Strength Coach: If I Could Only Do 5 Lower-Body Exercises Forever, Here’s What I’d Choose

Sebastien Oreb—known online arsenic the Australian Strength Coach—shared his 5 favourite lower-body exercises for gathering superior spot and size.

He chose these lifts arsenic if they were the lone ones he'd beryllium capable to bash for the remainder of his life, aiming to enactment arsenic strong, muscular, and aesthetic arsenic possible. That’s not to accidental different exercises don’t person their place, but these options are guaranteed to support your advancement moving forward.

We cognize astir guys would alternatively seat than squat, but Oreb’s proposal is worthy pursuing if you privation to support limb time arsenic streamlined and effectual arsenic possible.

High Bar Squat

"Of each squat patterns, this is the cleanable operation of loadability and scope of motion," Oreb says. Front squat is great, but not arsenic loadable. Low barroom squat is great, but lacks the scope of question and is much fatiguing."

He advises utilizing a brace of weightlifting shoes to optimize your position.

Stiff-legged Deadlift

The accepted deadlift is simply a coagulated go-to, but it doesn't deed your hamstrings arsenic overmuch arsenic a stiff-legged saltation does. Plus, it’s overmuch much fatiguing connected the body, which tin impact the betterment you request to powerfulness done the remainder of your workout.

Oreb suggests utilizing a brace of lifting straps to guarantee your grip doesn't go a limiting factor.

Leg Extension

The limb hold instrumentality sometimes gets a atrocious reputation, but it's a indispensable for implicit quad development. Squats are large for wide limb development, but they don’t afloat prosecute the rectus femoris. To people it directly, you request an isolation movement.

Lean backmost successful the instrumentality to bid the quads astatine a greater stretch, Oreb advises.

Hamstring Curls

Hamstring curls deed each heads of the hamstrings, which RDLs neglect to do.

"If you person entree to the seated version, it's somewhat amended due to the fact that it trains the hamstrings successful a much stretched position. But if you lone person entree to the lying version, usage that," Oreb says.

Standing Single-leg Calf Raise

Stop blaming your genetics connected your week calves. No much bricks connected sticks this year.

Standing calf raises (with your knees extended) are cardinal for afloat calf development, whereas bent-knee variations exclude the gastrocnemius—the larger, much disposable calf muscle.

Related: The 5 Biggest Leg Day Mistakes Guys Make, According to a Strength Coach