Some men automatically assume that because they have big legs, it means they have great legs. A tree trunk is big, but it has no shape. Likewise, some women automatically assume that skinny legs are beautiful legs. A twig is small, but it has neither shape nor enough "bulk" to sculpt it into a work of art.
A great looking leg must have shape, quality muscle tone, is cellulite free and must be in proportion to the rest of the body. The quadriceps and hamstring muscles of the upper thigh must produce beautiful lines that flow into strong looking calves.
Shaping the Legs
A leg that is well shaped will also look lean and defined. However, you must remember that a muscle can only do three things related to size: it can get bigger, it can get smaller, or it can stay the same size. Muscle definition is achieved by two factors. Increasing muscle size (hypertrophy), and reducing body fat percentage.
I am going to list the best exercises below for inducing great leg shape. To reduce body fat percentage, you must clean up your diet and engage regularly in some form of cardio, alternating between H.I.I.T (High Intensity Interval Training) and some low intensity sessions. Contrary to popular belief, definition is not achieved with light weight and high reps; that is a lot of hogwash! All you will be doing with high reps is building muscular endurance.
The Best Leg Exercises
The Free Squat-The squat, using free weights, is the king of all leg exercises. No amount of leg presses, leg extensions or leg curls can add quality muscle fast to your legs like the squat. In fact, I will go out on a limb (no pun intended) to say, that unless you squat, you can never achieve perfect leg shape; squatting is that important! The secret of proper squatting lies in adhering to strict form and not corrupting it (your form) with ridiculously heavy weight.
The Walking Lunge-Besides being the best butt exercise, the lunge is also a great movement for developing leg shape. The lunge is basically a one legged squat; you are handicapping one leg (the back leg) and making the next leg do all the work. It is important to get the knee of the rear leg about an inch off the floor, during your descent; because in doing so, it will ensure that the back of the thigh of the front leg lines up in a parallel position with the floor, which is ideal for recruiting the quads and glutes during your ascent.
Stiff-legged Deadlift-This exercise really brings out the shape of the hamstrings, which in my opinion is the most sensuous looking muscle on a woman's body. Sprints-In addition to the exercises listed above, try to engage in some 100 metre sprints at least once a week. You may have no desire to try out for the next Olympics, but the fact remains that sprinting does wonders for your quadriceps and hamstrings.
Have you ever noticed the awesome leg shape of world-class male and female sprinters? Also, remember to work your calves regularly with standing and seated calf raises. You don't want to be walking in the road with such skinny calves, that you may step into an empty soft drink bottle by mistake. Keep training.