The weight on my traps is moderate, but my legs are numb and shaking. The agony on my face is evident. I feel like I am about to puke. My friend is shouting: “One more rep, bro. You can do it.” Have you ever been in the same situation?
If your goal is to look “good”, you need to endeavour to be proportionate. Having tight-shirt aesthetics but possessing a pair of “chicken legs” simply isn’t acceptable. Apart from appearance, unbalanced physics inevitably leads to a decrease in athletic performance and increases the risk of injury. Read on to find out more in Leg Day: Should YOU Skip It?
The Testosterone Factor
Testosterone is an anabolic hormone which plays an essential role in regulating sex drive (libido) and bone mass More importantly, it has a vital function in the reproduction of muscle tissue and helps you to burn fat. The higher the metabolic demand of an exercise, meaning the more lactic acid you produce, the higher the increase of T-level.
To enhance your metabolism during a workout, you need to engage the maximum number of muscles. One recent study published in the European Journal of Applied Physiology measured the hormonal response during single bouts of heavy resistance exercise. They found that the most striking changes in testosterone response appeared when performing compound movements such as squats, deadlifts and lunges.
There are no substitutes for exercises that live only on leg day. Over fifty muscles can be utilized while training legs, and this creates an overload on your body. Moreover, the increase of testosterone will extend much beyond just circulating in your legs assuming you’ve just trained the day prior. Therefore, the impacted muscles will still be in recovery mode – the anabolic boost due to your leg workout will benefit the recovering muscles too.
Squats Done Sensibly Support You in Getting Rid of Belly Fat
Burning fat is a complex process – fat cells primarily exist to store energy in the form of fatty acid molecules. When you go from a caloric surplus to a caloric deficit, your body burns fat cells by depleting their stores of fatty acids.
In essence, there are two vital facts you should remember, the first being: you CANNOT burn fat in a specific area of your body; the second, exercises which engage large muscle groups must be included as they will elevate your heart rate and stimulate weight loss.
The largest muscles in your body require the most energy to function, so working your legs will likely increase the number of calories you burn in a typical workout.
One of the best exercises is squats – they work your entire body. Aside from using your main leg muscles, you isometrically use the erector spine and the abdominal muscles, amongst others. This exercise targets largest muscle mass of your body, so it burns a lot of calories. Plus, you’re going to continue to burn more calories after your workout is finished.
I know all the excuses you might tell yourself to skip the leg workout – I’ve been there! It is challenging and exhausting to execute a lower-body training routine, but it will unquestionably help you in the long run.
