When it comes to bulking up with muscle you often see guys (and girls) at the gym bench pressing, preacher curling, doing dips, and military pressing. Certainly these exercises help define the upper body but many people neglect one of the most powerful ways to build muscle, burn fat, and rev up your metabolism, working the lower body!
Being someone with a thin build and working on the mass cycle of P90X3 I decided to focus on strengthening my legs a lot this round.
Here I am doing some dumbbell squats in the Eccentric Lower workout. Even though I used a fairly heavy weight for me, 90 total lbs, I focused heavily on my form. I try to get as low as I can in the squat while keeping my back as straight as possible. This is a key part of doing a squat because it lengthens the muscles to the max which is a key to strengthen them. I also keep my feet parallel and I engage my core the entire time.
Next up is cross reach. I love this move because it has it all. You are using arms, legs, and core all in one move.
This is such a key move for athletes. I do struggle a bit with this one because I don't have strong legs, so I am doing my best to improve here. Just that little 7.5 pound weight is enough to make this one excruciating for me! This one take a little more focus than the squat. Again engaging the core is important, and also focusing your vision and breathing helps the balance.
If you want to build muscle you have to work all the large muscle groups in the body. The bigger the muscle the more important it is to work it! Now get in there are start building!
