Leg extensions. Worth it or worthless

Not sure that disagreeing with you means that folks are missing the point - sounds like you have different goals and opinions than others.

For what its worth, I have personally spent a lot of time increasing my ankle mobility over the last decade, and my squat (barefoot) is as good in my mid-30s as its ever been. That being said, I don’t begrudge anyone who uses lifting shoes, and if I were to do olympic lifts I would absolutely use them. I’m also a big fan of belts for heavy lifts — the sensory feedback you get from a belt when your core is properly tight is really hard (impossible for me) to replicate without one.

In short - different strokes for different folks. None of this stuff is useless, it just depends on your personal goals and body.

So this is turning into the “All season tire thread”. Lol


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Stuntmonkey

I guess y'all missing the point; You're significantly better off improving your ankle mobility through stretching and other methods than reaching for a crutch to help you without doing anything else.

Will using a weightlifting shoe help you? For 95% of people yes. Should it be your go to rather than learning how to do something properly without assistance? No.

---

Crazy idea, how about one works on their ankle mobility while building their squat with heel lifts , and move away from it once their ankle mobility improves? They don’t have to be mutually exclusive.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Stuntmonkey

I guess y'all missing the point; You're significantly better off improving your ankle mobility through stretching and other methods than reaching for a crutch to help you without doing anything else.

Will using a weightlifting shoe help you? For 95% of people yes. Should it be your go to rather than learning how to do something properly without assistance? No.

---

Plus 1 for this. Braces and assistive devices are great if you’re competing in a lifting event. But if your goal is just to get stronger and your asking a forum of dentists and ski bums you probably need to improve fundamentals before adding any assistives to increase the load.

Back on topic, Leg extensions are also a great way to increase volume when the body is already fatigued.


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Stewy30

Crazy idea, how about one works on their ankle mobility while building their squat with heel lifts , and move away from it once their ankle mobility improves? They don’t have to be mutually exclusive.

---

Look buddy, I don't know who you think you are coming in here with compromises. It's one side of the isle only!

Wait this isn't the politics forums.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by BeHuWe

Back on topic, Leg extensions are also a great way to increase volume when the body is already fatigued.

---

A wonderful assistance exercise, best used (IMO) over higher rep ranges.


I wear a belt for my top end working sets of squats. I could likely still hit my rep goal without the belt, but the belt allows me to train maximal strength in my legs with a much reduced risk of injury to my back. And the #1 goal of weight training is to NOT GET INJURED.

I also have a pair of wrist wraps i used to throw on every so often for pressing when my wrist felt wonky, and i use a pair of straps for rows and pullups when im rundown, or want to really focus on mind-muscle connection. Saying thats bad is as dumb as saying a smith machine is bad. Its a tool in the toolbag, and has great applications.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by 2FUNKY

So this is turning into the “All season tire thread”. Lol


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

---

Bro, I use one type of shoe for all my weightlifting. It has traction in all conditions.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by NW_SKIER

Bro, I use one type of shoe for all my weightlifting. It has traction in all conditions.

---

I find that after a season of use, the CrossTrain shoes first layer of rubber really wears off and performance falls off a cliff. It really doesnt make sense to only have 1 set of shoes if you train much at all. You need a dedicated pair for the conditions you train in.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by 2FUNKY

So this is turning into the “All season tire thread”. Lol


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

---

You mean almost every thread on TGR?

Sent from my SM-A536W using Tapatalk

You generally want to lift in a position that mimics the actual exercise you’re trying to get better at. This recruits the correct muscle fibers on the neuro level.

That said, I only squat wearing ski boots. Sometimes I throw the fart bag on for some heat acclimatization/sweat therapy too.

And since the guy asked for flat shoes that would work for other forms of training, my suggestion would be to check out Inoc-8s - in addition to Metcons etc.

This thread seems relevant for this question. Do those of you who are doing big leg workouts alter them during ski season? Go onto a maintenance plan? Do you try to keep a minimum number of days between leg day and skiing?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by zion zig zag

This thread seems relevant for this question. Do those of you who are doing big leg workouts alter them during ski season? Go onto a maintenance plan? Do you try to keep a minimum number of days between leg day and skiing?

---

It really depends on how often you ski and what your split of inbounds to touring is.

If you're just skiing inbounds on weekends, it's pretty easy to maintain a regular lifting program during the week. Especially if you have been lifting consistently, and you are well conditioned to the lifting stress.

If you're skiing 4-5+ days/week), then I don't see how you can avoid some version of a maintenance plan. Keep in mind, lifting heavy with low reps when you're well conditioned is not super stressful on your body. If you're getting the endurance/volume from skiing itself, you can often maintain strength by lifting heavy once a week.

Touring seems to add a whole separate component to it because of the "muscular endurance" aspect to touring on "normal" touring gear (not skimo light stuff). This can be exhausting if you're touring almost daily on normal/heavy gear, and it's pretty easy to overdo it if you're also lifting a couple times a week, in my experience. Now, I aim for a day between lifting and touring on my heavy setup where I do something more aerobic like ride my bike (or walk, run, xc ski, etc). Frankly, I'm considering a skimo setup so I can ski more without getting overly fatigued.

I shoot for the bulk of my lifting progress in summer and fall, and then the goal is pure maintenance during ski season. I wanna ski as much as possible during ski season. I'm sure other people are in better shape, but that's my $0.02.

Again, IME, YMMV, etc.

Thanks, all. Ended up with some Vivo shoes that I've been using for lifting and they've been great. The beginner gains have been super fun.

Next question that could spark some discussion: thoughts on lifting straps? My deadlift is now being limited by my grip strength - I passed lifting my body weight recently - so I figure straps are the next step. Something like these. Should I do straps + also work on improving my grip strength in general? Thanks in advance.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by fool

Thanks, all. Ended up with some Vivo shoes that I've been using for lifting and they've been great. The beginner gains have been super fun.

Next question that could spark some discussion: thoughts on lifting straps? My deadlift is now being limited by my grip strength - I passed lifting my body weight recently - so I figure straps are the next step. Something like these. Should I do straps + also work on improving my grip strength in general? Thanks in advance.

---

Yes to both.
Make sure you are doing pull-ups and farmers walks to increase grip strength as well.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by fool

Thanks, all. Ended up with some Vivo shoes that I've been using for lifting and they've been great. The beginner gains have been super fun.

Next question that could spark some discussion: thoughts on lifting straps? My deadlift is now being limited by my grip strength - I passed lifting my body weight recently - so I figure straps are the next step. Something like these. Should I do straps + also work on improving my grip strength in general? Thanks in advance.

---

Is using alternate grip no no longer prescribed?

J

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Bronco

Is using alternate grip no no longer prescribed?

---

It’s not good for your shoulders and it slightly offsets the bar/weight which can lead to hip and back issues.
Also, it doesn’t help with grip strength……

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by SacTo

J

It’s not good for your shoulders and it slightly offsets the bar/weight which can lead to hip and back issues.
Also, it doesn’t help with grip strength……

---

What about a trap bar? I went straight to that since it seemed like lower risk of injury, and stronger/more natural grip.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by J. Barron DeJong

What about a trap bar? I went straight to that since it seemed like lower risk of injury, and stronger/more natural grip.

---

Absolutely, trap bars are the way to go for athletes. Not sure it will improve grip strength though. Most trap bars have a narrower handle than an Olympic bar and one will be able to lift more because of this. They also have handles that are higher off the ground and thus decrease range of motion and distance the bar travels, again increasing the ability to lift more weight. I was a S&C coach at the collegiate level recently and that’s the only kind of bar we used for deadlifts. I personally only use them, unless I’m doing RDLs and then I’m using a supine grip. I do encourage all the athletes I train to focus more on bilateral movements than unilateral movements since this is how we move throughout the day. Think single leg RDLs vs regular RDL.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by SacTo

Absolutely, trap bars are the way to go for athletes. Not sure it will improve grip strength though. Most trap bars have a narrower handle than an Olympic bar and one will be able to lift more because of this. They also have handles that are higher off the ground and thus decrease range of motion and distance the bar travels, again increasing the ability to lift more weight. I was a S&C coach at the collegiate level recently and that’s the only kind of bar we used for deadlifts. I personally only use them, unless I’m doing RDLs and then I’m using a supine grip. I do encourage all the athletes I train to focus more on bilateral movements than unilateral movements since this is how we move throughout the day. Think single leg RDLs vs regular RDL.

---

Yeah, I wasn’t thinking about it to improve grip strength, but to avoid having to improve grip strength and still be able to keep upping the deadlift weight.

I’m not an athlete, nor a strength coach, so just tossing out an idea here.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by J. Barron DeJong

Yeah, I wasn’t thinking about it to improve grip strength, but to avoid having to improve grip strength and still be able to keep upping the deadlift weight.

I’m not an athlete, nor a strength coach, so just tossing out an idea here.

---

It’s a good idea, but like I said, it is a different movement because of the higher handle height and lower ROM. I would encourage him to use the trap bar for those very reasons though. Less risk of injury to the spine too and better for shoulder health. Again, my preferred bar. He can also mitigate the loss of ROM by standing on a small platform about the same height as the handle increase in height.

I didn’t read the whole thread, but this seems a good place for the question. Finally getting back into weight training. It’s been a good 5 years…. 42. Middling shape… I’m not overweight and remain active, but definitely noticing how much weaker I am than when I was training and younger.

Anyways, looking to get started and I prefer having a plan mapped out for at least a few weeks. In the past I did stuff from mtntactical and similar. Maybe I’ll do that again, but I need to start a little smaller and more basic.

My home gym has a power rack, bench, dumbbells, plates…. Nothing fancy, but mostly all the stuff I used when I was lifting at the university complex. Just missing a pulley system for rows or pulldowns and I can probably work around most of that.

Suggestions for a “getting started” sorta program that eases me back in?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Mustonen

I didn’t read the whole thread, but this seems a good place for the question. Finally getting back into weight training. It’s been a good 5 years…. 42. Middling shape… I’m not overweight and remain active, but definitely noticing how much weaker I am than when I was training and younger.

Anyways, looking to get started and I prefer having a plan mapped out for at least a few weeks. In the past I did stuff from mtntactical and similar. Maybe I’ll do that again, but I need to start a little smaller and more basic.

My home gym has a power rack, bench, dumbbells, plates…. Nothing fancy, but mostly all the stuff I used when I was lifting at the university complex. Just missing a pulley system for rows or pulldowns and I can probably work around most of that.

Suggestions for a “getting started” sorta program that eases me back in?

---

Leg-blasters.
You'll curse me later.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by pfluffenmeister

Leg-blasters.
You'll curse me later.

---

I’ve done these….but.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Mustonen

…..eases me back in?

---

Also looking for something that will keep me moving in a good direction for 30-45 minutes per day, 4-6 days/week. Can’t just do leg blasters for 40 mins/day.

Not with that attitude you can’t

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Mustonen

I’ve done these….but.



Also looking for something that will keep me moving in a good direction for 30-45 minutes per day, 4-6 days/week. Can’t just do leg blasters for 40 mins/day.

---

Pay someone like Dr John Rusin for programming.
If I was programming your workouts and ne would look like this:
Rear foot elevated split squat
Pull-up
Single leg RDL
Floor press
Fallout lunge
Suitcase carry

Slow down you eccentrics and make sure you are working on mobility.
Learn to brace your core-hollow holds, deadbugs, Palloff presses

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Mustonen

I didn’t read the whole thread, but this seems a good place for the question. Finally getting back into weight training. It’s been a good 5 years…. 42. Middling shape… I’m not overweight and remain active, but definitely noticing how much weaker I am than when I was training and younger.

Anyways, looking to get started and I prefer having a plan mapped out for at least a few weeks. In the past I did stuff from mtntactical and similar. Maybe I’ll do that again, but I need to start a little smaller and more basic.

My home gym has a power rack, bench, dumbbells, plates…. Nothing fancy, but mostly all the stuff I used when I was lifting at the university complex. Just missing a pulley system for rows or pulldowns and I can probably work around most of that.

Suggestions for a “getting started” sorta program that eases me back in?

---

What are your looking for? General strength? Skiing-specific?

I think Uphill Athlete, Mountain Athlete (as you mentioned), and others have intro/general strength programs, iirc. There is also Starting Strength, StrongLifts 5x5, Greyskull (I'm doing Phrak's version right now), and more for less mountain specific strength (but still applicable). As long as you start with light weight and focus on form - the Starting Strength book is great for this - you should be able to get started without too many barriers.

Reddit weightlifting occasionally has good threads. And their wiki/faq appears thorough: https://thefitness.wiki/

If you don't have a super specific goal, choose one the programs that sound interesting/applicable and get started. You can always tweak later. And the collective is always hear to offer guidance and a focus on leg blasters. [emoji6]


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Mustonen

Suggestions for a “getting started” sorta program that eases me back in?

---

The program is less important than actually getting to work out frequently.

Ease into training again, some mobility, proper warm-up and maybe avoid heavy squats and deadlift when in a hurry/stressed/not focused.

And accept that you’re not as strong as you were. Yet.

^^^ thanks guys. Yeah, not looking for something too specific. Just looking for something pretty basic to get back into moving weight around again without hurting myself, and I need a program or I tend to wander. I downloaded an app that’s pretty generic but probably exactly what I need.

Cheers!

For ACL rehab I was doing just leg extensions but I couldn't step down into a binding and skiing on a rough piste hurt

On advice of a othopedic surgeon I needed to add in hamstring curls/ calf raises/ and leg curls which is working so IME you need to do > just leg extensions and you need to workout lots, i did 120 gym sessions in a year and i should have done more

Since this thread originally started, I’ve been coming around to the idea that a few more specific isolation exercises can be helpful as a supplement to “functional” movements like squats, deads, etc. I also tore my quad recently and have been doing a lot of quad specific work.

For hamstrings, the bridge walk and nordic curls are my favorites.

For quads, I really like heel-elevated step downs. I would do these over leg extensions any day. I prefer a stack of plates so I can easily change height, but you can use a box or a bench if you want. Elevate your heel with a fancy “squat wedge” or change plates under your heel if you have stiff-soled lifting shoes. You want your knees to come out over your toes. Also be sure you keep your hips level (so you’re not reaching your leg toward the floor). Just step down until your heel touches the floor and then stand up. You can do a fully eccentric motion by stepping all the way down and standing up with both legs.

For hip flexors, I love the “reverse squat” with a band or cable machine.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by SacTo

Absolutely, trap bars are the way to go for athletes. Not sure it will improve grip strength though. Most trap bars have a narrower handle than an Olympic bar and one will be able to lift more because of this. They also have handles that are higher off the ground and thus decrease range of motion and distance the bar travels, again increasing the ability to lift more weight. I was a S&C coach at the collegiate level recently and that’s the only kind of bar we used for deadlifts. I personally only use them, unless I’m doing RDLs and then I’m using a supine grip. I do encourage all the athletes I train to focus more on bilateral movements than unilateral movements since this is how we move throughout the day. Think single leg RDLs vs regular RDL.

---

Trap bar deads seem like a replacement for a squat more than a deadlift. The point of resistance training isn’t to move plates it’s to apply mechanical stress on the body. Trap bars eliminate a lot of leverage that leaning forward to the bar gets you. If you’re trying to replicate a squat with less risk, great. If you’re trying to load the posterior chain you’re missing a lot.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by fool

Next question that could spark some discussion: thoughts on lifting straps? My deadlift is now being limited by my grip strength - I passed lifting my body weight recently - so I figure straps are the next step. Something like these. Should I do straps + also work on improving my grip strength in general? Thanks in advance.

---

Get some straps if you haven't already. Deadlifts aren't a forearm exercise and if you're limited by them it's compromising the point of the lift. I have the ihuan brand off amazon and they're fine and $10.

Hammer curls and/or wrist curls for forearms.

But shouldn't one's grip strength be able to keep up until one gets to very serious weights? Like double body weight, at least... IDK, it seems to me that straps too soon miss some of the total body benefits of DLs. Maybe I just have strong grip from decades of climbing and manual labor, so I'm biased. My DL limiter is def keeping my back aligned, and I'm only at about 170% body weight for 5 reps.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by climberevan

But shouldn't one's grip strength be able to keep up until one gets to very serious weights? Like double body weight, at least... IDK, it seems to me that straps too soon miss some of the total body benefits of DLs. Maybe I just have strong grip from decades of climbing and manual labor, so I'm biased. My DL limiter is def keeping my back aligned, and I'm only at about 170% body weight for 5 reps.

---

I'm going to go with it's because you're a climber and the manual labor. Same story here and I never had issues with grip (I don't hook grip when I deadlift) and got a bit above 2x body weight.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by climberevan

But shouldn't one's grip strength be able to keep up until one gets to very serious weights? Like double body weight, at least... IDK, it seems to me that straps too soon miss some of the total body benefits of DLs. Maybe I just have strong grip from decades of climbing and manual labor, so I'm biased. My DL limiter is def keeping my back aligned, and I'm only at about 170% body weight for 5 reps.

---

Should? Depends on who you are and what you’re doing, where you are in your fitness journey, number of sets, number of reps, etc. But if your DL is limited by your grip then you’re wasting your time, it’s not going to effectively improve your grip and it’s not going to effectively function as a deadlift. No reason to not use straps.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by bean

Get some straps if you haven't already. Deadlifts aren't a forearm exercise and if you're limited by them it's compromising the point of the lift. I have the ihuan brand off amazon and they're fine and $10.

Hammer curls and/or wrist curls for forearms.

---

Yup, I purchased the ones I linked to. And I was thinking the same thing. My grip strength was limiting me to roughly BW and now I'm at 125% BW with straps and a few sessions (still getting beginner gains right now).

Climberevan, I agree with the sentiment but I'm no longer a climber and don't do manual labor for work, so my grip strength was limiting me. It's nice to move past that limiter and be able to keep increasing my DL weights.

A related question: how many sets are people doing of their DL at working weight? I'm doing 3 steadily increasing warm up sets and then one set at five reps. I have heard doing 2-3x sets of five reps is too much for DL, so one set is preferable. Looking for general strength for biking/skiing/mountaineering.

I got inot weights way back in the mid 80's so i could muscle around a 203 GS ski in the pow

I have always done 3 or 5 sets of 10-15 reps with lower weight

so low weight / high rep but yer ymmv I supose

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by fool

A related question: how many sets are people doing of their DL at working weight? I'm doing 3 steadily increasing warm up sets and then one set at five reps. I have heard doing 2-3x sets of five reps is too much for DL, so one set is preferable. Looking for general strength for biking/skiing/mountaineering.

---

So it really depends on your goals here. 3x5 working set is pretty standard programming, especially for relative beginner-intermediate lifters. For a max strength kind of phase, I’ll do 3x4 or 3x5. Then I increase volume for a muscular endurance phase in the fall with some maintenance in ski season. By later in the season (now) when my overall volume and training load is higher, I’m in maintenance mode with 3x8 at lighter weight.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by fool

Yup, I purchased the ones I linked to. And I was thinking the same thing. My grip strength was limiting me to roughly BW and now I'm at 125% BW with straps and a few sessions (still getting beginner gains right now).

Climberevan, I agree with the sentiment but I'm no longer a climber and don't do manual labor for work, so my grip strength was limiting me. It's nice to move past that limiter and be able to keep increasing my DL weights.

A related question: how many sets are people doing of their DL at working weight? I'm doing 3 steadily increasing warm up sets and then one set at five reps. I have heard doing 2-3x sets of five reps is too much for DL, so one set is preferable. Looking for general strength for biking/skiing/mountaineering.

---

That’s bad info you heard on deadlift sets.
Look up the conjugate method.
Follow guys like Jordan Syatt, John Rusin, Tony Gentilecore and Lee Boyce.
Also, listen to your body. What works for you may not work for others, etc.