Gym Leg Workouts – Strengthen, Sculpt & Power Up
Build lower body strength with gym leg workouts designed to target quads, hamstrings, glutes, and calves. These routines focus on compound movements and progressive overload to enhance muscle growth, power, and endurance.
Top 10 Leg Workouts
Machine Leg Program
This is a two day, beginner, strength training program that focuses on the legs. All of the exercises in these two strength training sessions are performed only on machines. Take 2-3 days off between leg workouts to ensure your legs are fully recovered. Day 1: This session includes 7 exercises including warm-up and cool-down (via bike). There are 5 leg exercises. Workout time is about 50-minutes. Day 2: In this session, you will complete 6 exercises. Four of these are dedicated to leg strengthening exercises. Workout time is about 40-minutes. Stay Strong Together, MICHAEL WOOD, CSCS Jefit
Bikini Legs In 2 Months
During summer season, what better way to get yourself bikini ready then to touch up that lower half and build yourself a set of toned and tight legs. Many women want that bikini body and tight midsection to show off the new bathing suits that they are wearing but it is also crucial to build a strong foundation and defined legs to compliment the rest of your body. <b><u>Why This Routine Works</b></u> Unlike most programs, this 8 week workout program uses a mix of strength and athletic training exercises to help you get that tight, toned and defined look that you desire for your legs during the summer months. With this program you will be working and targeting the muscles in your calves, quads, hamstrings and glutes to get an overall lower body workout. It is crucial to keep your rest time in between 60 to 90 seconds to make sure that you are consistently working your leg muscles. While working your leg muscles, you are also releasing growth hormones that are important to help you build muscle and define your legs but also help lean out the rest of your body. This aids in creating that bikini body look that you have been working for. By following this 8 week workout program along with a healthy and clean diet you are guaranteed to see the results that you desire and a change in your lower body. <b><u>Workout Day Split</b></u> <u>First 4 Weeks</u> - For the first 4 weeks of the program you will focus on muscle hypertrophy, stimulating the muscle fibers into growth. You will want to perform the exercises within the list with moderate weight for around 6 - 10 repetitions, pushing towards the latter to work the muscles into growth. <u>Last 4 Weeks</u> - On the last 4 weeks of this program, you will be focused on increasing your strength, intensity and the pump within your muscles through increased reps and weight. With your legs already worked to hypertrophy the previous 4 weeks, this week is meant to pump the heavily worked muscles full of blood to further increase strength, muscle growth and definition. <b><u>Bikini Legs In 2 Months Training Stats</b></u> <u>Weeks 1 and 2</u> Day 1 Workout Time : 15 minutes Day 1 Rest Time : 23 minutes Day 2 Workout Time : 15 minutes Day 2 Rest Time : 23 minutes <u>Weeks 3 and 4</u> Day 1 Workout Time : 25 minutes Day 1 Rest Time : 23 minutes Day 2 Workout Time : 35 minutes Day 2 Rest Time : 23 minutes <u>Weeks 5 and 6</u> Day 1 Workout Time : 15 minutes Day 1 Rest Time : 23 minutes Day 2 Workout Time : 18 minutes Day 2 Rest Time : 27 minutes <u>Weeks 7 and 8</u> Day 1 Workout Time : 18 minutes Day 1 Rest Time : 27 minutes Day 2 Workout Time : 45 minutes Day 2 Rest Time : 23 minutes <b><u>Equipment Used</b></u> • Barbell • Dumbbell • Strength Machines • Leg Machines • Weight Plates • Jump Rope • Bench <b><u>Nutrition</b></u> • Protein - Egg Whites, Lean Chicken, Lean Beef, Protein Shakes, Cottage Cheese, Greek Yogurt, Lean Ground Turkey, Peanut Butter • Carbs - Sweet Potatoes, Quinoa, Brown Rice, Beans (Black or Kidney), Oatmeal, Whole Wheat Toast, Of course you cannot forget your fruits and vegetables for a balance of nutrients, antioxidants and fiber. As with any diet that is gear towards putting on clean muscle and size, you will want to eat a clean and healthy diet. Stay away from any snack foods, chips, sweets, or anything that will put on excess fat, carbs or sugars into your diet. This will be detrimental to your gains and goals of muscle building. <b><u>Notes</b></u> You can add in some warm-up sets into each workout to loosen up your muscles. Remember during your workout is that progress makes perfect, by constantly pushing the pace and making gradual improvements you will be able to refine your lower body development. Intensity and focusing on the motions/movements of each exercise will help target and build the little muscles of each body part. With this routine diet is key, you want to eat and have a clean and healthy diet to attain optimal and best gains possible.
5x5 Leg Program
This is a complete 2-day leg routine for those looking to build muscle in strength in their hips and legs. For best overall results, use this plan as a supplement to with a Jefit upper body program. Day 1: Includes 8 exercises, workout session time is about 50-minutes. The session begins with a few dynamic warm-up movements performed for time not repetitions. Following this expect 4 leg exercises performed with a barbell and dumbbell using 5 sets of 5 repetitions each (100 reps.) Day 2: This session should be performed 48-72 hours later. The workout contains 9 exercises and the session time is about 45-minutes. The workout starts with dynamic movements and again 4 leg exercises using a 5 x 5 format. Make sure you use weight heavy enough to complete no more than 5 repetitions per set for ALL exercises. Stay Strong, MICHAEL WOOD, CSCS Jefit Team
Build Bigger Calves
One of the hardest and most struggled with muscle to train is the calf muscle. This routine is designed to help target and build up bigger and stronger calf muscles using weighted and well as bodyweight exercises. This is a 3 day split that you can make it is own workout day or add to the end of a exercise day that you are currently performing. It is necessary to give your calves the proper amount of rest to rebuild the muscles just like any other muscle that you train. There are 2 separate workouts for the calves that you can perform, each targeting and isolating the muscle for optimal growth and strength increase. *** Notes : Many individuals think that you have to train with the maximum amount of weight possible, but when you train the calves it is important to target the muscle with slow and concise motions to incorporate all of the little muscles for overall growth.
Legs For Mass
Training the legs are important in any workout program as there is nothing worse than having a well developed upper body and then underdeveloped legs. <b><u>Why This Routine Works</b></u> This routine provides 5 different leg workouts to stimulate the fibers and develop the muscles to their potential. With any routine day that you select, you need to force your legs to work in order to grow and gain size. This is done through working your legs from different angles, using various amounts of volume, mixing up rep ranges and performing different exercises to stimulate the muscle fibers. While performing leg exercises it is important to focus on perfecting the form of each motion within the workout. By not using correct form you are risking injury to yourself or not gaining the benefits of performing the exercises within the routine. In regards to the length of training, we recommend following and working out your legs for mass for around 4 to 8 weeks as this allows for the proper amount of time to develop the muscles. <b><u>Workout Day Split</b></u> Day 1 Workout A Day 2 Workout B Day 3 Workout C Day 4 Workout D Day 5 Workout E <b><u>Legs For Mass Training Stats</b></u> Day 1 Total Workout Time : 22 Minutes Day 1 Total Rest Time : 21 Minutes Day 2 Total Workout Time : 22 Minutes Day 2 Total Rest Time : 21 Minutes Day 3 Total Workout Time : 25 Minutes Day 3 Total Rest Time : 25 Minutes Day 4 Total Workout Time : 24 Minutes Day 4 Total Rest Time : 21 Minutes Day 5 Total Workout Time : 26 Minutes Day 5 Total Rest Time : 22 Minutes <b><u>Equipment Used</b></u> • Barbell • Weight Plate • Leg Machines • Dumbbell <b><u>Nutrition</b></u> • Protein - Egg Whites, Lean Chicken, Lean Beef, Protein Shakes, Cottage Cheese, Greek Yogurt, Lean Ground Turkey, Peanut Butter • Carbs - Sweet Potatoes, Quinoa, Brown Rice, Beans (Black or Kidney), Oatmeal, Whole Wheat Toast, Of course you cannot forget your fruits and vegetables for a balance of nutrients, antioxidants and fiber. As with any diet that is gear towards putting on clean muscle and size, you will want to eat a clean and healthy diet. Stay away from any snack foods, chips, sweets, or anything that will put on excess fat, carbs or sugars into your diet. This will be detrimental to your gains and goals of muscle building. <b><u>Notes</b></u> • You can add in some warm-up sets into each workout to loosen up your muscles Intensity and focusing on the motions/movements of each exercise will help target and build the little muscles of each body part. With this routine diet is key, you want to eat and have a clean and healthy diet to attain optimal and best gains possible.
Glute Building Workout
This is a routine for those who are looking to build bigger and stronger glute and leg muscles. While performing this workout, you want to be able to keep your rest periods short, between 60 to 90 seconds and lift as much weight as you are able to lift without disrupting your form. The first two exercises in the routine days focus upon high volume, high sets and high reps to get your glute and leg muscles warmed up for the rest of the workout. You can add these exercises/routine to any routine that you would like to work out your glutes or can make them their own separate workout day. **** Note : You can add in some cardio at the end of your glute workouts such as the Elliptical or Jogging to increase blood flow to the muscles being worked. This will help build the glute and leg muscles even further.
8 Weeks To Bigger Legs
Every individual who lifts hard at the gym wants to develop bigger and muscular legs, one of the hardest and neglected muscles. This is a 8-Week Training Routine to help an individual build bigger and stronger leg muscles with compound and isolation exercises to increase strength and mass. There are two separate workouts provided, as the legs should be trained two times a week, with each day containing important and beneficial muscle building exercises. Before the actual working sets that you are performing, you will perform two warm up sets to help loosen up and warm up the muscles. Once into the working sets you will perform your first set with the normal amount of weight that you are able to reach 12 repetitions for. After your first set you will increase the weight and reduce the amount of repetitions performed to 10 repetitions. Finally on your last set you will increase the weight even more to the point that you are able to perform 4 6 repetitions with proper form to bulk up the leg muscles. For the workout day you will perform a total of 5 sets for each exercise. *** Notes : It is important to stretch and loosen up the leg muscles to prevent any injury. You can increase the intensity of the workout by reducing the resting time between each set. Form for each set is key when performing each exercise to receive the full benefit of the workout that you are doing.
Barbell Leg Routine
This is a 2-day, beginner leg routine that you can add to your upper body plan to ensure a complete, full body workout. Each session begins with a bodyweight warm-up to prepare your body for the more intense barbell routine. Both leg exercises utilize only a barbell. Day 1: Has 7 exercises, 33-minute training session. Includes 10 sets of leg exercises, and four warm-up exercises using 20-30-second interval bouts not repetitions. Day 2: Has 7 exercises, 40-minute training session. Includes 13 sets of leg exercises, and three warm-up exercises using 25-30 second interval bouts. Stay Strong, MICHAEL WOOD, CSCS Jefit Team
Bodyweight Leg Plan
This is a 2-day, beginner, bodyweight strength program for the legs. Each day offers six unique bodyweight exercises. No weights are needed. Start and end your week with this program. Add a few sessions of bodyweight upper body exercises on Tue/Thur for a complete full body plan. Day 1: Perform 6 bodyweight exercises. Workout time is about 35-minutes. Day 2: Complete another 6 bodyweight exercises for session 2. Workout time is also about 35-minutes. *Note: The first exercise in each of these days should be performed for 30-seconds each (not reps.) so have your interval timer on. The rest of the sets are repetition based. Stay Strong Together, MICHAEL WOOD, CSCS Jefit
Workout Tips & Advice to
Elevate Your Fitness Journey
The best gym leg workouts should include compound movements, machine-based exercises, and free-weight exercises to target all major leg muscles. Key exercises include: - Squats – Builds overall leg strength and engages the core - Deadlifts – Strengthens hamstrings, glutes, and lower back - Leg Press – Targets quads and glutes with controlled movement - Lunges – Improves balance and works the entire lower body - Calf Raises – Strengthens lower leg muscles for stability Want to know whether free weights or machines are better for leg strength? Read Free Weights vs. Machines: Which Builds Stronger Legs.
Strong lower leg muscles are essential for stability, injury prevention, and athletic performance. The most effective gym leg workouts for the lower leg include: - Seated Calf Raises – Focuses on the soleus muscle for endurance - Standing Calf Raises – Strengthens both the gastrocnemius and soleus - Tibialis Raises – Helps prevent shin splints and strengthens the front of the lower leg - Jump Rope Training – Builds explosive power and calf endurance For a complete list of lower leg strengthening exercises, check out Best Exercises to Strengthen the Lower Leg Muscles.
Yes! Dumbbells are a great tool for building leg strength both at the gym and at home. Some of the best dumbbell leg exercises include: - Goblet Squats – Adds resistance while keeping good form - Dumbbell Step-Ups – Improves unilateral leg strength and stability - Romanian Deadlifts – Strengthens hamstrings and glutes - Dumbbell Lunges – Works quads, hamstrings, and glutes - Dumbbell Calf Raises – Helps build ankle strength and endurance For more dumbbell-based leg exercises, read 5 Best Dumbbell Leg Exercises for Strength at Home or Gym.
Leg training frequency depends on your fitness goals and recovery ability: - Beginners – 2-3 times per week, focusing on full-body or lower-body workouts - Intermediate – 3-4 times per week, incorporating heavy compound lifts and machine-based leg exercises - Advanced – 4-5 times per week, using a mix of free weights, machines, and explosive movements.
Tracking your gym leg workouts is key to strength progression and muscle growth. With Jefit, you can: - Log your workouts – Track sets, reps, and weights for each exercise - Monitor muscle activation – Adjust training volume to avoid imbalances - Analyze progress – Compare strength gains over time JEFIT also offers customized leg training plans—sign up today and start building stronger legs!