As you know, real friends don’t let their other friends skip leg day.
Leg day at the gym is just as important as chest day, in fact, leg day is even more important because your legs are what bear the brunt of your weight, they support you, and they get you from A to B.
Leg training is also a very polarizing subject because gym goers either love it, or they loathe it, and there isn’t generally any in between.
When you think of leg day, exercises such as barbell squats, hack squats, leg presses, and hamstring curls all spring to mind, and while they are indeed very effective leg exercises, what do you do if you don’t have access to a gym or weights?
Easy, you simply perform some bodyweight leg exercises instead.
Here are a few awesome bodyweight exercises for bigger legs without weights.
Bodyweight squats
Thought that you needed a barbell to perform squats? Think again!
Bodyweight squats are equally as impressive when it comes to building up the legs, as they work the quads, glutes, hamstrings, and the calves.
To perform bodyweight squats, begin by standing up straight with your feet a few inches wider than shoulder-width, and your toes pointing at a 10 and 2 position.
Now, cross your arms over one another by touching your right shoulder with your left palm, and your left shoulder with your right palm.
Take a deep breath, keep the back straight, and slowly squat down until your knees form a 90-degree angle.
Hold for a second, return to the starting position and repeat for as many reps as needed.
Glute bridge
Glute bridges are an awesome exercise for anyone looking to strengthen their hips and their glutes, whilst working the hamstrings.
To do this exercise, simply lay flat on your back, feet flat on the floor shoulder-width apart, and your knees bent.
Now, raising your hips off the floor, push your heels into the ground and at the top of the lift, squeeze your glutes and abs to prevent your lower back from arching.
Once your shins are vertical, slowly lower the hips down to the ground and repeat for as many reps as required.
Standing calf raises
When it comes to training the legs, many people often neglect the calves.
Your calves are notoriously difficult to add mass to, unless you are blessed with good calf genes, but if you perform this exercise, you’ll find that your calves respond very favourably, very quickly.
To perform standing calf raises, simply stand up straight, with your eyes facing forwards, and your arms down by your sides.
Your feet should be pointing in front of you, at roughly shoulder width.
Now, keeping your toes planted firmly on the ground, simply lift both heels up into the air, hold for a top of the movement, until you feel a deep stretch in the calf muscles, and slowly lower your heels again.
Repeat for as many reps as needed.
