Avoid leaning forward on the elbows or bucking with the hips to move the weight up - use just the hamstring. Try standing hamstring curls the way Kai Greene does, staying completely still. Olympia Runnerup, follows a similar philosophy to Branch Warren in his leg workouts, staying in the range of 20 reps and stopping his return movement just short of locking out the legs. Like the quads, the hamstrings have three sections: the semimembranosus, biceps femoris and semitendinosus. The hamstrings are often neglected in favor of the quads, but they are equally as important. A slow and controlled contraction at the outset of the movement followed by an explosive return that stops just short of the top with high repetitions forces definition and separation and leaves no room for intramuscular fat settling. With squats and other compound movements, he stops his return movement at three-quarters of the range of motion so the quads never relax. Branch Warren, 2011 Arnold Classic Champion, nicknamed “Quadzilla,” performs as many as 100 repetitions of quad curls in a single set using repeated drop sets just as a warm-up.

Increasing your repetitions and varying your range of motion can take the separation into the realm of deep striation and definition. Sumo squats and deadlifts work the vastus lateralis, or outer quad sweep. Basic lower-body exercises such as front squats place emphasis on the rectus femoris on the top of the thigh, and close-stance squats place emphasis on the vastus medialis, the inner quad sweep. The quadiriceps, or quads, have three major sections: the vastus lateralis, rectus femoris and vastus medialis.

Big quad sweep