Leg Day

Resident MAXIM fitness guru ALEXA TOWERSEY explains how to build bigger pins — one at a time…

- Alexa Towersey

There are two types of people who think single-leg training is for pussies — those who don’t do it and those who suck at it… most likely because they don’t do it.

Single leg work is an effective way to build lower body strength and size whilst working around injuries. It can help bulletproof the body, stabilising the hip and knee joints, and addressing any structural imbalances. And if the word “functional” is going to continue to be thrown around, single-leg training fits in every sense of the word given that our entire existence pretty much requires that we move one leg at a time. Now, while I totally get that single-leg training might not stroke the ego of all you hard-gainers out there, effectively having to take a step back and lift half the weight you think you should be, I’m going to assume you’re all smart enough to be open-minded and at least give it a go.

RESOLVING IMBALANCES

Evening out asymmetries between your two sides should always be a priority and part of building a solid foundation. If you’ve got strength, mobility and stability on both legs individually, you’re going to be strong AF when using both at the same time. Imbalances can be related to flexibility (the length of soft tissue or muscle), mobility (the range of motion around a joint), strength and/or size…

FLEXIBILITY/MOBILITY: