Strength Training: Incline Leg Press

Hello! Welcome back to my blog, and sadly, my final post. I hope everyone's day is going well and hopefully you are enjoying your Sunday. Today in this post, I will be informing you on how to properly use the incline leg press. Personally, I love to use the leg press machine because it helps strengthen my legs for basketball, and strong legs are critical to playing defense. This machine is fantastic for strengthening the quadriceps, gluteal muscles, and hamstrings.

Having strong legs is very important in a multitude of sports and activities. So, individuals who seek to strengthen their leg muscles, this exercise is for you. To complete this workout follow these steps. First, determine how much weight you want to lift. However, start light and slowly increase to heavier weights because you do not want it to be to heavy to the point where you can't complete reps properly (Delavier 135). Next, lower your body into the seat of the machine and sit comfortably with your back properly against the backrest of the machine. Keep your feet slightly apart on the platform of the machine. Your legs should be straight and not bent. Then, inhale, release the safety bars and bend the knees completely so your thighs are almost touching your chest. After that, return to the initial position exhaling at the end of the repetition. I recommend to complete 3 sets of 15 reps and keep in mind that more reps of a lighter weight is more beneficial than doing more reps of a heavier weight.



The way in which you position your feet on the foot plate determines what muscles you are working out. You can switch the location of your feet on the foot plate to target different muscles. There are a total of five different foot positions that I will be going over. The first foot position is with your feet high on the foot plate. This position targets the gluteal muscles and the hamstrings. Another way, you can place you feet is low on the foot plate. Placing your feet low on the foot plate works your quadriceps. You can place your feet far apart to strengthen your adductors. Place only your toes on the foot plate to strengthen your calf muscles. Finally, put your feet close together on the platform to strengthen your quadriceps.

Utilizing the incline leg press machine is good for people who have endured back injuries. Delavier writes "People with back pain who are unable to perform squats can do this exercise. However, they must never lift their back off the back pad" (Delavier 135). Using the incline leg press machine is a excellent replacement to squats if you suffer from back pain. 

When you are in the gym exercising you always have to keep your safety in mind. Always be cautious and safe. Some tips and reminders that you should remember while using the incline leg press are, when you are done with a set always remember to put the safety bars back on. Also, don't add to much weight because increased weight raises the chance of getting injured or overworking a muscle. Finally, make sure to always have proper foot position because you don't want to lose your footing and have the foot plate come down on you. However, if this does happen there are bars that will stop the weights from crushing you. 

Thank you for taking the time to read my post. I appreciate it a lot! This has been a fun and great experience, and I am sad that it has to come to a end. However, I hope the workouts I have written about help you reach individual fitness goals and build strong muscles. As you already know, I enjoy doing this exercise to strengthen my legs for basketball. So, my question for you is, what exercises do you like to do that help you perform the sports or activities you love? 

Works Cited 

Delavier, FreÌdeÌric. Strength Training Anatomy . Third ed., Human Kinetics, 2010.

Strength Training: Low-Pulley Front Raises

Hello everyone! Welcome back to my blog.  I hope everyone is doing well and staying healthy during this rainy weather. Today, in this post I will be educating you on how to perform low-pulley front raises. This workout works many muscles which are both the middle and anterior deltoids and the pectorals.

The pectorals or, also known as pecs, are the major muscles that make up your chest. Low-pulley front raises strengthen the pectorals along with the deltoids and also make the muscles more toned and firm when flexed. In order to do this exercise follow the following steps. First, stand shoulder width apart with your arms by your side holding the dumbbells with a semipronated grip. A semipronated grip is the same grip you use to hold a hammer. To grasp the dumbbells in a semipronated way you lay the dumbbell in the palm of your hands and then form a fist around the dumbbell (Delavier 47). Next, inhale and slowly raise the arm forward up to eye level so your arm is parallel to the ground. After that, exhale and slowly lower the dumbbell to the starting position. I would recommend to do 10 reps each arm when you begin this workout and you can slowly increase until you are completing 15 reps each arm.

Low-pulley raises are great to improve the strength of your deltoids. Delavier writes "This exercise is excellent for people who have difficultly developing the anterior deltoid. The semipronated grip engages the humerus in external rotation, which at the beginning of the movement stretches the anterior fibers of the deltiod, allowing you to feel them working" (Delavier 47). Which means that this exercise improves the deltiod muscles. Also, the way in which you grip the dumbbells stretches the anterior fibers of the deltoid making the burn you feel from the workout more dramatic and makes you aware that you are performing the exercise properly.

After performing this workout, I learned some tips that may be helpful. When doing this workout it is important to extend your arms but don't over extend them. You want to still be able to bend your elbow. Do not lock your elbow because it can cause pain after completion of the exercise which is a sign of overuse. Another, helpful tip is make sure to contract your abdominal muscles because you want to maintain good posture to avoid back pain. Finally, a variation of this exercise is wearing a harness. Wearing a harness helps keep your abdominal muslces contracted to prevent back injury.

Ultimately, I enjoyed doing this workout for the most part. I liked the burn I felt due to the semipronated grip because it truly shows you are gaining something from this workout and strengthening your muscles. However, I did have some elbow pain after completing this exercise from overextending and locking my elbow. But, with more experience and practice this will no longer be a problem for me and the exercise will be truly enjoyable and beneficial. Thank you for reading yet another one of my blog posts. I hope you can use this exercise during your next trip to the gym. I am appreciative of your support and interest in my writing. Now that you know I injured myself from improper technique, have you ever suffered a injury from performing a exercise improperly?

Works Cited
Delavier, FreÌdeÌric. Strength Training Anatomy . Third ed., Human Kinetics, 2010.