Let’s talk about legs! Many years ago, I used to think that doing cardiovascular exercises that just used legs, such as stationary bike riding, was cheating yourself out of a workout, because it was relatively easier for me to ride a bike than to run. Through research, I discovered that your legs comprise the largest muscle group of your body and therefore, it is not cheating to do exercises that primarily involve legs. Since that time, I’ve gotten very into weight training or weight lifting or body building or muscle development. Because the legs are such a large muscle group, when training them, most people chose to do their leg strength workouts at the beginning of the week – which is Monday for most people. As for me, Tuesday was my Sunday night before starting my night shift work week, so Tuesday’s have been my Leg Day. However, my work schedule has changed, and now Thursday is my Sunday therefore, Thursday is my dedicated leg day.
Many people chose to do 2 leg days each week, for a few reasons. 1) The legs are so large that they can withstand 2 workouts per week. 2) There are several different muscle groups that comprise the legs, and if you chose to target specific parts of the legs, it may be easier to plan your workouts to target certain muscles on specific days.
If you are a beginner to strength training, you are probably safe to just do general legs on 1 day of the week. As you progress in your weight training, you may choose to split your leg day into 2 days. For me, for several months, my leg training schedule or “split” has been Tuesdays = General legs, mostly anterior or quadricep and calf focus with my personal trainer; and on Saturdays, I’ve been working out my posterior or rear legs, with a focus on hamstrings and the gluteus.