TOP MOVES FOR MONSTER QUADS

Last Updated on January 7, 2021

Target this thigh muscle to develop that coveted teardrop.

Have you ever heard of the phrase “Turnip thighs?” Well, it is used to describe thighs that are heavily developed on the top, but with little development around the knee. This is actually a pretty common sight among many an aspiring bodybuilders, and is mostly the result of a poor range of motion (outside of genetics of course).

What do I mean by this? Half squats and half leg presses. I can’t tell you how often I see young guys in the gym with 500 lbs on a squat bar and 1000 lbs on a leg press, only to witness them move the weight all of a few inches. Whenever I see that I just want to shake them and “aggressively” explain that if they cut the weight in half, and used a full range of motion, they would see twice the development (and it would be more complete throughout the thigh).

Of course, not everyone is guilty of being a “half-repper,” and they simply have trouble filling out the lower quad area. Much of the thickness right above the knee is the result of a highly developed vastus medialis, or “teardrop” muscle. Former IFBB pros Tom Platz, Paul Demayo, and Mike Francois had ridiculously thick teardrops. They hung so far over their knees that they actually cast a shadow on the ground. Modern day warriors Ronnie Coleman, Branch Warren, and Kai Greene all have exceptional vastus medialis development, and one thing all of these men have in common is that they squat deep – always below parallel.

Ok, so if this is an area of your physique that is lacking, here are some movements you can do.

1 AND ¼ SQUATS

World-renowned strength coach Charles Poliquin (who was an early mentor for me) loves to use this exercise with many of his Olympic athletes to increase lateral knee stability and to balance the strength between the vastus medialis and vastus lateralis. For bodybuilders its major benefit is that it gives the teardrop a tremendous workout!

Squat down slowly to a point just below parallel, and then push yourself up only ¼ of the way. Slowly and under full control, return back to the bottom squat position, and then fire yourself up to the top. That counts as a single rep. As you can see, this will overload the bottom position of the squat, which will effectively annihilate the vastus medialis, as it is this muscle that is responsible (along with the hamstrings) for getting you “out of the basement.” This technique also works rather nicely for leg presses and hack squats as well.

SISSY SQUATS

The Sissy squat is an exercise that you rarely see performed anymore. However, it is one of the best there is for scorching the lower area of the thigh.