The author of the Strength & Conditioning Research resource, Chris Beardsley, decided to answer the question of many trainees - is it possible to achieve maximum development of the thigh muscles through barbell squats alone. The editors of Zozhnik decided that they should not deprive their readers of such interesting information. Let's give the floor to Chris.
From time to time on the forum people ask: “What is the best way to plan a workout to develop the muscles of the lower body?” One well-known athlete gave a short recommendation: “Just squat.” But is it really possible to achieve optimal thigh muscle development by squatting alone?
What does "Just Squat" mean?
If you take this phrase literally, it could mean that all you need to develop your legs is squats and nothing else.
But some people, when they say “Just squat,” mean working all the muscles except the hamstring group (so calf curls are not excluded from the workout in this case). Sometimes this recommendation is also given by those who, in addition to squats, do deadlifts or glute bridges. In their understanding, the phrase “Just squat” refers only to the quadriceps.
Regardless of the context that is put into this recommendation, I suggest considering 2 questions:
- Are squats a good exercise for developing hamstrings?
- Are squats effective for developing all heads of the quadriceps muscle?
Leg training program for men and women in the gym
A good leg workout should target both the quadriceps and the hamstrings. It should involve predominantly heavy, multi-joint movements. If necessary, you can include exercises for the buttocks and calves.
High rep training can benefit your legs, but you need to focus on lifting heavier weights if you want your muscles to continue to grow over time.
I want to give you one simple (but powerful) leg training program. Do the following exercises once every 5-7 days.
- Squat with a barbell. Warm up and 3 sets of 4-6 repetitions (for guys) or 8-10 repetitions (for girls).
- Front squats. 3 sets of 4 to 6/8 and up to 10 reps.
- Bulgarian split squat . 3 sets of 4 to 6/8 and up to 10 reps.
- Optional: glute bridge. 3 sets of 8-10 repetitions.
- Optional: standing calf raise. 3 sets of 8-10 repetitions.
That's it: just 9 heavy sets for the quads and hamstrings, plus (optional) glute and calf training.
How to train your legs correctly? 2 important rules
- Rest 3 minutes between each set.
This will give your muscles enough time to fully recover so you can put in your best effort in each set.
- After reaching the maximum number of repetitions in a set, increase the weight.
For example, if you do 6 reps on your first set of squats, put 5 pounds on each side of the barbell and work with that weight until you can (eventually) do 6 reps, and so on.
I guarantee that by doing this workout and eating right for the next 8 weeks, you will be pleasantly surprised by the results.
Muscles of the back of the thigh: “Squat, but don’t forget about the deadlift?”
Fitness professionals know that squats are very effective for developing the quadriceps, adductor magnus and gluteus maximus muscles, but are not very effective for developing the hamstrings (Wright et al. 1999).
This is why a variety of deadlift variations (plus other exercises) are always included in a good training program to target the posterior chain muscles (those located on the back of the body)*.
To support the opinion that squats are incapable of properly loading the muscles of the hamstrings, we present the following data:
- Increasing the weight on the barbell in the squat does not increase hamstring activation , but does significantly increase quadriceps and gluteus maximus activation (Li et al. 2013).
- Lowering into a deeper squat with the same load does not increase hamstring activation , but does increase quadriceps and gluteus maximus activation much more (Gorsuch et al. 2013; Contreras et al. 2015b).
The best leg exercises
As with other muscle groups, there is a wagon and a small cart of exercises for the legs. However, only a few of them are truly effective .
In fact, as you'll see later, the list of the best leg exercises is quite sparse: a few types of squats and lunges, a couple of exercise machines and that's it.
Before we look at those, let's talk about the Smith machine.
What about the Smith machine?
The key disadvantage of using a Smith machine to perform the squat is that it produces less muscle and strength gains [4] than free weight squats.
This is mainly due to the fact that the barbell in the simulator moves along a fixed vertical path of movement. When you squat with free weights, it requires some effort to keep the bar level and prevent horizontal wobble.
I've done Smith machine squats before and have never lifted more than 105kg for a few reps. When I first switched to free weight squats, I could barely handle 80 kilos.
This was a few years ago, and since then I have increased my numbers to 165 kg (2-3 reps). I also do 125kg front squats for the same number of reps. These are not super-record figures, but quite decent.
The power rack is your best friend
Free weight squats are great when you have a partner to back you up. But if you don't have it, you probably won't be able to lift the maximum possible weight for fear of simply not lifting up.
Even if you have extensive training experience with weights and a good sense of your body, sooner or later it may happen that you either don’t go for the next repetition (even though you could do it), or you go and won’t be able to press the weight.
Therefore, I highly recommend using a power rack .
The movable safety hooks are what make it so useful. Place them at the right height and they'll catch the weight when you can't handle it. Here's how to do it:
Okay, let's now look at the best exercises for legs and buttocks.
1. Barbell Squats
The back squat is hands down the most effective leg exercise you can do for muscle growth and strength.
Many people think that squats simply put stress on the legs. However, it is much more than that, it is a full body exercise because it works all the other muscle groups except the pecs.
Squats should be performed correctly. Poor technique not only reduces the effectiveness of the exercise, but also increases the risk of injury .
Here's a great video that explains all the details:
Before we move on to the next exercise, let's take a moment to talk about the full squat. It looks like this:
While this variation of the exercise has its advantages (in particular, it better targets the legs and especially the gluteal muscles [5]), it requires a lot of flexibility and mobility (mobility) to perform - more than most people.
It is for this reason that I do not recommend the full squat unless you have little experience and (1) know proper technique (with special attention to avoiding excessive jerking) + (2) do not have enough flexibility to perform the exercise.
If this is not for you, train according to the classics - do a parallel squat (lower until your thighs are parallel to the floor).
One more thing. Poor flexibility and mobility of the body significantly affect the ability to squat correctly, safely and with sufficient weight.
Lack of hip flexibility is probably the most common problem that prevents you from squatting properly. But hamstring tightness and even shin and ankle stiffness can also cause problems.
Fortunately, all this can be fixed. In particular, I can recommend the following stretching exercises:
Follow Zozno, later we will prepare material with a detailed overview of these exercises.
2. Front squats
The front squat is by far my second favorite leg exercise.
Research [6] shows that front squats load the quadriceps better than regular squats (which involve more of the hamstrings). In addition, they create less stress on the knees and lower back. Therefore, the front squat is an ideal choice for people who suffer from back or knee problems.
Correct technique:
Yes, it seems awkward at first, but over time you will get the hang of it.
When I first started doing front squats, 60 kilos put a lot of pressure on my shoulders. Now even 125 kg causes almost no discomfort.
3. Lunges with a barbell
Although lunges are typically thought of as a quadriceps exercise, research [7] shows that they involve more of the hamstrings and glutes.
However, they are worth including in your training program.
Technique:
4. Romanian deadlift
The Romanian deadlift is one of my favorite exercises for isolating the hamstrings.
Here's how to do it:
5. Bulgarian split squat
This exercise is becoming increasingly popular [8] and for good reason.
Research [9] shows that split squats can be just as effective at increasing your normal squat max as the squat itself, while putting less stress on the lower back.
The exercise differs from front squats in that the muscles of the back of the thigh are more involved in it [10].
6. Hack squats
I'm not generally a fan of machines, but I like hack squats because they allow you to work your quadriceps in more isolation.
Like front squats and Bulgarian split squats, they are an effective way to train your legs and hips while minimizing stress on your lower back.
7. Leg press
The leg press is another useful “training” exercise, particularly for building powerful quadriceps.
There are two types of leg press machines available in gyms.
In the first, you sit more or less upright and press the weight in front of you and back.
In the second, you lie down, pressing the weight at an angle of 45 degrees.
I prefer the latter option as it allows for a wider range of motion. Here's how to do it:
8. Gluteal bridge
Although this exercise looks strange, it is one of the best for the buttocks [11].
It can be done without weight:
Or with weights:
9. Standing calf raise
This simple exercise allows you to thoroughly pump up your calves.
10. Seated calf raise
This is a noteworthy calf raise option. I like that it doesn't put any strain on your lower back at all when you're lifting heavy weights.
11. Calf raises on the leg press machine
This is also a good variation of the calf raise, which I often include in my training process.
Progressive overload is the key to muscle growth
We're done with the best leg exercises. But it is important not just to do them, but to gradually increase the load.
If you don't get stronger, you don't grow.
But if you work on increasing your strength in these exercises and eat enough food (you need to eat right!), your legs will respond as they should.
Why do the muscles of the back surface weakly engage during squats?
If we consider this issue from a biomechanical point of view, then, most likely, weak activation of the posterior muscles during squats is due to the fact that these muscles are bi-articular. They work as both hip extensors and calf flexors.
So, when you lower yourself into a squat (flexing your hip and shin), the muscle contracts closer to the knee but stretches closer to the hip joint. Roughly speaking, its length remains almost unchanged. When you rise from a squat (extending your hip and lower leg), the opposite happens - the muscle stretches closer to the knee, but contracts near the hip joint. Again, its length remains almost unchanged. This makes the hamstrings less effective as hip extensors during squats.
You might say, “I don’t care what the research says about lack of activation, I can feel my hamstrings firing when I squat.” And, of course, I will not argue with this.
You should really feel the muscles in the back of your thigh working during squats - that's where the adductor magnus is located. This is a very large muscle that is an important hip extensor during squats. It is located next to the muscles of the back surface, so in most cases you feel its work.
Squats and quadriceps femoris
The quadriceps consists of 4 muscles located on the front of the thigh. By the way, just recently scientists discovered a new muscle, which they called the “tensor vastus intermedius” (Grob et al. 2016).
While researchers work through updating anatomical nomenclature, we will recall the names of the four main muscles of the quadriceps:
- Vastus lateralis muscle,
- Vastus medialis muscle,
- Vastus intermedius muscle
- Rectus muscle.
Of the four muscles of the quadriceps, all except the rectus muscle are single-joint muscles, the only function of which is to extend the lower leg. The rectus femoris is a biarticular muscle that, in addition to straightening the lower leg, flexes the thigh.
Now let’s see how much, in percentage terms, the physiological* cross-sectional area of each quadriceps head occupies (as you can see, each of the 4 muscles makes a significant contribution to the total volume of the thigh):
Vastus lateralis - vastus lateralis, Vastus medialis - vastus medialis, Vastus intermedius - vastus intermedius, Rectus femoris - rectus femoris.
It makes sense that if we are looking for maximum thigh muscle development, we need to make sure that the exercises we use target all 4 heads of the quadriceps.
Does the rectus femoris muscle grow from squats?
Squats have always been considered the best exercise for overall development of the quadriceps muscles, which has been confirmed in studies . In 1994, Signorile et al. studied the degree of electromyographic (EMG) activation of the vastus lateralis and vastus medialis muscles during squats and calf extensions in a machine. It was squats that showed higher EMG activation of the muscles studied.
A 2009 experiment (Ebben et al.) once again confirmed that in terms of development of the vastus lateralis muscle, squats are more effective than calf extensions, as well as deadlifts and step-ups.
On the other hand, as another experiment from the same year showed (Ebben et al.), during calf extension in the machine, there is a higher activation of the rectus femoris muscle compared to squats.
A very important study was conducted in 2015 (Fonseca et al.), in which 2 groups of participants trained in different patterns over a long period. One part of the subjects only squatted, while the other did several exercises: squats, leg presses, deadlifts and lunges. The group that trained with variety had hypertrophy in all 4 heads of the quadriceps, including the rectus femoris. In those who only squatted, only 3 single-joint heads of the quadriceps increased in volume.
Again, the lack of hypertrophy of the rectus femoris in squatters is due to the fact that it is both a hip flexor and an extensor of the leg.
As you lower into the squat (flexing the hip and shin), the rectus muscle stretches closer to the knee but contracts closer to the hip joint. As is the case with the muscles of the back of the thigh, its length remains almost unchanged. When moving upward from a squat (the thigh and lower leg extend), the rectus muscle contracts at the knee, but stretches near the hip joint. The result is the same - in the direction of movement its length practically does not change. It turns out that the rectus femoris muscle is very weakly involved in the work during squats.
As already mentioned, the degree of activation of the rectus femoris muscle is much higher during leg extension in the simulator.
The rectus muscle appears to increase in size more readily when performing this single-joint exercise when compared to the rest of the quadriceps heads (Ema et al. 2013).
This is how hypertrophy of the quadriceps heads occurs after systematically performing calf extensions.
Change in the anatomical cross-sectional area of the quadriceps muscles after calf extensions in the simulator:
From left to right – vastus lateralis, vastus medialis, vastus intermedius and rectus femoris.
Proximal (proximal) – located closer to the place of attachment of the limb to the body (in our case, the muscle section closer to the hip joint).
Distal (distal) - located further from the place of attachment of the limb to the body (in our case, closer to the knee).
Apparently, the rectus femoris muscle works most actively in exercises where simultaneous (and relatively equal in amplitude) flexion of the thigh and lower leg does not occur.
How to do squats correctly for men: technique, execution options and monthly program
Barbell squats are a classic variation of squats.
Those that probably everyone has seen. The most popular and in fact the most working option. But there is another option for squats with a barbell, which is not known to everyone, since it is done much less often. This is a front squat.
In this version, the bar lies not on the back, but on the chest. Many people experience discomfort due to insufficient stretching, since not everyone can comfortably hold the bar on their chest so that it does not roll forward. In addition, here you need to have a strong back and be good at the classic squat technique, since here you need to keep your back straight and not lean forward. Any slight tilt will cause the bar to fall forward.
But this option is quite good in that it minimizes the load on the buttocks and almost all the work is done by the quadriceps.
With dumbbells or kettlebell
In addition to classic squats with a barbell on your shoulders, there are also squats with dumbbells or kettlebells. The main difference is that the center of gravity shifts slightly here and it is easier to engage the buttocks.
The technique of squats with a kettlebell or dumbbells for men is absolutely identical , the same nuances, only now the weight is not on the shoulders, but in the hands.
Accordingly, in this version you are unlikely to be able to lift the same weight as in classic squats, especially if you squat with a weight of more than 50 kg. Not every gym has dumbbells for athletes. In addition to this problem, you will also have problems with grip strength. It is harder to hold the weight in your hands than on your shoulders.
In Smith
I rarely give this option to men who come to me to get tough. The fact is that in this simulator the stabilizer muscles practically do not work, since there is no need to stabilize the position of the body in space.
But on the other hand, Smith squats are well suited for those men who cannot concentrate on their legs because with free weight they sway like a young birch tree in the wind. That is, if you can’t master the classic squat technique for a long time , then try squatting in a Smith machine.
With its own weight
If your goal is to gain muscle mass, then this is definitely not your option. Unless you weigh 200 kg. For weight loss, this is a good option if there is no other option , but here you need to understand that the main key to success is nutrition. By the way, I already wrote an article about nutrition for weight loss for men.
But those who really need these squats are beginners who are just mastering this complex exercise.
If a beginner immediately starts squatting with a barbell and does it incorrectly, then he is guaranteed to get injured. So start your journey to proper squats for men with your own weight.
