Fine Tune Your Quads

[Ox 51]

FINE-TUNE YOUR QUADS

New pro Nathan Detracy details his quad work
December 29, 2009
FLEXONLINE.COM

After taking the overall (as a light-heavy) at the 2007 Emerald Cup, 5'5" Nathan Detracy won the middleweight class of the 2008 USA Championships and then triumphed in the same class at the 2009 Nationals. He owns the gym Evolution Fitness in Bellevue, Washington. Detracy details the finer points of his quad training and provides a typical quad routine.

DETRACY’S QUAD POINTERS

* I alternate between doing one-leg lunges first (as in the routine seen here) or squats first (four sets of 15).

• Lunges are by far the best exercise for legs. I do them unilaterally and go very deep on each rep.

• Leg presses are done on either a vertical or seated machine and with a wide stance and toes pointed out.

• For hacks, my feet are close together and low on the platform.

• One week I do leg extensions sitting back with the pads low on my shins. The next week I do them sitting forward with the pads high on my shins. Either way, I point my toes out to focus more on my outer quads.

<TABLE style="COLOR: #000000" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=5 width="50%"><TBODY><TR><TD style="BACKGROUND: #b10b1c; FONT-WEIGHT: bold" colSpan=4 align=middle>DETRACY’S QUAD ROUTINE


</TD></TR><TR style="BACKGROUND: #000000; COLOR: #ffffff; FONT-WEIGHT: bold"><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #ffffff 1px solid">EXERCISE </TD><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #ffffff 1px solid" align=middle>SETS </TD><TD align=middle>REPS </TD></TR><TR><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid">Dumbbell one-leg lunges </TD><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid" align=middle>3 </TD><TD align=middle>15 </TD></TR><TR></TR><TR><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid">Squats </TD><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid" align=middle>3 </TD><TD align=middle>20 </TD></TR><TR><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid">Leg presses </TD><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid" align=middle>3 </TD><TD align=middle>20 </TD></TR><TR><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid">Hack squats </TD><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid" align=middle>3 </TD><TD align=middle>20 </TD></TR><TR><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid">Leg extensions </TD><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid" align=middle>3-4 </TD><TD align=middle>20 </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

 

[big in vegas]

I really need to start doing lunges again, I just hate getting back into them after staying away from them for so long because I know I'm going to be sore as hell

 

[Ox 51]

I still need to start doing them in the first place.

 

[big in vegas]

The first time you do them you'll be sore as hell

 

[Ox 51]

I can't wait to try them. Do you do the walking lunges or do them standing in place?

 

[The Dude]

I like lunges, but from my own personal experience as well as several other competitors, they become too dangerous when your quads reach a certain size. There is very little stability and an extensive stretch and load shift during each rep. I've hurt myself doing these more than every other exercise combined. I won't do them again.

 

[big in vegas]

I always did them in a smith machine. It seemed to keep everything stable to where I wasn't trying to balance the weight and worry about stumbling or anything

 

[Ox 51]

Sounds good I'll try them that way. So, you set your feet with one leg forward and one back and do 10 reps, then switch legs? Is that one set or two?

 

[big in vegas]

Sounds good I'll try them that way. So, you set your feet with one leg forward and one back and do 10 reps, then switch legs? Is that one set or two?

Yea, that's how I did them and you do each leg then that's one set. Kinda like alternating DB curls, 20 reps (10 per side) is one set