Legs.

I just read an article on BodyBuilding.com that discussed the fact that legs are often erroneously overlooked by people trying to build or change their physique through weight training.  I have to admit, I used to be one of those people.  I always figured I did enough "work" on my legs with all the running and spinning I was doing and there wouldn't be much benefit to doing additional strength training, when I could spend my time focusing on my upper body in the weight room.  Sadly, when I began my new training schedule with Misty teaching me, I realized I couldn't have been more wrong, at least if I ever wanted to reach any of the goals I was setting for myself.  Not only did it become clear how much upper body strength I lacked, I also realized I had a great imbalance of strength in my legs.  My quads were pretty strong, but my hamstrings and glutes, not so much.  Even my calves needed work.  I was a little surprised when I first got a look at the schedule Misty had developed for me and saw that I had two leg workout days a week.

Now here I am starting my 5th week of training on this schedule and I have to say that I am a total "leg convert"!  It makes complete sense, really.  The muscles in the legs are the biggest muscles in our bodies.  Strengthening and toning them will turn a body into a calorie burning machine, not to mention the strength, stability and agility that comes with having strong legs.  And the soreness that I have been experiencing week in and week out in my legs (particularly my glutes) is a testament to me that I am definitely changing my body.

Today I did my usual Monday leg workout: leg press, hamstring curls, barbell lunges, leg extensions, calf raises and bench lunges.  I increased my weight amounts on my leg press (I'm up to 130, which isn't a ton, but an improvement) and also added weight on my barbel lunges (up to 40 pounds).  After weights, my husband and I went to our usual Monday spin class.