You can turn almost anything, from milk jugs to fence posts, into exercise equipment if you're determined and clever enough. But if you have access to a gym, you don't need to worry about making creative use of limited supplies. There's an entire range of weight machines and exercise equipment designed to workout your lower body, including hips, thighs and calves.
Leg Press Machine
The leg press machine is one of the best lower body machines for beginners because it's easy to master and works several large muscle groups---the glutes, quads and hamstrings---at once.
To do the leg press, sit down in the seat, place your feet flat on the platform, knees bent no sharper than 90 degrees, and straighten your legs to push the platform away from your body.
Leg Extension Machine
The leg extension isolates your quads, the muscles in the front of your thighs. Consult a health professional before using this machine if you have knee problems.
To use the leg extension machine, sit down, line your knees up with the machine's axis of rotation and place your ankles behind the ankle pad. Straighten your legs against the machine's resistance. As with the leg press, never bend your knees sharper than 90 degrees.
Leg Curl Machine
The leg curl machine works your hamstrings, which may become lax from long hours spent in a seated position. You'll encounter two common types of leg curl machines: seated and prone.
To do a seated leg curl, sit down in the machine and place your knees beneath the knee pad, ankles on top of the ankle pad. Bend your knees against the machine's resistance.
To do a prone leg curl, lie facedown on the machine's padding. Place your ankles underneath the ankle pad and bend your knees against the machine's resistance.
Hip Adduction and Abduction Machine
Hip adduction and abduction work your inner thighs and glutes, respectively. You may find one gym machine that works both of these muscle groups, or a single machine for each muscle group.
To do hip adduction, sit down with the machine's leg pads to the inside of your knees. Squeeze your legs together against the machine's resistance.
To do hip abduction, sit down with the leg pads to the outside of your knees. If the machine performs both adduction and abduction, you'll need to reposition the leg pads. Spread your legs apart against the machine's resistance.
Calf Raise Machine
You'll encounter three general types of calf raise machines in the gym: seated, bent-over and standing. Performing calf raises with your knees bent, as for seated calf raises, emphasizes the soleus muscle. Doing calf raises from a standing or bent-over position works your gastrocnemius.
Regardless of which calf raise machine you're using, the basic principle is the same: Position yourself in the machine and squeeze your calves to lift your heels off the ground against the machine's resistance.
Member Comments