Very important requests for the new series

S

SHANI

Active Member
Hello Cathe ,
I belong to the people who asked more muscle endurance and less squats and lunges . it's not that I bulked easily and it's not that I have a knee problem . I like your workouts very much but I find that my quads developed alot . my quads are developed at list like yours if not more , and I use much less weight than you . my quads are'nt bulky but they will be if I will heavy on the weights . the problem is , that my hamstrings are'nt as developed as my quads . I always amazed to see that your hamstrings are at the same size as your quads . I don't know if it's because of your body type or because you are doing extra exercises for the hamstrings , but I do know I really wish you work less on the quads and more on the hamstrings . I feel that leg presses and lunges on the step are better than regular squats and lunges but still working mainly on the quads .
so I really hope that those heavy total body tapes will have alot of hamstrings work and not much quads .
also I'm very glad you are putting out another leg workout
but please if you put in some heavy weight work , do it on the hamstrings and don't do more than light weight for the quads . I actually prefer this tape to be endurance type workout since you have alot of heavy workouts but I don't mind if you combine heavy and light workout for less developed areas like hamstrings and inner thighs to give them a shock .
one last request : please do longer stretchs . I don't mind the workouts will take longer...even 66 minutes...
I just don't feel that the normal stretchs that you do are enough after intense heavy workout .
I hope you don't feel I critisize you ...
I think your workouts are the best that's why I think it's worth trying and suggest you those things ... so your workouts will be even more perfect (in my opinion) .

thank's .
 
Hello Cathe ,
I belong to the people who asked more muscle endurance and less squats and lunges . it's not that I bulked easily and it's not that I have a knee problem . I like your workouts very much but I find that my quads developed alot . my quads are developed at list like yours if not more , and I use much less weight than you . my quads are'nt bulky but they will be if I will heavy on the weights . the problem is , that my hamstrings are'nt as developed as my quads . I always amazed to see that your hamstrings are at the same size as your quads . I don't know if it's because of your body type or because you are doing extra exercises for the hamstrings , but I do know I really wish you work less on the quads and more on the hamstrings . I feel that leg presses and lunges on the step are better than regular squats and lunges but still working mainly on the quads .
so I really hope that those heavy total body tapes will have alot of hamstrings work and not much quads .
also I'm very glad you are putting out another leg workout
but please if you put in some heavy weight work , do it on the hamstrings and don't do more than light weight for the quads . I actually prefer this tape to be endurance type workout since you have alot of heavy workouts but I don't mind if you combine heavy and light workout for less developed areas like hamstrings and inner thighs to give them a shock .
one last request : please do longer stretchs . I don't mind the workouts will take longer...even 66 minutes...
I just don't feel that the normal stretchs that you do are enough after intense heavy workout .
I hope you don't feel I critisize you ...
I think your workouts are the best that's why I think it's worth trying and suggest you those things ... so your workouts will be even more perfect (in my opinion) .

thank's .
 
Hi,
I'm the opposite! I don't like endurance leg work. I love S&H Legs and the Pyramids more than LL or PH's leg work. It is so much easier to work heavier than faster for me. For endurance it takes more warm up time and patience to tolerate low ends and squats that go half way...3 counts or 4 counts. I find it hard to work out early in the morning when my legs have been sleeping to LL. I find PS rather fast too. So for me S&H and the Pyramids were heaven. I love the sequences and the pace and the exercise selection.
 
Hi,
I'm the opposite! I don't like endurance leg work. I love S&H Legs and the Pyramids more than LL or PH's leg work. It is so much easier to work heavier than faster for me. For endurance it takes more warm up time and patience to tolerate low ends and squats that go half way...3 counts or 4 counts. I find it hard to work out early in the morning when my legs have been sleeping to LL. I find PS rather fast too. So for me S&H and the Pyramids were heaven. I love the sequences and the pace and the exercise selection.
 
I am learning about this in Kinesiology and it's rather interesting! The squat was used as an example of passive insufficiency - why the hamstrings are less involved in the hip extension phase of a squat.

Since the hamstrings cross both the hip and knee joint and their joint actions are hip extension and knee flexion, they are not going to be able to shorten completely at both joints during a squat or lunge (front leg). Therefore, the glutes will do more of the hip extension work, while the quads will do the work of knee extension.

First consider that a muscle will produce more force from a slightly stretched position. Then consider what is happening during the concentric (up) phase of the squat or lunge. While you are coming up into hip extension, the hamstrings are stretching at the knee and shortening at the hip. If you liken it to a giant rubber band and stretch the band on one end while trying to shorten it at the other, there would be slack in the middle. The hamstrings are too loose to work effectively at both joints, especially in greater ranges of knee flexion.

Perhaps supplementing with leg curls to work the hamstrings at the knee would help you achieve more hamstring development.

-Roe
 
I am learning about this in Kinesiology and it's rather interesting! The squat was used as an example of passive insufficiency - why the hamstrings are less involved in the hip extension phase of a squat.

Since the hamstrings cross both the hip and knee joint and their joint actions are hip extension and knee flexion, they are not going to be able to shorten completely at both joints during a squat or lunge (front leg). Therefore, the glutes will do more of the hip extension work, while the quads will do the work of knee extension.

First consider that a muscle will produce more force from a slightly stretched position. Then consider what is happening during the concentric (up) phase of the squat or lunge. While you are coming up into hip extension, the hamstrings are stretching at the knee and shortening at the hip. If you liken it to a giant rubber band and stretch the band on one end while trying to shorten it at the other, there would be slack in the middle. The hamstrings are too loose to work effectively at both joints, especially in greater ranges of knee flexion.

Perhaps supplementing with leg curls to work the hamstrings at the knee would help you achieve more hamstring development.

-Roe
 
I'm the same way Rach! S&H and the Pyramids are so much fun for me, but endurance is just torture.x(
 
I love both types of lower body workouts, but am partial to endurance :) Kicks my butt, and you almost feel like you've had an aerobic workout, too. Yes, torturous, but in a good way, I think :)
 
I'm not Cathe, but it's very hard to work the hamstrings with free weights alone. You can do leg curls with ankle weights, but it's hard to find ones heavy enough to really challenge those muscles.

Cathe does a lot of endurance type hamstring work on the ball in PLB. She also does some hamstring work on a step in PS Legs. That, plus deadlifts are about the only hamstring exercises you can do with free weights.

I think Cathe works the hamstrings as much as she possibly can without resistance equipment.
 
You are 100 % correct. And the ball does really help for that added resistanced. I really work at my hamstrings as well and doing hard core hamsting work on the ball twice a week ' plus step and one leg class or Cathe vidio a week made my hamstrings heavenly.
 
I find the ball work very difficult and realized how weak my hamstrings are. I think you could do the ball work from PLB a couple times a week and it would be very beneficial. Also, if you master that then cross your arms over your chest and let the legs and core take on even more balancing. It's tough!
 
There IS a hamstring exercise that you can do without equipment, but you need a partner. I have seen it recently in a fitness magazine (I will find out which one if anyone is interested.)

You kneel on the floor (put something soft under your knees). Your partner sits behind you and holds your feet. You lean forward as far as possible with a straight upper body, aiming to get your upper body as close as possible to the floor (it will probably only go to about a 45 degree angle). Then you come back up again.

The movement is actually very similar to a leg curl, but instead of moving your legs while your body stays still, you move your body while your legs stay still. I tried it, and it was so difficult that my hamstrings cramped! However, there is an easier version, where you put your hands on a stability ball in front of you to take some of your weight. (I don't have a ball.) The advanced version is to hold a weight against your chest to increase the resistance as you move forward.

Sharon.
 
RE: Another hamstrings exercise

HFL Decline Hamstring Bridges

Lay on the floor directly in front of a chair or other stable surface that is approximately 18-24" up. You should be close enough to the chair that your hips are a couple of inches in front of it. Place your right heel on the edge of the chair keeping your right foot flexed, and extend your left leg straight up also keeping the left foot flexed. By now, the knee of the right leg should be 90-degree bend.

Press through the heel of the right leg slowly, and then lower down slowly, completing 16 reps. Switch leg positions, and perform 16 reps on the other side. Repeat this entire set.

To make this more moderate, place both heels on the chair and use both legs to perform the bridge.

To make this more intense, add ankle weights, and/or a weight across the hips close to the juncture between the legs and the pelvis.

To make this more intense, rather than the passive leg extending straight up, lower it a few degrees so that it is at a diagonal, making sure however that it never comes to rest on the seat of the chair.

To make this seriously intense, use ankle weights AND the diagonal-leg position.

A-jock
 
Sharon: I think this exercise was in the last issue of Muscle and Fitness (the men's version). I tried it with my husband for a partner. All I can say is that I was kind of like Buzz Lightyear from Toy Story in that I wasn't exercising (flying in the movie) but falling with style. It is a very difficult exercise as shown in the pictures. My husband got a good laugh, though. I did not try the modified version.
 
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