Leg Presses & Bike



R

Richard Miller

Guest
At the gym, I'm trying to get my legs strong and in shape. So I do Leg Presses 5 Sets of 20 reps.
The weight is light, no more than 100 pounds. Never strain, it's an easy workout to make my knees
and legs strong and to stretch the hamstrings and an overall good exercise. Then I get on the
stationary bike for 30 minutes and get a Cardiovascular workout. My question is leg presses first
and right afterwards stationary bike? I think that the muscle workout first and the Cardiovascular
workout second? Can these be done on the same days at the same time frame or different days?

Richard
 
"Richard Miller" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> At the gym, I'm trying to get my legs strong and in shape. So I do Leg Presses 5 Sets of 20 reps.
> The weight is light, no more than 100 pounds. Never strain, it's an easy workout to make my knees
> and legs strong and to stretch the hamstrings and an overall good exercise. Then I get on the
> stationary bike for 30 minutes and get a Cardiovascular workout. My
question
> is leg presses first and right afterwards stationary bike? I think that
the
> muscle workout first and the Cardiovascular workout second? Can these be done on the same days at
> the same time frame or different days?

Too many sets and too many reps. A trainer explained that over-use becomes an issue when you do too
many reps; he recommends 8-12 reps, 2-3 sets. Perhaps you can find a variety of exercises beyond leg
presses. In my own experience, I have found that stationary bike on top of weights is too much; I
need to let my legs recover. Don't neglect upper body work either. You will need those shoulder,
abdomen, chest and upper back muscles strong for proper running posture over the long run.

--
ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º°`°º¤ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º Eduardo Suastegui "Test everything.
Hold on to the good." (remove '701' when replying via e-mail)
ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º°`°º¤ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º
 
In article <[email protected]>, Eduardo Suastegui wrote:
> "Richard Miller" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>> At the gym, I'm trying to get my legs strong and in shape. So I do Leg Presses 5 Sets of 20 reps.
>> The weight is light, no more than 100 pounds. Never strain, it's an easy workout to make my knees
>> and legs strong and to stretch the hamstrings and an overall good exercise. Then I get on the
>> stationary bike for 30 minutes and get a Cardiovascular workout. My
> question
>> is leg presses first and right afterwards stationary bike? I think that
> the
>> muscle workout first and the Cardiovascular workout second? Can these be done on the same days at
>> the same time frame or different days?
>
> Too many sets and too many reps.

Appropriate number of sets and reps depends on goals. Getting legs "strong and in shape" is not a
clearly defined goal, as stated it's fairly ambiguous.

> A trainer explained that over-use becomes an issue when you do too many reps;

This is not quite accurate. It's true that over-use becomes an issue when you do too many reps *at a
given weight*.

The workload is directly proportional to the number of reps, but also to the weight used. If he's
using a very light weight, then the workload will not be a problem. 100lb on the legpress is a very
light weight.

> he recommends 8-12 reps, 2-3 sets.

There is no absolute set/rep formula that is optimal for all goals. 8-12 reps is appropriate for
people who want to gain muscle mass.

For explosive power, lower reps (3-5) on a fairly light (60% max) executed explosively are more
appropriate. Unfortunately, the leg press isn't a very good exercise for explosive work. For
endurance, high reps may be appropriate.

Cheers,
--
Donovan Rebbechi http://pegasus.rutgers.edu/~elflord/
 
Do squats instead - they make a fantastic difference to leg strength. Then again, I am muscular and
don't run above five miles. Maybe if you are a high mileage runner then squats may not suit you. I'm
happy to hear some others advise on this... Steve

"Eduardo Suastegui" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> "Richard Miller" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > At the gym, I'm trying to get my legs strong and in shape. So I do Leg Presses 5 Sets of 20
> > reps. The weight is light, no more than 100 pounds. Never strain, it's an easy workout to make
> > my knees and legs strong and
to
> > stretch the hamstrings and an overall good exercise. Then I get on the stationary bike for 30
> > minutes and get a Cardiovascular workout. My
> question
> > is leg presses first and right afterwards stationary bike? I think that
> the
> > muscle workout first and the Cardiovascular workout second? Can these be done on the same days
> > at the same time frame or different days?
>
> Too many sets and too many reps. A trainer explained that over-use becomes an issue when you
> do too many reps; he recommends 8-12 reps, 2-3 sets. Perhaps you can find a variety of
> exercises beyond leg presses. In my own experience, I have found that stationary bike on top
> of weights is too
much;
> I need to let my legs recover. Don't neglect upper body work either. You will need those shoulder,
> abdomen, chest and upper back muscles strong for proper running posture over the long run.
>
> --
> ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º°`°º¤ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º Eduardo Suastegui "Test
> everything. Hold on to the good." (remove '701' when replying via e-mail)
> ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º°`°º¤ø¤º°`°º¤ø,,,,ø¤º
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom Back