The best way to gain weight on your thighs is to engage in resistance training to build muscle in the quadriceps. Gaining weight in the thighs also requires increasing caloric intake, because the food you ingest provides the raw materials for your body to build muscle and increase mass. Add some thigh-thickening exercises to your routine to gain weight in your thighs fast.
Squats
Heavy barbell squats are the best way to build the thighs, according to "Optimum Anabolics" author Jeff Anderson. To do this exercise you start with a barbell on your upper back, grip it with your hands shoulder-width apart, and you squat down as if sitting on a chair with your lower back arched and your knees behind the vertical plane of your toes. When you get to where your thighs are parallel to the ground, you press the weight upward to the starting position. Start light to get the hang of these and add weight as you get stronger. If you cannot perform squats because of a lower back injury, simply replace them with hack squats with the barbell held behind you to spread the stress over the full surface area of your back, allowing pain free quadriceps training.
Deadlifts
Deadlifts directly target the back and hamstrings, but they indirectly work the quadriceps and are a great overall mass exercise that can put weight on your thighs. "The Best Muscle-Building Moves of All Time" by Chris Logan rates them as even with squats when it comes to mass building. With a barbell tight against your shins, you grip shoulder-width apart with one palm up and the other down. Drop your backside and bend your knees to initiate the pull and then drive your hips forward while throwing your shoulder blades back to lift the bar to thigh-level. Lower the bar under control and repeat.
Sissy Squats
According to "3-D Muscle Building" by Jonathan Lawson and Steve Holman, sissy squats put stretch overload onto the quadriceps muscle. These can be challenging to get the hang of if your gym does not have a sissy squat apparatus. Wrap a sturdy towel around a waist-high barbell, secured so that it will not move. You will not lift the barbell, this is only to stabilize your weight as you perform this backward-leaning motion. Holding onto each end of the with your hands, you bend your knees while on the balls of your feet, squatting backward until your upper legs touch your calves, getting a full stretch in the quadriceps. Pulling minimally with your arms, still holding onto the towel, you use your legs to pull your body back up to a standing position. If you cannot get the hang of these, replace them with full-range hack squats. Stretch overload was shown to increase lean mass in animals by 300 percent in only one month, according to Lawson and Holman.
Leg Extensions
Leg extensions are a great finishing exercise for your thigh or quadriceps workout. Position yourself on the leg extension machine, making sure that it is properly adjusted with the back on your ankles. Lift the weight stack by extending your legs and contracting your quadriceps at the top. Lower slowly and repeat for eight to 12 reps. To really blast your thighs, you can do these in single or double drop-sets. For example, do one set to exhaustion, "drop" or lower the weight and do another set to exhaustion. Add more drops if you dare.
Limit Cardio
Limit your cardiovascular training while you are trying to add weight to your thighs. Gaining muscle takes a caloric surplus, taking in more calories than you burn. Doing cardio burns calories that your body could be using to add mass to your thighs. Limit running, jogging, cycling and other aerobic activities to maximize muscle growth. If you must do cardio, try light walking.
References
- "Optimum Anabolics"; Jeff Anderson; 2004
- Muscle & Performance; "The Best Muscle-Building Moves of All Time"; Chris Logan, May 2010
- "3-D Muscle-Building"; Jonathan Lawson and Steve Holman; 2006
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