# Leg workouts



## marcel333 (Feb 27, 2015)

Hi guys. 
I need some help please. My knees were damaged in a work incident last year and now I have a lot of trouble bulking my legs as I can barely take heavy weight without fumbling. What do you guys suggest as I would love big legs but its proving to be a bit of a bitch getting them larger without going heavy. 
Thanks in advance.


----------



## wabbitt (Feb 27, 2015)

What kind of injury?  When I had knee trouble, I got good results with wraps.  Wrapping my knees let me go a lot heavier on the press.  Not a ton of things you can do to bulk your legs with bad knees.


----------



## marcel333 (Feb 27, 2015)

I was caught in a building collapse (I'm a career firefighter) was heading up towards the second floor when it came down while I was on the stairs. I fell straight down onto my knees as the stairs gave away under me.


----------



## mickems (Feb 27, 2015)

marcel333 said:


> Hi guys.
> I need some help please. My knees were damaged in a work incident last year and now I have a lot of trouble bulking my legs as I can barely take heavy weight without fumbling. What do you guys suggest as I would love big legs but its proving to be a bit of a bitch getting them larger without going heavy.
> Thanks in advance.



Big legs take long time. if you're already healed, have patience and lift safely what you can without causing pain. low weight and gradually add weight over longer period of time.


----------



## bugman (Feb 28, 2015)

Mickems is right in my opinion.  Go as heavy as you feel you can. Don't increase until you feel comfortable with your knees. And be patient.  Patience is my downfall, so I felt your pain.


----------



## marcel333 (Mar 1, 2015)

What are your opinions on (for lack of a better name) "half squats"? Squatting until you're seated on a bench? I can take heavy weights, as long as my knees don't bend too far beyond 90*. I understand that its not really squats but i figure that if I can do about 5-10 sets of them along with 5-10 sets of proper squats it won't do any harm. Suggestions? (Take note: I've never given these "half squats much thought before the incident so I need your advice on them, please.)


----------



## PillarofBalance (Mar 1, 2015)

marcel333 said:


> What are your opinions on (for lack of a better name) "half squats"? Squatting until you're seated on a bench? I can take heavy weights, as long as my knees don't bend too far beyond 90*. I understand that its not really squats but i figure that if I can do about 5-10 sets of them along with 5-10 sets of proper squats it won't do any harm. Suggestions? (Take note: I've never given these "half squats much thought before the incident so I need your advice on them, please.)



Well my advice to you would have been for starters - box squat which is basically what you are describing. Go as low as possible without pain. The other reason these help is because you are going to sit back onto the box. When your knees come forward that is generally a cause of knee pain.  Box squatting will help you avoid this.

Also - do not ever use the stupid leg extension machine.  

Learn to box squat correctly:


----------



## PillarofBalance (Mar 1, 2015)

Also reverse band leg press


----------



## marcel333 (Mar 1, 2015)

PillarofBalance said:


> Well my advice to you would have been for starters - box squat which is basically what you are describing. Go as low as possible without pain. The other reason these help is because you are going to sit back onto the box. When your knees come forward that is generally a cause of knee pain.  Box squatting will help you avoid this.
> 
> Also - do not ever use the stupid leg extension machine.
> 
> Learn to box squat correctly:



I appreciate your advice, mate. Will give these a try tomorrow, I can go quite heavy with them. But I'll mix in normal squats as well. 
As for the leg extensions, I feel immense pain when I do them so I rarely go down that road anyway.  
Thanks a bunch for the video.
Regarding the leg press: It also messes with me as I need to bend my knees very close to the point where it hurts. I can do them but not heavy at all.


----------



## marcel333 (Mar 2, 2015)

Just an update on this. I did legs today. Worked in 12 sets of squats with 8-15 reps each. Did 5 "heavy" (160) sets of normal squats and went down to 120 and did another 4 sets. Then did 3 sets of box squats with 160. Then went on to leg press, standing leg curls and calves. Happy to report that I felt no knee pain whatsoever during the entire workout and that I almost fell down the stairs when I left the gym. Thanks for the help guys.


----------



## Want2lift (Mar 5, 2015)

Now try a little lighter weight and go for sets of twenty. See how you like that. Be prepared to feel a nice build up of lactic acid.  Also, 90 degrees is as far as you need to go down for a regular, full squat just until your thighs are parallel with the floor.


----------



## wabbitt (Mar 5, 2015)

marcel333 said:


> Just an update on this. I did legs today. Worked in 12 sets of squats with 8-15 reps each. Did 5 "heavy" (160) sets of normal squats and went down to 120 and did another 4 sets. Then did 3 sets of box squats with 160. Then went on to leg press, standing leg curls and calves. Happy to report that I felt no knee pain whatsoever during the entire workout and that I almost fell down the stairs when I left the gym. Thanks for the help guys.



24 sets...heck, I don't do that, and I never had a building fall on me.  You're my hero!  Nice work!


----------



## ForkLift (Mar 5, 2015)

I have a lot of respect for firefighters, and some 1st responders. Not so much the police tho 
I would try wrapping your legs. esp aroun your knee's
Do low weight and high reps.
I dont care what some may say. You can stil gain major muscle with lower weight and high reps! And you may not have a choice! You dont want to injur your self further


----------



## IHI (Mar 5, 2015)

I'm going to subscribe since I'm in the same boat with thrashed knees...not a damn building collapse, thank god you made it through there and thank you and your brothers/sisters for the job you do saving people, definitely a job not just anybody can do/stomach and you know what I'm talking about with the stomach part. 

I'm missing bits and pieces in both knees and doc says two new ones by 50, but I think my right knee will be sooner than that, it's phucked. even just body weight squats has that knee wobbley and sliding on itself, I've wrapped up tight when going over 200 and it helps, right now 250 and it feels/sounds like your ripping a chicken wing apart so I'm going back to super light weight and rehab shit again...didn't work before, don't expect it to work now, but anything that may pop up here in this thread I'm going to give a shot.


----------



## marcel333 (Mar 5, 2015)

Wow. Thanks for all the kind words guys.  you made my day. My legs are still sore from Monday's workout. Feels good to have some training pain in my legs. I will defo try the lighter weight with higher reps Want2lift. We'll see what that does to my legs when I try it next week. Then I'll keep the one that works the best. I really appreciate all your advice guys. Thanks very much.


----------



## marcel333 (May 21, 2015)

Hey guys. Long time, just wanted to give you guys a quick update on the legs, it was going very well with little pain in the right knee but still quite a lot in the left knee. Weight was increasing and form was still good. I went in for a check up on my knees to see how they were healing and, with my luck, they found a growth on my left fibula ( thin bone next to your "shin bone") so all my progress went out the window when they started running more tests to figure out what it was, they were scared it might be a form of bone cancer. After a whole lot of time spent in MRI machines/CT scanners/xray machines/and doctors offices they concluded that it was not cancer, but that they were mot 100% sure so i have to go back in 6 months to have it checked out again, see if it changed in any way. so, now we start again from scratch. Lol, let's see if I can get it right this time.


----------



## marcel333 (May 21, 2015)

Sorry guys. I'm trying my best to upload a photo of the xray but it's giving me a lot of trouble.


----------



## marcel333 (May 21, 2015)




----------



## tjt011 (Jun 17, 2015)

I'd agree with the wraps, it can help to have a bit of extra support


----------



## AliCat (Jun 17, 2015)

HI Marcel, so sorry about your injury.  This is just a thought that your post brought to mind.  Some of the biggest legs in the Olympics are on the skaters, and skating is done without weights.  Maybe that could be incorporated if you have access to a rink.


----------



## marcel333 (Jun 19, 2015)

Hi Alicat. I do try to do a lot of body weight exercises, but unfortunately they're not quite as satisfying as heavy squats. Lol


----------

