Each exercise must be performed technically correctly. Its effectiveness depends on it. Learn the correct posture when training your legs. Professional bodybuilders differ from amateurs primarily in their attention to all muscle groups. In their training sessions, they try to work so that the body develops harmoniously. In turn, amateurs very often pay all their attention to certain muscles, mainly the upper body.
Legs are trained often enough, but if you look at the photos of bodybuilding stars, you are convinced that this is possible. In this case, it is not necessary to use a large number of exercises. Due to the specific position of the feet in bodybuilding, when training the legs, you can focus on certain muscles. This is the opinion of the athletes themselves.
At the same time, experts have a completely opposite opinion on this matter. They are sure that this does nothing in terms of increasing the effectiveness of the training and may even be dangerous. However, the opinion of professional athletes has been heard and studies have been conducted on the electrical activity of the muscles during exercise to develop the muscles of the legs. As a result, nobody was right.
With different positions of the feet in the bench press, different areas of the quadriceps were more involved, although this difference was not as significant as we would like. First of all, this is due to the fact that it is impossible to turn the feet too much, otherwise the knee joints may be damaged. Thus, scientists and athletes have managed to reach a certain agreement - the best exercise for training the quadriceps is squats.
Squat leg position
If you look at how experienced athletes perform this exercise, you will immediately notice the differences in the position of the legs. This can be explained by the individual physiology of each person. To get the most out of squats, the position of your feet in bodybuilding when training your legs should be comfortable for you.
Start by placing your feet shoulder-width apart, then try to put them slightly wider, or on the contrary, move them slightly. So, after considering several options, you can find the most comfortable position for yourself. From the point of view of physiology, the most natural position of the feet is their slight turning outward.
Never turn your feet inward to avoid damaging your knee joints. Try to keep the centerline of the knee joints in line with the centerline of the middle toes.
Optimal Squat Amplitude
For mass gain, it is best to lower the hips slightly below the line parallel to the ground. To develop the buttocks, you should increase the amplitude and sit lower. Don't be surprised that the conversation turned to the buttocks. This part of the body is of interest not only for women looking after their figure. Imagine an athlete with powerful hips and no glutes.
Smith Trainer
Many athletes assume that it is fashionable to change the direction of the load using the Smith machine. However, the answer in this case will be no. The only difference between working in the Smith machine and squatting with free weights is that there is no need to maintain balance. For this reason, the corresponding muscles will be turned off from work, the task of which is to stabilize the body. It should also be noted that in the simulator it is almost impossible to perform squats technically incorrectly.
Hack squats and leg press
Often, experienced athletes stop doing classic squats, preferring hack squats and leg presses. In their opinion, the buttocks increase to a lesser extent, which most athletes try to avoid. These exercises are very effective and it must be admitted. However, first of all, you should pay attention to how they affect your muscles. All people are different and any exercise can have a different effect on each person.
We can definitely say that when performing these movements, the amplitude should be maximum. To do this, in the leg press, the feet should be located closer to the top edge of the platform. This position of the feet in bodybuilding when training the legs should make the bench press more effective. When the feet are low, the amplitude decreases and the load on the knee joints increases. This can cause injury to the joints. It should also be noted that when doing hack squats, you should not go very low. This is dangerous enough for the lower back. Also for this reason, when performing leg press, knee joints should be bent at an angle of 90 degrees and no more.
As for the position of the feet for the leg press and hooks, they should be placed as conveniently as possible for you. For the safety of the knee joints, turn them slightly outward, and in all other respects, only the convenience of the exercise is important.
Extension
Of the most popular exercises that develop the muscles of the legs, only extensions remained. Let's look at whether the position of the feet in bodybuilding when training the legs affects the effectiveness of movement. Many professionals do this exercise with one leg. In this case, the toe is directed slightly to the side and down.
Also quite popular is the arrangement of the feet, in which the toe is directed down, but straight, not to the side. However, as with all the exercises discussed above, the main thing is that you feel comfortable doing them.
It is worth trying different options until you find the most effective foot position in bodybuilding when training your legs. You should not pay attention to other athletes, but you need to find your position. As mentioned at the beginning of this article, the angle of rotation of the foot does not affect the effectiveness of the exercise.
For more information on how to properly train your legs, see this video:
