|
There are many types of leg exercise equipment
available today that will help you reach your goals
When
it comes to fitness, we really need to work out
the entire body. When we go to the gym, we see a
plethora of fitness equipment. Some we know how
to use and others we can be clueless as to their
operation. In fact, when we go to the gym, we
may even see others in the same situation as
they tend to stick with only certain types of
machines. Perhaps, it's a psychological where
people think that they only need to work out one
portion of their body versus the rest. For the
most part, we see this happen with men as they
tend to focus more on their upper body than
their lower, disregarding the leg exercise
equipment; hence, they may have a large upper
torso and a syndrome we call "chicken legs."
Whatever your fitness goals, the
legs are very important in our every day lives.
Proper use of leg exercise equipment can ensure
that you work out your legs effectively, giving
them strength and flexibility, and helping
them to avoid injuries such as pulled or
strained muscles. Like all fitness
equipment, different leg exercise equipment also
have their target regions and specialties.
What kind of leg exercise equipment is available?
The leg
press is by far the most common leg exercise
equipment available on the market and at your
local gym. This typically works by the
individual sitting or lying in a reclining position with their feet resting on a push board. Weights can be added or removed on the machine to suit your capabilities. Simply by extending your legs on this machine in repetition, you can develop your leg strength.
A treadmill is another very
popular leg exercise machine; however, this
piece of leg exercise equipment actually has
several other purposes, such as building your
cardiovascular system, endurance, and stamina.
The fact is, running on a treadmill will help
you build strong, lean legs and at the same
time, help you lose that waist by burning
off calories.
Extension and curl leg exercise
machines offer an excellent posterior and
anterior leg workout, helping to develop your
quadriceps and hamstrings. This leg exercise
machine operates by the individual extending or
curling their legs while in sitting
position.
Here's a simple list that you
can use to determine what machine could be used
for your specific target group:
-
Quadriceps.Using a leg press
machine, position yourself under the leg
exercise equipment and place your feet
close together against the crosspiece. Bend your
knees and lower the weight as far as possible,
bringing your knees toward your shoulders. Press
the weight back up again until your legs are
fully extended. As with squats, you can vary
your foot position on this exercise to target
certain areas of the thigh.
-
Gastrocnemius (the muscle at
the rear of the lower leg). Stand with your toes
on the block of a standing calf raise leg
exercise equipment, your heels extended out into
space. Hook your shoulders under the pads and
straighten your legs, lifting the weight clear
of the support. Lower your heels as far as
possible toward the floor, keeping your knees
slightly bent throughout the movement in order
to work the lower area of the calves as well as
the upper, and feeling the calf muscles stretch
to the maximum. From the bottom of the movement,
come up on your toes as far as possible. The
weight should be heavy enough to exercise the
calves, but not so heavy that you cannot come
all the way up for most of your
repetitions.
-
Soleus (the muscle at the outer side of the
lower leg). Sit on the leg exercise equipment
and place your toes on the bottom crosspiece,
hooking your knees under the crossbar. Slowly
lower your heels as far toward the ground as
possible, then press back up on your toes until
your calves are fully
contracted. |
