Want to grow big thighs? For bodybuilding, strong legs are as important as your other muscles. Never do just one exercise to strengthen your chest muscles and achieve significant results. Additionally, your thigh experiences the same feeling.
To work your thighs from all angles, you must adopt varied stances. If you don’t do this, you can end up looking like one of those guys with an enormous upper body and tiny toothpick legs. There are three different muscles you need to focus on to train your thighs. Hamstrings (back of your upper leg), quads(muscles in front of the upper legs), and inner thighs.
In this article, you will get to know seven major exercises that you will surely need to grow your thighs.
1. Banded Lateral Squats
How to perform – Begin by standing with your feet wider than your hips and your knees and toes pointed forward. As you move your weight to your right heel, push your hips back, and bend that knee, your left leg should remain straight. Bring your thigh as close to the floor as possible. As a counterweight, stretch your arms in front of you or clasp your hands in front of your chest. Then, driving with your right foot, reverse the motion. Pause at the peak to tighten your glutes and stretch your front hips. Rep on the opposite side.
Target muscle – quads, calves, and upper thighs
2. Goblet Squats
How to perform – Stand with your feet apart with a kettlebell in each hand at your chest. Bend your elbow slightly to place a goblet in the centre. Now, slowly press your buttocks backwards and begin bending at the knees. Inhale while descending. Concentrate on your hips and thigh muscles rather than moving the kettlebell away from your body. Try to get your buttocks parallel to your knees. Finally, squeeze your knees together and return to your starting posture. Slowly exhale as you climb upwards. You can complete three sets of ten repetitions.
Target muscle – calves, hamstrings, quadriceps, and glutes.
3. Dumbbell Romanian Deadlift
How to perform – Keep your feet shoulder-width apart and firmly planted on the ground. Dumbbells are grasped with a pronated grip in either hand.
Maintain a straight spine while slowly bending your bed. Keep your chest high and your shoulders back and down. To preserve your cervical spine, droop your chin.
Keep your spine straight as you lower your upper body weight to the floor. Back up your glutes slightly.
Return to the starting posture by moving your hips forward and raising your back while maintaining your knees bent. The weights should be closer to the front of your buttocks when you return them.
Target Muscle – glutes, hamstrings, and core
4. Dumbbell Bulgarian Split Squats
How to perform – Your arms should be completely extended at your sides, palms facing one another while you hold a dumbbell in each hand. Place the instep of your back foot on a bench with your feet hip-width apart. A three-foot distance should separate your feet. Your rear knee should be almost touching the floor as your hips are lowered toward the floor. To go back to the beginning posture, pause, and then drive through your front heel.
Target muscle – quads, glutes, and hamstrings
5. Sumo Deadlift
How to perform – Your outer hip muscles should be tight and engaged, and your knees should be broad and pushed out. Your torso should be slightly more upright than it would be for a regular deadlift.
Push your hips up to the level of the bar while using your core muscles, or use a kettlebell. Align your knees with your feet, and your toes should be twisting your quadriceps. Slide your shoulder blades back and down, and grasp the bar with an overhand or mixed grip. Pull the bar until it meets the top of the weight’s inner plate.
Exhale as you drive your legs into the ground. Maintain a low hip-to-chest ratio. Tighten your glutes to lock out your knees and hips in the highest position.
Target muscle – back, core, hamstrings, quadriceps, calf muscles, glutes, and adductors
6. Kettlebell swing
How to perform – Begin in a hinge posture (hips back, knees slightly bent at a 45-degree angle, with both hands on a kettlebell handle, arms straight out toward the floor, and weight between your knees. Swing the weight up to your chest, keeping your arms straight and your core tight. Squeeze your glutes, straighten your legs, raise your body, and drive your hips forward all at the same time. Reverse the motion, this time bringing the kettlebell between your thighs as you hinge. It should be done for four rounds of 30 seconds each, and then repeated for 30 seconds.
Target muscle – hamstrings and glutes
7. Speed skaters
How to perform – Rise with your knees slightly bent. Hop to the left, bringing your right leg behind your back and extending your right arm toward your left toe. Hop to the right side, this time with the left arm in front and the left leg behind the torso. The entire movement should be executed with the chest high and the hips down. Finish strong by repeating this motion. Work for 20 seconds, then rest for 10.
Target muscle – glutes and quads
Conclusion
Working out on the thighs can be as taxing as having a busy leg day. I hope the list above helps you find the perfect mix and match of exercises in your daily workout routine.
