My wife, when she's reading fitness magazines, is a very dangerous person. The other night she was reading the most recent issue of On Fitness when she came across a leg workout that didn't require weights. The workout was a combination of plyometrics and standard exercises. On paper it didn't look so tough. I changed my mind rather quickly this afternoon when we gave the workout a try at the gym.
The routine started with walking lunges for about 120 feet or so. The lunges were immediately followed by 60 feet of sled pull (using a stretch band, I pulled my wife across the gym floor) going forward, then 60 feet going backward. Here's where it got tricky - we had to do Belgian squats for 40 feet. Belgian squats are basically a plyometric (jumping) move in which the participant deep squats, explodes upward into a jump, and then lands back in the squatting position. The move is repeated over the 40 foot course. The reason I say the move was "tricky" is simple: after the sled pull, my legs felt like gelatin. I'm surprised I didn't land in a puddle on the gym floor after the first Belgian. Once I managed to successfully complete the Belgians, the routine continued with low cross-stepping for 120 feet, duck-walks for 40 feet, and backward running for 120 feet.
We repeated this same routine twice more for a total of 3 circuits. It doesn't end there, however.
Once the third circuit was complete, we headed over to the leg extension and flexion machines. On each we performed 12 reps at a normal pace and then 12 reps at a slow pace (2 seconds contracting, 2 seconds relaxing). I managed the hamstring flexion machine all right (though I thought I was going to spontaneously combust by the end), but the quad extension machine beat me. I made it through the 12 normal reps but only 8 of the slow reps. My legs just refused to work any more.
I told my wife when it was over that I was having "a religious experience". She laughed then, but when she was done with her quad extensions, she was agreeing with me.
It's been 6 hours since the workout, and my legs still feel a bit shaky. I can't imagine what this is going to feel like tomorrow!
The workout was a great combination of aerobic and anaerobic exercise (cross training) that is an example of generating muscle confusion. Since this workout was completely new to my body, I should see a better result from the workout than I would had I performed my regular weight training routine. It's a good thing to throw a workout like this one into the mix every 3 to 4 workouts just to keep the body working to adapt to training. The results should be more fat melting away and more muscle building taking place. Give it a try. You won't be sorry you did!
Be well!