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always had chicken legs even when I worked as a bicycle rickshaw rider in Cambridge in 1997 (when after work I would regularly overtake local club road riders on my 3 speed sit up and beg.)
Anyhow ..without going to a gym I'd like to strengthen my puny looking calves and quads as well as increasing them in size. I have a fair amount of free weights stacked up but currently no bench although I hope to purchase one second hand. Can anyone advise me about the quickest/most effective way to strengthen the legs apart from riding more hills or taking steroids . I do have to be careful as I have arthritis in one knee and general wear and tear elsewhere which is to be expected at the age of 54 I guess.
Thanks in advance and Merry Xmas to one and all ! cheers
Bill
something a bit like that ^^ but naked without the running or protection
geex, you should always wear protection when humping someone's wife
Dude. If you choose to live life dangerously do it properly.
Lunges? Add weights as required. Wall sits? This seemed to work for skiing.
Squats with weight?
No expert and skinny legs as well but I've been told deadlifts are the best weight training for mtb
I’ve got osteoarthritis in my left knee, as a result of a sharp impact with tarmac at walking speed. I’ve seen a physio via my doctor, and she’s given me a set of exercises to do, which, while I’ve not been a good boy and done them regularly, even the few times have made a difference! I’m on my feet all day, walking up to six miles or so a day, and it was getting pretty uncomfortable; now it’s a lot easier. It might be worth getting an appointment with a physio and getting a set that suit your circumstances.
thanks for that CZ ...I've actually done that a couple of years ago and as a result of diet /cycling and exercise went from finding walking / cycling any distance painful to being able to ride 40 miles through devons hills without using the granny ring. losing 25-30 kg certainly helped but I agree ..squats that were suggested by the physio were very beneficial. I did try leg raises with a bench set up (that I no longer have )which were also good. when I added holding weights to the squats the knee started becoming painful . Wall sits also caused pain if I sat for too long.
Got osteoarthritis too but can do squats, if I use binding.
Try ‘Green Sally Squats’ shown to me by my wife, she got them from a trainer she follows on YouTube, Joanna So.
It’s really simple but look it up.
Basically squat in a not too low sumo squat when the track says ‘green Sally down’ then up when it says up.
When it goes into ‘old miss Lucy...’ stay down and pulse.
It sounds and feels easy at first. It may prevent you walking for a few days.
Sit on chair, cross arms on chest. Then rise to stand on one leg only.
Have a look at GMB's resources eg
https://gmb.io/bodyweight-leg-exercises/
You could build up to a pistol squat:
NB The pistol needs a lot of dorsa-flexion (ankle flexibility) to sit at the bottom without falling over backwards - use a wedge if necessary. NB it's mainly glutes rather than quads at the bottom.
Basic squats target the three vastus muscles; For the rectus femoris muscle, try reverse nordics - brutal exercise.
Deadlifts are hamstring / glute centric; there is some work on the vastus muscles but squats would be more effective to target them.
All the stuff above will increase strength, particularly wife humping, but the op mentions size, which means heavyish squats, plus right diet, and genetics. Particularly the latter, which it sounds from rickshaw days the op doesn't have. Hey ho.
Some guys are just blessed with chicken legs.
Mate of mine lifts huge weights, is crossfit obsessive, massive squats and deadlifts, but has an ankle so finely turned that it would grace a Paris catwalk.