'I halved the number of leg exercises I do, and gained 6kg of muscle'

Ava Bracey as told to Addison Aloian

13 December 2024 at 8:14 am·6-min read

ava bracey working out strength transformation — Why this trainer cut back on leg day exercises Ava Bracey

I first discovered I was strong when I was the only girl in my weight training class in high school. At the time, there were men's record boards up, but none for women. When I deadlifted 300lbs (137kg) at 17, they finally put one up. That’s when I knew working out would be an integral part of my life.

My parents definitely influenced my love of weightlifting. My stepdad lifts weights in the gym at 5 a.m. every day. When I was a teenager, he took me to the gym and introduced me to different gym machines. He was the liaison for my love of weight training.

Through high school and my early 20s—I’m 27 now—I continued strength training most days of the week. When I created my workout plans, I would piece exercises together based on the limited knowledge I knew about exercising at the time. My workout split was two leg days, three upper-body days, one full-body day, and one cardio day, and it worked for me for a while.

Looking back now, though, I did way too many strength training exercises—about 10 to 12—on top of 45 minutes of cardio. I don’t know why I did that; I thought I had to do a ton of exercises for it to be a good workout, but it was overkill. Even though I was lifting heavy, my workouts weren’t efficient. I was concentrating on so many movements that I wasn’t getting the most out of them—instead, I would get fatigued by the fifth exercise.

I learned that it’s not about the quantity of exercises, it’s about the quality.

My turning point was in 2021 when I started dating someone who was into strength training. He asked me why I didn’t just lift heavier weights and do fewer movements, and I realised that was a smart approach.

So, I restructured my leg day workouts to be more efficient. Instead of doing a dozen movements and getting the bare minimum out of all of them, I decreased the amount of exercises. Now, I do four to six movements per session so I can zero in on those muscles and lift heavier. I’ve seen a ton of progress since making these changes—I’ve put on 13lbs (6kg) of muscle since 2021.

In April 2023, I wanted to grow my quads, so I added a third leg day.

I felt like all of the cool people I knew at the gym were training legs three times a week, and I wanted to see what my capacity was and how heavy I could train my legs. Plus, I’d been following the same split for 10 years. So, I was ready to switch things up in the spring of 2023.

Today, I still follow my updated workout routine, which is this: On Monday, I do quads, on Tuesday, I do a push day for shoulders, triceps, and chest, and on Wednesday, I do glutes. Then, on Thursday, I do a pull day for back, biceps, and lats. On Friday, I do glutes and hamstrings. My leg days are usually an hour and 20 minutes, and my upper-body days last an hour. I also do 20 minutes of cardio after every strength training workout.

Weekends are my active recovery days. I’ll do a Pilates or spin class on Saturday and cardio (20 minutes on the stairmaster and a 20-minute incline treadmill walk) on Sunday.

Some of my favorite exercises are goblet squats with my heels elevated because it’s easy for me to load up on a lot of weight but not put pressure on my back. I love to drop set two rounds of 10 to 12 goblet squats with a 110-pound dumbbell, then my bodyweight, and that’s made a big difference in helping build my quads. I also love drop setting Bulgarian split squats with a 100-pound (45kg) dumbbell because they engage my quads. I drop set leg extensions for three or four sets of 10 reps with 80 pounds of weight—and I'm fighting for my life by rep seven.

In terms of volume, I’ll typically do 10 to 12 reps when I lift heavier weights. Otherwise, I'm a sucker for volume—when I lift lighter weights, I love going for 20 to 30 reps during cluster and drop sets. High-volume workouts have helped my leg muscles grow and I enjoy the burn I feel in the workout.

Keeping these three habits top of mind was key to my strength transformation.

1. I stayed consistent.

Going to the gym every day has helped build my strength. I’m not always motivated, but at the end of the day, my goals don't give a damn about how I feel. I know how badly I want to reach my goals, and that overrides my lack of motivation. Stay consistent by making sure you have a reason or goal as to why you’re working out. When I look at the mirror, I'm more than happy with the body that I've built over the past 12 years, and that’s what keeps me going.

2. I stayed open to trying new movements.

I’ve tried many new exercises throughout my fitness journey that other people have taught me. Everyone knows the typical exercises—squatting, leg pressing, and leg extensions—but it’s important to move your body in different planes of motion to build strength in a variety of areas.

For instance, instead of doing a normal stationary lunge, I’ll elevate my front foot heel with a wedge and put my back foot on a two-inch-high plate. That makes the movement more complex, targeting my quads more and making the range of motion more challenging. Because of that, I’m a more well-rounded athlete who stays agile and functional, since my body never gets used to a workout.

3. I train for longevity.

I’ve had to learn to think long-term in this journey. In my early twenties, I was breaking my own weightlifting records, but there was a point where I realized the risk-to-reward ratio with getting injured wasn’t worth it. Earlier this year, I wanted to hit one last PR and then be done with it, so I hit my goal of bench pressing 225 pounds (102kg), and now, I’ve hung up the jersey.

I’m not a powerlifter and I’m not competing—I'm in the gym because I enjoy it and I want to do it long-term. That’s why I’m focusing on evergreen movements that I can still do when I’m 80. It’s about training smarter, not harder.

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