workout to strengthen legs?

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spanky

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I dive off the coast of New England and wear a 7mm wet suit plus around 34 lbs of weight.Im looking to improve my leg strength. what out of water exercise can I do to acomplish this.
 
We find that biking, particularly mtn biking is good way to build up not only the quads in your legs (the muscles that give you the power for your kick) but also is great for an upper-body workout.

Alternately, you can do sitting leg lifts and gradually increase the amount of wt you use to build muscle strength.

~SubMariner~
 
There are a variety of exercises you can do. Gyms have leg press and leg raise machines. Running tones your leg muscles as does cycling. Alternatively hire a slave to carry the weight out into the water!
 
I'll make this easy and cheap!

First, SubMariner is right, cycling is a great way to tone up your legs. Now, to work on your lower legs, get a pair of old runners or shoes. Make a hole in the toe, large enough to run some cord through it. Tie a 5 Lb. weight to the toe, and let it hang just below the shoe. Sit in a tall stool, on the edge as far as you can go, with your upper legs parallel to the floor knees bent. With the shoes on, do full extention toe raises, rotating at the ancles. This will isolate the muscles in your shins, and combined with the cycleing, will make your swimming easier, causing you to use less air and better enjoy the dive.

Their, cheap, easy, and only takes a few minutes a day. (except for the cycling, should be at least 1 hour of moderate exertion.)

Hope this helps. Give it at least one month of daily exersize, don't overexert yourself, and you will see measurable results.
 
pt40fathoms, that is a great idea! After a long walk to the reef, I usually end up with "shin splints" but I've never heard of an exercise to build those muscles. I'm definitely going to give that a try...very slowly :wink:
 
I enjoy a bit of mountain biking, it definitely helps. Underwater lengths in the swimming pool (no scuba kit) are a great exercise, although this doesn't fit your 'out of water' criteria.

Find something you enjoy doing otherwise it will last about a week until you stop doing it.
 
i have been carrying loads of books in my backpack since college & I always take the stairs. This is good preparation also for walking to the water on the beach in full dive gear. OK, so I'm eccentric, but I always have stuff to read if I get stuck standing in line.
 

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