sprints to bulk up legs?

[hope7]

can you bulk up legs using springs, or should i just stick to squats/deadlifts only

 

[mrRuckus]

Sprints chew up your legs.

 

[MuayThai]

sprints won't bulk you up at all. You need weighted excercises.

 

[Skilla_Staz]

Thank you Espi. So many peole think that running in general is bad for muscle. However, sprints are an anaerobic exercise. Anaerobic usually builds up muscle, strength, explosiveness etc.

 

[mrRuckus]

http://www.intensemuscle.com/showpost.php?p=112815&postcount=23


Observing marathoners and sprinters isn't a complete picture. You don't see guys with huge quads doing either of those things. Walking burns fat and preserves legs. And since muscle is harder to build than it is to burn fat i'd prefer to preserve muscle whenever possible.

 

[Teflon_Mcgee]

http://www.intensemuscle.com/showpost.php?p=112815&postcount=23


Observing marathoners and sprinters isn't a complete picture. You don't see guys with huge quads doing either of those things. Walking burns fat and preserves legs. And since muscle is harder to build than it is to burn fat i'd prefer to preserve muscle whenever possible.

You don't see guys with FREAKISH quads who run. You will see guys with very muscular, built quads. To the orignial poster: are you trying to be freakish, competition big or sexy, well-built big?
Don't rely on sprinting (or uphill running) alone but it will give a good muscular look.
To my knowledge walking does not build muscle to any noticible aesthetic effect.

 

[Skilla_Staz]

Sprinting will not cause you to lose muscle, instead it will act as an intense session of cardio without the risk of eating away at your muscle due to the anaerobic effect. Of course, you shuold still eat and all that jazz after a sprint workout

 

[dirtysanchez]

Max effort sprints (i.e. full recovery) do help help improving strength in the weights room (which will lead to muscle growth assuming all other factors are present), as they are a plyometric activity (improve the efficiency of your muscles stretch shortening cycle - your muscles stored elastic energy).

 

[A_BetterMAN]

I myself do sprints about 2 times a week, I know that u get faster after a while, my timing for 100m is 13 sec , 14 when i first started.. leg size however is only slightly bigger so i think sprinting doesnt help much for bulking up the legs.. however it does help u lose bodyfat quite well.

 

[donjuanjovi]

Sprints are a great anaerobic activity. I usually do hill sprints for 7 or 8 minutes (barely jogging at the end) after my workout at 80-90% MHR. If you're looking for pure size than do mid rep squats and eat like a horse.

 

[Warboss Alex]

People look at Maurice Greene and Michael Johnson, Atto Boldan etc (excuse the spelling) and think "wow, big legs" but forget that theese guys are (a) black and (b) black, and also world champions - they're inclined to have superior muscle genetics from birth. Thus you can't really compare yourselves to them.

For the average guy sprinting will not add significant size to your legs. It'll condition you for sure and if you haven't got much muscle to start with you might gain some, but if sprinting built up the legs then you'd have the top bodybuilders doing it.

Best recipe for quad/lower body size is 20 rep squats. I dunno what mid rep squats are but if you mean partial squats so you can use more weight then no, very dangerous and hard on the knees.

 

[Maestro Monk]

Don't leave eating out of the equation; huge amounts of protein and 'good' fats/carbs are essential to grow big and lean.

Also, as Warboss says, HEAVY squats! If you're really serious (like moi) try training to failure for pretty much every set of squats/lunges. Avoid half-assing squat reps.. go parallel or as low as reasonably possible. Improving my form by going down to parallel seems to have done some good gains.

 

[mrRuckus]

Avoid half-assing squat reps.. go parallel or as low as reasonably possible. Improving my form by going down to parallel seems to have done some good gains.

You improved your form by only doing half a squat? Poor knees.

 

[A-Unit]

Re:

Top Sprinters sprint, obviously they'd train in their chosen field, but it isn't ALL they do. to constantly improve their sprinting ability and time, they have to focus on WHAT makes you a good sprinter. Makes sense, right? A golfer has to focus on what makes a good swing, on what assists in a great short-game. They go to the fundamentals, the basics, and PERFECT those, and when the individual pieces are NEAR perfect, then the performance can run in tip top shape.

A sprinter would squat, perhaps do jump squats, free squats (with no weight, and see how many they could do as fast as they can), hamstring work such as you'd find in powerlifting gyms (reverse hamstring raises), calf raises, run up hills, etc.

If you wanted to be the BEST Sprinter, you would do MORE difficult sprinting, so that when it came time to SPRINT, your performance has already been ABOVE that of the level you actually spring at.

If it was sprinting at 40 yards, then you might do weights on your back in a backpack, or something similar. Or as they do in football, you'd tie off to a resistance rope and just pull like crazy. There were some guys in the NFL, little ones with stump-like legs that went 20-40 yards without being yanked back.

To hit your PEAK 40 time and thereby build legs that would make you the best, you'd go OVER and above the basic sprinting, and therefore your legs would be gynormous.

Isn't that what you do in lifting? Your body, presently, is only "CONDITIONED" for the level of regular lifting and physical activity you live by daily. If you chose to raise your physical fitness or changed your lifestyle in some way, you'd alter body. Alter lifestyle (i.e. work construction) or set about on a fitness program, and your strength, stamina, overall body composition will change.

To move your muscle up, your muscle must have a reason to exist. Therefore, get on the treadmill of lifting, and put the focus on lifting and growing strength in a specific manner and muscle will come. Realistically, you could lift a weight 100 times, or just 1 time, but neither is in the range to create growth or hit the muscle fibers. If you chose a range like, 5 reps for some, or 12, whatever, and then worked to increase WITHIN that range, you'd grow. It's like doing pushups, how would you effect an increase in pushups?


A-Unit