No tricks, all gains.

Halloween is almost upon us, and we at Oxygen love a good haunted house. Even so, the scariest situation of all might be putting in tons of hard work in the gym without seeing or feeling any results. Talk about a nightmare. 

Fortunately, we'd never let that happen to our beloved readers. If you've been stuck in your routine or your progress has slowed, check out the 12-week plan below that'll get you on track to build strong, sculpted legs — because who doesn't love a good lower-body workout?

As you move through this or any other plan, make sure to keep good form and be aware of potential pitfalls. We give you some common errors to avoid below, plus the lowdown on refined grains versus whole grains (both of which can play a part in healthy meals). 

With a fresh month starting on Monday, there's also no better time to start one of our 30-day Fitness Quests, available to Outside+ members. No matter how you choose to work on your fitness, we've got you covered! 

— Rose McNulty, Senior Digital Editor

12-Week Plan for Leaner, Stronger Legs

Is your roster of go-to leg workouts getting a little stale? It’s easy to fall into a rut and do the same workout week after week, but the problem is that your body adapts quickly to a repeated stimulus. Eventually, you’ll find yourself atop the dreaded plateau, or worse — get sidelined with an injury because of overtraining. If that happens, your dreams of stronger legs will be in the rear view.

Using periodization helps you formulate a well-rounded, progressive plan, allowing you to reach your goals within a certain time frame while also allowing for adequate rest and recovery. There are different ways to approach periodization, but in a study published by the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, women who used undulating periodization — a model that changes the training variables within a relatively short time frame — saw a greater increase in lower-body strength than women who used other methods of periodization.

This 12-week lean-and-mean plan starts with a month of stabilization, ramps things up with a strength phase, then launches into four weeks of undulated lower-body training designed to get you the best legs of your life. Each phase uses familiar lifts and exercises that are specifically arranged to keep your muscles stimulated. At the end of the three months, you can cycle through the program again. Just be sure to increase your weight or make the movements more challenging. 

Get the plan »

TRAINING ADVICE

10 Strength-Training Mistakes to Avoid

NUTRITION

What Are Refined Grains, and Are They Unhealthy?

WORKOUTS

5 Movements You Can Do With One Plate

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