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Exercise Questions - How Do I Add Muscle Mass To My Legs?

Exercise Question:
I am a thin guy and would like to build muscles in my legs and stomach. Should I sprint vs. distance running? I have considered running a stadium stairway. What do you think of that? Do you have a workout that would allow me to achieve my goals? I want to continue lifting weights as well.

Exercise Answer:
If you want to build up muscle mass in your legs, than sprinting is your best choice over long distance running. Sprinting is an explosive movement which builds up the fast twitch (type II) muscle fibers. Just look at the physiques of sprinters compared to marathon runners. The sprinter's bodies are very muscular and toned, while the marathon runners are rather gaunt. Running stadium stairways is a great power workout and will really work those explosive fast twitch muscle fibers!

Along with regular sprinting routines, I would highly recommend adding some basic weight training exercises to build up your legs. Stick to the core movements and perform between 8-12 repetitions per set. Start with 8 sets per workout and shoot for 2 leg workouts per week. Some of the best leg exercises are:

• Barbell Squats
  
  
• Hack Squats
  
  
• Dumbbell Lunges
  

In terms of strengthening your abs, here is my favorite ab exercise which really burns the muscles and builds up those wash board abs. Your abs should be trained every other day and stick with 5 sets of 25-40 reps per set.

• Exercise Ball Crunches
  

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