Contents
For most beginners, after six months of training in the gym, the upper body begins to dominate, and the lower, on the contrary, lags behind. This happens with everyone, but not with Art Atwood, who has trained his legs since childhood. The hips of this American athlete are simply striking in their volume and relief. So let’s take a look at what Art did to develop that kind of power.
Art Atwood’s training split
Art, like all professional athletes, trains six times a week, and here’s how he plans his classes:
- Monday / Thursday – working out the pectoral muscles, back and biceps.
- Tuesday / Friday – Shoulders, Triceps and Traps.
- Wednesday / Saturday – workout legs, calves and abs.
It would seem that there is nothing unusual in this program, but you simply do not know the basic principles that Art is guided by during his workouts. The champion is completely guided by the principle of light and hard training, only he does it in his own way. The fact is that both of his workouts are hard, including 12 repetitions of 8 sets. The bottom line is the following – the first workout takes place with 12 repetitions, and the second with 8 repetitions. Therefore, this principle can be called “hard and really hard day.”
What’s Art’s secret?
Needless to say, Art Atwood is a man of colossal will, but he wasn’t always that way. As a child, this future athlete played football, so he started going to the gym early. He watched how many guys hammered their arms and chest, and only a few put emphasis on their legs, but at the same time they practically did not differ in shape. Art’s main secret is the will to win and the irresistible desire to surpass himself. But will alone will not be enough, so let’s take a look at what exercises Atwood used to develop his legs.
- Working out the hamstrings. The athlete works out the biceps of the legs early in the morning, even before going to work at his favorite sports food store. If he does not have time to do this in the morning, then he performs the exercise in the evening in the super series with quadriceps, although, as Art admits, it does not give him pleasure.
- Deadlift with straight legs. The athlete performs each heavy exercise first of all. An important point in the technique is that the back cannot be rounded. Another point that the athlete noted is that more flexible people can lower the bar very low, and the lower it is, the better your muscles work.
- Lying leg curl. An important aspect is that Mr. Atwood never makes a set quickly, the main task is quality pumping.
- Seated Leg Curl. Exercise with the goal of pumping the outer thigh as much as possible. You need to work until the muscles tremble, but the author of the program himself does it until the legs cramp.
- Standing leg curl. For this exercise, the gym must be equipped with a special simulator. The exercise completes the pumping of the biceps femoris.
- Quads – Barbell Squats. Only you should not bandage your knees. Art does not do this himself and does not advise other athletes to do so, because he saw a couple of guys who tore their muscles because they did not feel the increasing pain. Bodybuilding is the way to build a body, but not destruction, remember this.
- Hack squats. The athlete performs this exercise first of all, because he does not like it. Art’s weight gain continues until his knees start shouting to him: “A little more man and you won’t have us!” As soon as he feels that it’s time to stop, he immediately moves on to the bench press.
- Leg press. The peculiarity of the exercise is to calculate the weight for 15-20 repetitions in four approaches.
- Straightening the legs. A finishing exercise that will work great for your quads and hips. It is this exercise that will outline your muscles, so you should not neglect it. Do 15-20 reps.
After the workout, stretching follows, which is considered an indispensable element of the entire split.
Art Atwood Leg Workout Program
4 approach to 10 repetitions
4 approach to 10 repetitions
4 approach to 10 repetitions
4 approach to 10 repetitions
4 approach to 10 repetitions
4 approach to 10 repetitions
4 approach to 20 repetitions
4 approach to 20 repetitions
Art’s 3 Secrets for Better Hip Pumping
There are three small, but at the same time important secrets, without which your legs will slow down in development.
- Stretching. The importance of stretching cannot be underestimated, because it is thanks to it that you can increase the range of motion, reduce the risk of injury during the set and, of course, relax your muscles after training. The full potential of the stretch will manifest itself during the deadlift, because the lower you can bend, the better your biceps will work.
- Squat. Although Art himself has not squatted for a long time, but in his school and student years, this is what gave him volume. Therefore, all beginners should stop developing biceps, put the barbell on the racks, place it on their shoulders and start swinging their legs.
- Work through pain. Art’s main feature is the ability to ignore pain. This he brought up in himself from childhood. Note, the key word here is “brought up”, so do not despair, no one is born a champion. Remember, extraordinary goals are achieved through extraordinary efforts, so if you work “like everyone else”, you will ultimately be “like everyone else”.
Conclusion
Thanks to these principles, you can develop mind-blowing hips that will amaze your glandular partners. Remember, the most key aspects of success are overcoming the pain and fear that will arise. Your best companion will be an iron will and determination. Know if one person succeeds, then you also have a chance.
Gather your will in a fist and move towards the goal!