Some people don't believe in using the smith machine for leg work but I like it for certain exercises especially when I don't have a spotter. 

The smith machine squat: looks like this

For exact directions on how to do this squat without hurting yourself, please read this:

http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/smith-machine-squat

I usually do 4 sets of 10 with 70 to 90lbs on

Another smith machine squat is the split squat, which is done with a bench behind you and similar to a Bulgarian squat.. again go here for exact directions because I don't want any of your killing yourselves. 

http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/smith-single-leg-split-squat

Some people don't like the smith machine so if you don't, don't do these exercises. Plain and simple.

Now I venture over to a rack and motorboat it. JK. Time to squat. 

The barbell squat, probably my favorite and most challenging exercise. How do you think I got such a great ass? It wasn't doing lame "30 day squat challenges" from pinterest I'll tell you that much. It's from plain old barbell squats, ass to the grass, adding weights, and grunting my way back up.

However, squats are not to be taken lightly, they require proper form and usually a spotter. Again, please refer to this site for proper form and technique, I'm not certified and I don't want you to have back or knee problems. http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/barbell-squat

I do 4 sets of 10, starting with 50 lbs, then 70, then 70 again and then 90.

(this weight is added to the barbell, so two 25lb plates, then 35lb plates, etc)

If I don't have a spotter, it really depends on how I feel that day. 

Then I do front squats!

This form is pretty tricky to master and I highly suggest just starting off with the bar to establish technique and proper form. But it's a good squat variation to work your whole leg.

There's two main grips to use while doing this exercise, which can be found at these links

http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/front-barbell-squat

http://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/front-squat-clean-grip

I do 4 sets of 10 of these, starting with the bar and gradually adding weight. But as stated before, if you're beginning, start light for proper technique and form.

Time for straight leg dead lifts!

This can be done with either dumbbells or a barbel

As many of the other leg exercises, I do 4 sets of 10

usually started with 50lbs, then 70lbs, 90lbs, then max out at 140

The leg press machine is great
 because you can do it many ways and work your legs pretty damn well. 

I start with a wide stand on this machine, and 135lbs on each side for ten reps then I do the same with a narrow stance, for ten reps.It's really all about what you can do and what you can work yourself up to, don't try pressing more weight than you can handle without the proper form. I lower the weight and continue doing 10 reps of each. Once I get to one plate on each side, I do one legged presses, along with frog leg presses, where only my heels are on the machine and my toes point outwards. You can also do calf raises while on this machine!

I also do random things like donkey kicks on the smith machine, donkey calf raises on the smith machine, wall sits, good mornings, seated calf raises, standing calf rasies, the abductor and adductor machines, hamstring curls, walking on treadmill with steep incline, stairmaster on tip toes, etc.

This is just the basics of my leg workout! I always like to change it up once in awhile 

xoxo

Let's Get Lean!

So, I've been working out pretty steadily for the past 6 months but my diet as always been up and down and all around. Some days I'd eat really well and then the next day I'd binge on beer and fried foods. Not so good for my body. Well, it happens. Now that summer is closer than you may realize, I'm ready to have the body I know I deserve. I'm not going to let my time at the gym go to waste any more. 

I'm not going by a strict workout plan or diet or anything like that. What I am doing is:

-cutting out dairy

-cutting out fast foods
-cutting out pastas/breads/etc (bad carbs)

-no more alcohol (for awhile)

-increasing water intake

-started taking creatine

-increased the amount of BCAAs I consume
(before, during, after workouts)
-Protein shakes 3 times a day 

-take daily vitamins & fish oil

I will be eating "clean" there are a million websites that claim to be clean and tell you what to eat and what not to eat, but I'm keeping my diet very very simple. Lean meats, veggies, egg whites, fruits. No pastas, which I already miss and haven't even fully cut them out yet.  I will be including quinoa in my diet because its's a damn super food! Kind of like a brown rice but not and is pretty high in protein! I'm going to keep my workouts the same, high intensity, high weights, and do cardio 4-5 times a week and abs 4-5 times a week as well. For those of you who think clean eating is foreign and have no idea where to start, read below! Also, here is a site with shopping lists and recipes for beginning a clean eating lifestyle: http://www.thegraciouspantry.com/clean-eating/ 

This is from "Eating Clean For Dummies"

• Eat whole foods: Whole foods are foods that haven’t been tampered with, in the lab or the manufacturing plant. The foods you eat on this plan are straight from the farm: whole fruits and vegetables, whole grains, grass-fed and free-range meats, low fat dairy products, unsalted nuts, and seeds.
• Avoid processed foods: Processed foods are any food that has a label. A label means that more than one ingredient was used to make that food. You don’t have to eliminate all processed foods (like whole grain pasta or natural cheeses), but if you can’t pronounce an ingredient on a label, don’t put that food in your shopping basket.
• Eliminate refined sugar. Refined sugar provides nothing but calories. Other sweeteners can be used, but with all the good foods you add to your diet, refined sugar really has very little place in the eating clean plan.
• Eat five or six small meals a day. By eating smaller meals throughout the day you can help rev up your metabolism and reduce the chance that you’ll eat some Funyuns rather than that whole grain cracker with nut butter and strawberries. You never get so hungry on this plan that you’ll feel deprived or feel the need to cheat.
• Cook your own meals. Instead of buying meals in a box, cook meals from scratch. That’s not as hard as it sounds! Clean, whole foods need little preparation beyond chopping and sautéing to make satisfying, delicious meals your family will love.
• Combine protein with carbs. When you do snack or eat a meal, make sure that meal is balanced. For the most satisfaction from your diet, and so you’ll be less tempted to eat junk food, combine protein with carbs or carbs and fat. This simple act will fuel your body and quash hunger pangs.

On the days I have been clean eating, I've noticed how much better I feel overall. More energy, less tired, more motivated, less bloated, it's great! Sure I'm going to miss some of my favorite foods but this is just to kick start my metabolism and get rid of some fat pounds I've been wanting to see disappear. 

Cardio, okay nobody actually enjoys cardio. And if you do claim to like cardio, you probably shouldn't even bother reading this because this is for those of you who lift heavy to look good and are looking to shred those last few pounds. Cardio has it's benefits, however, it doesn't have the power of squats to build a round ass, and it certainly doesn't have any precedent over weights when it comes to anything. 

Cardio is good for those who are overweight and need to lose poundage before dedicating themselves to a lifting routine. Running is good for those who want to train for marathons and races. Running is not good for those of you who want a sculpted body, neither is the elliptical or crosstrainer. Cardio machines should be used as a supplemental training tool ALONG with weight training.

Cardio queens are notorious for 

flat asses and soft appearance.

Just sayin'

So when trying to cut fat, cardio comes in handy, go hard on the elliptical, crosstrainer, whatever with some resistance for about a half hour. Work your way up, but high intensity cardio training is the way to go to burn fat and maintain muscle. 

Also, DRINK LOTS OF WATER. More water than ever before, track it if you have to! During this blog alone I finished two 17 oz water bottles. I usually drink water out of my 28oz shakers (bodybuilding.com, GNC, amazon) or my camelbak eddy water bottle! (can be found at Target, sports authority, Dick's, etc) I always always always have water on me.