Ronaldo Leg Workout [Only 7 Exercises]
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What does a Ronaldo leg workout look like? In this article, we’ll show you.
Cristiano Ronaldo's legs are pretty impressive. Ronaldo’s thighs have a circumference of 61.7cm. He can run 25m in 3.61 seconds – 0.3 seconds slower than a professional sprinter.
He can jump 78cm, which is higher than the NBA average (71cm). The force his legs use to push off is almost 5g.
To put that into some context, that’s similar to what astronauts experience during take-off. What a machine!
And Ronaldo has 3% less body fat than most supermodels. If you haven’t watched the YouTube Video “Tested To The Limit”, make sure you do! A team of sports scientists analysed Ronaldo’s physical and mental attributes. The numbers are incredible.
The former Real Madrid and now Manchester United player is the king of stepovers, scoring goals, staying in shape all year round, and making every single person jealous of his incredible thigh muscles.
How can you build strong, powerful thigh muscles like CR7? How can you get some Ronaldo muscle for yourself?
Strength vs Power
There’s a reason why Cristiano Ronaldo can jump high and run faster than most guys, and it’s not because his thighs are “muscly”.
It’s because his training is optimised for both strength and explosive power.
So if you’re looking to have legs that not only look like Ronaldo’s but are extremely athletic, it’s important you understand the difference between strength and power.
Understanding this means you’ll be able to train like him.
What is strength?
Strength is the body’s ability to overcome resistance, think of it as being able to lift a heavy squat for a few reps.
How does strength training benefit you?
You’ll be able to carry 10 bags of shopping back from the car easily (your family will be impressed with this skill)
Your legs will look better in a pair of swim shorts on the beach
You will be able to outlift most dudes training in the gym
Your partner will absolutely love your new muscly legs (no apologies from us for getting touched more!)
You’ll be a better performing athlete in sports and in the bedroom
What is power?
Power takes into account your strength, but it adds in another variable – time.
Power is your ability to exert as much force as possible in the shortest amount of time. Put simply…
Power = speed x strength.
How does power training benefit you?
You’ll have faster reaction times, so you can beat other people to the ball and win more games
You’ll improve your balance and coordination meaning you’ll have more poise and be more dominant if you play a sport - like football
People will be amazed at your athleticism and you’ll get more compliments and people asking how you’re doing what you do
You’ll be able to run faster and jump higher
You’re going to be a lot less likely to get injured
They’re the benefits so let’s get into Ronaldo’s leg exercises so you can start doing them.
Back squat 4 sets 6-8 reps
There are few leg exercises that are better than the barbell back squat for building leg strength and explosive power.
This exercise engages all of your lower body muscles and will help you to burn more calories.
Ass to grass squats will activate more muscles, like your glutes, which are the powerhouse muscles for running faster and jumping higher.
Oh… and when I say “ass to grass” I mean ass to grass, you should be ‘nearly’ leaving a stain on the floor.
How to do the back squat
Stand with your feet parallel and a comfortable distance apart with your weight evenly distributed between both legs
Hold the bar with both hands keeping your elbows directly below your wrists
Keeping your chest up, bend at your knees then hips to lower your bum down towards the ground behind you
Go as low as you can with control, ideally your hips should go below your knees
Keeping your heels on the ground, push up into the start position
Deadlift 4 sets 6-8 reps
The deadlift is another great lower body exercise for building strength and explosive power.
The hamstring muscles are one of the most commonly injured muscles in running.
The deadlift will help to strengthen your hamstrings and glute muscles.
Have long legs? Grab a trap bar next time you’re in the gym.
This will be better for you to keep your back straight throughout the movement and prevent injury.
How to do a deadlift
Start standing with your toes under the bar
Lean over, bend your knees, and take hold of the bar with your hands a little wider than your knees and palms facing you
Push your chest out, keep your back straight, and engage your core muscles
Pushing through your heels, keeping your back straight and your chest pushed out, lift the bar and extend your hips forward until you’re standing in an upright position
Then drop or slowly lower the bar to the floor
Should you drop or lower the bar to the floor?
I think it’s personal preference and depends on what your goal is. I’ve found dropping the bar to the floor helps to stop niggling back or neck injuries.
But if you’re goal is to build muscle you’ll want more time under tension, therefore slowly lowering the bar to the floor will be a more beneficial option for you.
Single leg press 3 sets 10-12 reps
At this point in your Ronaldo workout, your quads should be feeling worked. Solution? More quad work, woo!
The single leg press is a great alternative to the back squat, and will take pressure off your lower back.
This exercise is great for ironing out any muscle imbalances you may have. If one side isn’t as strong or powerful as the other, this exercise is for you.
Doing a single leg press will also help you to get into a deeper range of motion and work more of your lower body muscles too.
How to do a single leg press
Adjust the bottom position of the machine and seat
Plant one foot on the platform - slightly off from the centre depending on which leg you choose to start with
Grasp the handles, keep your back flush to the seat with your chest up looking straight ahead
Drive through the heels of your feet, extend your hip and knee to push upward
Do not lock out your knee! Better to do this exercise a little bit slower
Return to the starting position without fully returning the weight to the stack
Leg extension 3 sets 10-12 reps
You know that bit of the quad muscle that is on show just above your knee when you’re in shorts and looks like a tear drop?
This exercise is great for developing Ronaldo like quads.
The leg extension is a good exercise for stabilising the knee joint too.
If you’re looking to twist and turn direction fast, like Ronaldo, this is for you.
How to do a leg extension
Sit on the machine and line your knees up with the pivot point
Put one leg under the padding and leave the second leg in the air
Extend at the knee to straighten your working leg
Lower the pad until the weights nearly touch the rest of the rack
Repeat for the 10-12 reps then switch legs
Tip: You can use this machine to train more towards strength or power, depending on your goal. If you’re training for strength, lift a heavier weight. If you’re training to increase power reduce the weight and lift the weight faster.
Box jumps 3 sets 3-5 reps
This is one of the best exercises for increasing your leg power. This is a staple exercise for footballers, sprinters, and rugby players.
Although most of the time you don’t jump with a weight, this exercise still burns a lot of calories.
If you’re looking to get close to a Ronaldo like body fat percentage, this one is for you.
If you’re new to the box jump start off with both legs. But if you know you have a muscle then you can do a single leg box jump.
How to do a box jump
Stand tall, look straight ahead, with your feet shoulder-width apart, at a comfortable distance from the box
Quickly bend into a quarter squat, swing your arms back, then swing them forward and explode up off the ground
Don’t “stick” your landing and make a loud noise. Instead, envision the way cats land when they jump from something—you, too, should try to land this quietly
Pause and hold the position at the top of the jump to decrease injury risk
Step off the box backward
There’s a really good reason why you must pause and hold the position at the top of your box jump.
You’re challenging your quads and hamstrings to work eccentrically.
What that means for you is faster muscle gains, a lower risk of getting injured, and better control of your strength and power too.
This is one reason why CR7 is able to change direction quickly, he has a lot of eccentric strength and power in his legs.
Single leg glute bridge 3 sets 10-12 reps
A vital part of Cristiano Ronaldo’s leg workouts is glute training. The glutes are the powerhouse muscles for running fast. (1)
If you suffer from neck or back pain it could be weak glutes. They’re the anchor for your entire pelvis too.
If your pelvis rotates forward, you probably have weak glutes.
You’ll find your quads and hamstring muscles work harder to overcompensate for weak glute muscles too, which can lead to injury.
Example of pelvis rotating forward
How to do a single leg glute bridge
Lie face up on a mat
Bend your knees so your feet are flat on the floor with heels under knees
Bring one foot up, so you can work one glute at a time
Push through your heel that’s on the ground, lifting your hips up to the point where there is a straight line from your chest to your knee
Squeeze your bum at the top of the movement
Lower until your bum is just above the ground and lift again
Keep your hips aligned throughout the whole movement
Romanian deadlifts 3 sets 6-8 reps
Have you ever got on a treadmill or gone out for a run, started running fast, and pulled your hamstring?
It could be because you haven’t done a proper warm up, or that your hamstrings are not strong enough when they’re in stretched positions.
Footballers are plagued with hamstring injuries. 12% of all injuries in football involve the hamstrings. (2)
How does Ronaldo stop this from happening? The Romanian deadlift (RDL).
This exercise will strengthen your hamstrings, glutes, lower back, and forearms.
If you want to protect your lower body from injury, run faster, jump higher, and have impressive leg muscles, this is a must.
How to do a Romanian deadlift
Start standing with your toes under the bar
Lean over and take hold of the bar with your hands a little wider than your knees and palms facing you
Push your chest out and keep your back straight.
With your knees nearly straight, keeping your back straight and chest pushed out, lift the bar and thrust your hips forward until you’re standing in an upright position
Keeping your back straight and chest pushed out, lower the bar in a controlled manner until you feel a stretch in the back of your legs
Lift the bar again for 6-8 reps
Putting it all together
Now that you know what leg exercises Ronaldo does in the gym, how do you put it all together?
Football players won’t do a ‘leg day’. What they’ll do instead is train their legs more often with less volume.
Because doing a full leg day you’re going to have a serious amount of muscle soreness.
This will negatively impact future training sessions, football match performances, and increase risk of injury.
When you consider Ronaldo trains 5-6 days a week (like most footballers) it doesn’t make sense to blast one leg day a week, and not be able to move for days after.
What this means for you, if you want legs like Ronaldo, is you should train your legs more often with less volume.
By training your legs more often throughout the week, you have more opportunities to build more muscle, strength, and power without getting super sore muscles.
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Scrolled right to the bottom? Here’s the deal
Want legs that look and perform like Ronaldo’s? You need to train your legs for strength and power.
To do that you need to do back squats, deadlifts, leg extensions, box jumps, single-leg glute bridges, and Romanian deadlifts.
You should vary heavier weights with lighter weights so you can optimise for strength and power.
You should also train your legs more than once a week, which decreases muscle soreness, your risk of injury, and means you can build legs like Ronaldo quicker.
