Newly anointed IFBB Pro and social media megastar, Sam Sulek is making the most of his off-season by going seriously heavy with his off-season leg day workouts, but he is also learning about control, as he explained in a recent YouTube vide0.
“I’m gonna wreck hamstrings with as little mercy as possible,” said Sulek, as he started his gym session. But while there’s no doubt the 23-year-old bodybuilder likes to tax himself as much as possible in the weight room, he’s also learning more about how to activate his muscles, often tweaking the tempo for maximum success.
Sam Sulek’s Off-Season Leg Workout
Lying Hamstring Curls — 4 Sets x 10-12 Reps
Seated Single Leg Extensions — 2-3 Sets x 12-15 Reps (to failure)
Seated Single Leg Extensions — 3 Sets x 5 Reps (slow and controlled)
Back Squat — 1 Sets x 10 Reps (with maximum possible weight)
Leg Press — 3 Sets x 12-15 Reps (to failure) (Optional superset with Leg Extensions)
Workout Breakdown
Beginning with lying hamstring curls, it’s clear to see from this workout that Sulek loves to go seriously heavy with his lifts, and he tries to complete as many reps as possible, often increasing his speed to try and beat the exhaustion that is creeping into his muscles. But you’d be wrong if you thought that Sulek simply throws his weight around. He describes his first set of leg extensions as being “in the middle,” meaning that he wants to go heavy, but not too heavy, so that he can hold at the top of the movement and make a slow release for time under tension, ending with a deep stretch.
“In terms of quad activation, per pound of weight (applied), this is where it’s at,” says Sulek of the seated leg extension. “The leg extension, compared to any other quad movement, it’s all squeeze,” he explained. After he completes his initial sets to failure, Sulek adds some additional lighter sets. “Now, I see much more value in a slow, lighter set,” he shares, “where I hold the squeezing position, and then slowly go back to the stretch.”
Sulek says that a slow negative movement makes him feel like he’s activating muscle fibers that may have been spared on those faster, heavier lifts. Still, the big man can’t resist volume, so his form begins to wane as he chases more reps, but this only supercharges the hypotrophy process further, meaning he’s really crushing his quads for massive muscle building results. Turning to back squats, Sulek says he works with the heaviest possible weight that he can perform ten reps with (for him, that means 4 plates on either side).
Before finishing on the leg press, Sulek returned to the single leg extensions to pre-exhaust his muscles between each set, making for an epic superset. You might want to consider this superset too, if you feel that you are not getting enough activation from the leg press, although this maybe a better plan for more advanced lifters. If you are not used to such intense sessions, you may be better served by building up slowly to this epic regime, or just skip straight to the leg press. As you would expect, Sulek characteristically gives it his all on the leg press to conclude his workout, repping to failure once again. “Yeah, that was good,” he confirms.