Do you need to squat while on AAS?

[Sikkent]

Could you just do leg press and extensions and get big legs?

 

[Rastas]

Is this question for real, or are you taking the piss? You can do whatever you want to get big legs, but the quickest and most effective way is to get under the bar and squat. It's simple. I can tell this thread is going to go wild with all sorts of stupidity now.

 

[LetsGoHeavyBro]

Why lift if you are afraid to squat.. (Just saying) I'm a leg day lover.. The pump and squeeze when doing legs is incredible.. Arnold said it best it like ejaculating every time..

 

[Rida5d]

All your workouts should be intensed while on.
Squats being an essential excersise is no different.

 

[Sikkent]

I'm just kind of scared cause I've had acl surgery almost a year ago. Its healed now but could something still happen if I go too heavy?

 

[tbonexl]

Yea that can be an issue with anybody. Stick to lighter weight, higher reps.

 

[Southernfish]

You can build big legs without squatting. Squats aren't mandatory, they are the best overall mass builder out of all the compound movements. I couldn't squat for a while due to lower back issues and my legs grew just fine.

What id suggest is obviously don't go to heavy, pre exhaust you quads with extentions before you go and squat, do hack squats. And last but not least whatever exercise you do make sure you knees stay in line with whatever way your toes are pointed and DO NOT let them buckle in or out, and push with your heels and not the balls of your feet, these two things will really help your knees from being injured or REinjured.

 

[STAUNCHED427]

I only leg press, deadlift and do lunges for legs and they are quite thick. I don't push heavy either. Reason being is because of knees... Squats cause sharp pain, cartilage clicks and leaves them inflamed and sore for days after.

Leg press is my bread and butter for legs. You don't have to squat to build solid legs, albeit yes they are the king for mass building on the legs it just shits me when people say no squats no size. Bullshit.

Maybe I should post up a pic of my wheels just to prove that squats are by no means required to build thick, solid, legs.

 

[bonexyster]

As long as it a decent leg press with a big area to position your feet in different areas you can focus your hamstring on a leg press also. It sucks about your back light wieght high squatting reps would work also. My suggestion would be try hex bar squats if you haven't tried them yet. You can go pretty heavy with wrist straps and the back pressure is minimum while still being able to hammer the hammies pretty well.

 

[Pitbull55]

I believe that squats are the king for mass builders but like stewie griffin said it doesn't matter how you get the pot of gold as long as you beat the leprechaun so there is more than one way to build thick legs.

It comes down to intensity, no matter what exercise you do as long as you attack it 100% you will spur growth (but like I said some are better than others). Schredder made a good point on pre-exhausting and like boneexyster said leg press variations can be a huge help. One method I have experimented with is starting super wide (think of a sumo deadlift almost) and with each set becoming more narrow and turning the feet in more (reducing weight as well).

I injured my sciatica a few years back and had to drastically decrease my deadlift. It is frustrating but if you are smart about it and stay focused you can get back to where you were, even better.