leg extensions for building leg mass

[DOOGIE DOG]

understandably.. compound leg movements are best for building overall size to the quads..my question is why do most people claim leg extensions are not a mass builder for the quadriceps yet say lying tricep extensions are great for buliding up the mass of the triceps? i see a contradiction..both movements should build mass ..correct?

 

[aminoman74]

i think extentions are good for mass but not great like presses and squats.But i pause for 2 seconds at the top and they work wonders.

 

[ajdos]

For me they are an oppurtunity to squeeze moreso than say with squats where your just pushing your ass off and going hard.
I can fidgit with toe positioning easier and focus more on outter quad sweep.

 

[thatbloke]

theres an article on t nation.com where it shows scientifically that leg extensions are a very poor muscle builder becoz they dont activate much of the quadricep muscle fibers at all and put alot of strain on the kness, and they have no carry over conversion of strength to any other exercise

 

[myosaurus]

I find them invaluable for quad separations. its hard to hit rectus femoris(flexes hip) with squats or leg press alone(they extend hip). I feel I get best results in fullness, sweep, and separation if I add themas finishing movement.

 

[dalvare1]

The reason you dont get full activation is because you are sitting back in the seat

if you arch your back and sit up completely straight you can work all the quad muscles

if your back is flat and you are leaning back its impossible to do because the way your quads work as a hip flexor muscle

do it my way, heavy w good form, squeeze and pause at the top and good tempo and it will work as a great mass builder for quads

 

[method2madness]

The reason you dont get full activation is because you are sitting back in the seat

if you arch your back and sit up completely straight you can work all the quad muscles

if your back is flat and you are leaning back its impossible to do because the way your quads work as a hip flexor muscle

do it my way, heavy w good form, squeeze and pause at the top and good tempo and it will work as a great mass builder for quads

:yeahthat:

 

[bieberhole69]

The reason you dont get full activation is because you are sitting back in the seat

if you arch your back and sit up completely straight you can work all the quad muscles

if your back is flat and you are leaning back its impossible to do because the way your quads work as a hip flexor muscle

do it my way, heavy w good form, squeeze and pause at the top and good tempo and it will work as a great mass builder for quads

Ben Pakulski demonstrates / explains what dalvare1 is talking about here Ben Pakulski - Road to the Olympia: Episode 1 - YouTube (few mins in)

 

[Bigmanjws]

:yeahthat:
Leaning up in the seat def makes a difference for me.

 

[turbobusa]

High rep (40-60)prior to my compound movements are really effective .
As a stand alone movement I don't think they build much size.
Great for pre ex though. T

 

[rock75]

Or after and just crush em til you reach a high rep

 

[discohornet]

If I recall properly the article was discussing how many fibers were recruited during that exercise. They weren't challenging whether or not all the quad muscles were used, instead they were focused on maximal fiber recruitment within the cells of the muscles themselves. Let's say your quads have 1000 muscle fiber units, known as actin and myosin. During a squat they observed that 999 of these units went into action. But during a leg extension only 700 of these units had to work. So you see, it's not that they're saying you aren't hitting all the quad muscles, just that the stuff inside those quad muscles worked more or less depending on the exercise.

This kind of focus is generally geared towards those aiming to become stronger, not necessarily bigger. I know there is a lot of argument about bigger=stronger=bigger, but I am not completely convinced the two have to happen simultaneously.

Learn what you can about the difference between sarcoplasmic hypertrophy and myofibrillar density. Most bodybuilders are aiming for sarcoplasmic hypertrophy, which is an expansion of the space within a muscle where water, glycogen and other nutrients can build up.

Think of it like this - Bodybuilders are Muscle tissue manipulators. You are like those people who stick loops in their ear lobes to stretch them out. The only difference is you are using fluid and nutrients and you are stuffing them inside the muscle belly by squeezing the ever living shit out of that muscle.

If muscles are balloons, your goal is to expand the balloon and then hopefully stretch the balloon material so that it stays expanded. This is why the intense stretching that doggcrapp advocates works so well. You are becoming stronger, yes, but that is a side effect rather than the main goal if bodybuilding is your sport. Those who have a lagging bodypart really should focus more on stretching and deep tissue massage of those bodyparts. You have a tight fascia that's keeping that belly from bulging.

Therefore when people talk of maximal fiber recruitment, it really should be of no interest (more or less) to you if your goal is to expand the space within your muscle belly and create visually larger muscles. What should be of interest is how you can manipulate your tissue in order to get it to be as big as possible.

So yes, cranking out a few good deep sets of leg extensions is accomplishing the goal of the bodybuilder. You're pumping fluid into those sacks and squeezing the hell out of the muscle. I hate to say it, but train for the pump.

That being said, there will never be a comparison to the benefit of a squat versus leg extensions. If your focus is on the quads then you miss half of the other muscles worked during a squat. The quads really only kick in as you push yourself out of the hole. During that other time your hips, glutes and hamstrings are working their asses off.

The same thing can be said about tricep extensions versus dips.

 

[Turkishexpress]

I like extensions as a pre-exhaustion exercise so that I can then go to heavy presses for example in order to isolate the sweepers a little better.

 

[aminoman74]

I try to lean forward as much as i can when doing extensions.It seems to help more so then laying back on the pad.I don't like angling my knees to hit the muscle more then the other as that unnatural movement to put the leg in.

 

[mattbass]

Ben Pakulski demonstrates / explains what dalvare1 is talking about here Ben Pakulski - Road to the Olympia: Episode 1 - YouTube (few mins in)

Thanks

 

[TrenBrah]

Fuck I always did them leaning back cause that's how platz did them. Not as far back as him, but as far back as the seat would go.


Fail.

 

[kingpeon]

.

 

[rutger177]

understandably.. compound leg movements are best for building overall size to the quads..my question is why do most people claim leg extensions are not a mass builder for the quadriceps yet say lying tricep extensions are great for buliding up the mass of the triceps? i see a contradiction..both movements should build mass ..correct?

If they did work for mass you would have to go fairly heavy and that wouldn't be good for the knees.

 

[way8lifter]

to me they are just a warm up for my knees...squats..hacks..leg press...those are for mass..

 

[PitbullTank]

I use them for warm ups now... I don't believe they hav ever gained me any actual muscle...to me its just a subpar exercise....why do a subpar exercise over a more efficient one?? Its like doing tha pec dec for chest...sure it works so so, but why waste time with this type of fluff exercise when u could press...to me its a very unnatural movement that puts tha knees in a bad spot with any type of weight that would do anything...