Why You Should Prioritize Leg Training Before Upper Body — Especially for Health & Longevity
The Case for Lower-Body Dominance
When it comes to structuring your workouts, many lifters start with what they enjoy most—and for many, that’s upper body day. But research-backed programming shows that prioritizing lower-body strength training can offer far more systemic benefits, especially for overall metabolism, hormonal function, and even glucose regulation.
Here’s why your legs should lead the way:
1. Your Legs Contain the Largest Muscles in Your Body
The glutes, quads, and hamstrings represent some of the largest and most powerful muscles in the human body. Engaging these muscle groups first in a session ensures maximum energy and output is devoted to movements that create the most systemic benefit.
Training Tip: Compound movements like squats, lunges, and deadlifts activate the entire posterior chain, forcing your body to adapt faster than isolated upper-body work.
2. Increased Energy Expenditure & Calorie Burn
Because of the sheer muscle mass involved, leg training demands greater oxygen consumption and metabolic output. This translates to:
More calories burned during your session
Higher post-exercise oxygen consumption (EPOC), aka the “afterburn” effect
This makes leg day a potent tool for fat loss and metabolic conditioning.
3. Enhances Glucose Uptake and Insulin Sensitivity
This is where leg training really shines from a healthspan perspective.
According to studies published in the Journal of Applied Physiology and Diabetes Care, resistance training for large muscle groups improves insulin sensitivity and promotes glucose uptake more efficiently than upper-body training alone.
This has critical benefits for:
Individuals with sedentary lifestyles
Desk workers with pre-diabetic markers
Clients struggling with mid-day energy crashes
Clinical Evidence: One study found that just 12 weeks of leg-focused resistance training reduced fasting insulin by 24% in previously sedentary adults (Smutok et al., 1993).
4. Stimulates Anabolic Hormone Release
Training your legs leads to elevated release of:
Testosterone
Human Growth Hormone (HGH)
IGF-1 (Insulin-like Growth Factor)
These hormones don’t just build leg muscle — they support muscle development across your entire body, making your chest and arm days more effective later in the week.
Bottom Line
If you're chasing long-term results — whether it's improved performance, metabolic health, fat loss, or hormonal balance — it starts from the ground up.
→ Want to restructure your training week to lead with lower body? [Book a strategy session with MYOS here]
