Leg Exercises You Can Do at Home

I've said this before and I'll say it again, your legs are some of the most important body parts to train. Not only do you contain a significant amount of your mass in your legs but you also store quite a bit of hormones that are extremely beneficial to building muscle. Too many people neglect to train their legs and this is in my opinion because it is not "cool" to train legs at the moment. With that being said, if you're too lazy or too embarrassed to train your legs in public then train them with these 5 highly effective leg exercises you can do at home.

Leg Exercises You Can Do At Home

• LUNGES

Lunges are quite easy to do at home and work several muscle groups at one time. In order to do a lunge, step one foot forward and keep the front foot flat on the floor, as you lower your hips until the front knee is over the ankle. Keep the back knee form touching the ground and push up slowly with the front foot to the beginning position. Then, continue with another step with the opposite foot and keep repeating this process.

• HEEL RAISES

To strengthen your calves, simply stand with your feet shoulder width apart and lift your heels up so you're on your tiptoes for a few seconds. Lower your heels and then repeat slowly and methodically. I recommend doing heel raise on a step, extending your heels below the edge of the step with each repetition. Calf muscles respond well to strength training so keep doing heel raises and you will be sure to see some results.

• SQUATS

Squats are an awesome way to firm and shape your gluteal muscles and upper thighs. Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart and arms by your sides or crossed. Keep an upright posture and slowly lower buttocks as though about to sit down in a chair then slowly stand up.

• JUMPING SQUATS

Jump squats take regular squats to a new level. A level where you're definitely going to feel your quads being used. Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, arms at sides. Start by doing a regular squat and then jump up as explosively as you can, and rise up reaching for the ceiling. When you land, lower your body back into the squat position to complete one rep.

• JOGGING/RUNNING/SPRINTING

In addition to the aforementioned exercises, running is a great leg workout and an awesome form of cardio. I know many people that don't do any other form of leg exercises, besides go running, and they have some really strong legs, and highly developed legs.

That's going to do it for this one. Remember, you don't have to go to the gym in order to get a good leg workout in, you can simply do it at the convenience of your own home. In addition to running, which requires only a good pair of running shoes, you can do some great exercises to build strong legs at home. As always be sure to maintain proper form and control through your exercises.

To your fitness success!

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Trapezius Exercises For Size and Strength

How many times have you noticed a person walking on the beach with a huge upper back and shoulders? You may have also noticed how some guys can fill the neck out on their t-shirts with mounds of muscles. This is the muscle that you are noticing and it is called the trapezius. Trapezius muscles can be difficult muscles to work, because it is difficult to isolate the muscle. However, the right kind of exercises will lead to significant improvements in terms of size and strength of the trapezius muscle.

First, you need to understand where the trapezius is located and what kind of activity or movement it performs. It is located on the top of the upper back and allows you to shrug your shoulders to the sky and also slightly helps with raising the arms to the side.

To properly work the trapezius you must know the specific angles to work the muscle with the exercises. By working the trapezius in many different angles you will develop the muscle to its fullest extent and before soon you will notice that you are the guy everyone is admiring. So let's learn how to work the muscle.

As with any exercise program you should always have a good warm up for at least 10-15 minutes of light cardiovascular work to get the heart pumping and blood flowing before the trapezius exercises.

Start with a weight you can handle easily. You can use dumbbells or a barbell with the proper weight. The key to the exercises are to do proper form and perform at least three sets with each set consisting of 8-12 reps.

Shoulder Shrugs: It's a simple exercise that all you have to do is shrug their shoulders while holding a barbell or dumbbells. Make sure the palms of your hands are facing you while gripping the weight.

Upright Rows: Start by standing in a comfortable position with the weight in front of you resting in front of your thighs. Your palms should be facing you while holding the weight. Pull your hands up to your chin and keep your elbows laterally. Be careful to ensure that at the top position your elbows are higher than your hands so you work your trapezius and do not hurt yourself.

Behind The Back Barbell Shrugs: Stand in a comfortable position with the barbell behind your back. Grip barbell with palms facing up to the sky. Now shrug your shoulders to raise and lower the weight slowly.

Finally, make sure you have the correct weight for your exercises to work the trapezius muscle to its full potential. It will take some time for the muscle to grow, but keep with it and, as always eat the proper diet to allow good muscle recovery. Try it and before long your trapezius muscle will burst out of your shirt and making heads turn.

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Benefit of Glutamine for Bodybuilding

Glutamine is the most abundant of all non-essential amino acids in the body. When the body is busy rebuilding tissue from weight-lifting workouts, amino acids play an important role. Of all of the amino acids, Glutamine is the most used. In this article you can learn how this supplement can help you.

What glutamine does to the body 
Glutamine is the most abundant of all non-essential amino acids in the body. When the body is busy

rebuilding tissue from weight-lifting workouts, amino acids play an important role. Of all of the amino acids, Glutamine is the most used. It is also an important fuel source for bodybuilding exercise and used for maintaining normal immune function. The amino acid also increases cell volume through hydration. It creates a anabolic effect for positive growth because of the positive nitrogen balance. It acts like a buffer by setting a negative charge against the positive charge of acids. This in turn gives you longer, more intense workout with less muscle soreness. 

Glutamine Side Effects
There is no 

adverse side effects. Too much Glutamine might be counterproductive and can possibly reduce growth hormone production.

Glutamine Facts

In one study, Glutamine supplements has increased Human Growth Hormone by 430%
It provides a positive nitrogen balance for anabolic state.
It helps produce high energy adenosine triphosphate (ATP) for muscle contractions.

How to use Glutamine

The best time to take Glutamine is before and after a workout. After a workout it should be mixed with a protein and carbohydrate drink. Because whey protein is naturally high in glutamine, it could be used for 

the after workout nutrition. It is recommended to take between 6 to 10 grams per day for a bodybuilder who trains on a regular schedule.

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Upper Body Workout Routine

A good upper body workout routine targets all of the muscles north of the abdominals. This is a diverse group of muscles that pulls, pushes, and lifts. To properly exercise each one in depth is an undertaking only for an extremely devoted individual, however, a well crafted upper body workout routine will utilize compound exercises to target multiple groups at once.

Any upper body workout routine worth its salt will address the following areas:

• The neck. Often overlooked, it can be injured during other exercise if not properly conditioned.

• Traps. Right below the neck, these can be exercised via barbell or dumbbell shrugs

• Shoulders (deltoids). A diverse group with “three heads”, it can be targeted with arm circles, Arnold dumbbell presses, and military presses.

• Chest. While bench presses are the most well known, pushups can be equally is good with less equipment necessary.

• Biceps can be targeted via curls (focus curls, hammer curls, outward curls) and pull-ups.

• Triceps. Tricep kickbacks are excellent exercises, as are military pushups.
• Lats can be exercised via chin-ups, bent arm barbell pullovers, and pull downs.

• Forearms are often worked out as a secondary group during many curls, pushups, and lifts, but can be specifically targeted with wrist curls, plate pinches, and rickshaw carries.

Any person undertaking an upper body workout routine should remember two things:

When the goal is to build muscle mass, use a weight that you can do 6-8 reps with. Once you can comfortably do 12, increase the resistance. 2) An upper body workout routine will occasionally produce soreness. Soreness is often a good sign, but excessive soreness is not. Do not over train. Take breaks and days off when necessary. An injury can keep you from working out for weeks, or worse. All in all, an upper body workout routine is a great start for an individual looking to improve their health or lifestyle.

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