Dana Linn Bailey Details How to Optimize Leg Pump

The 2013 Women’s Physique Olympia champion, Dana Linn Bailey, is famous for her intense workouts. Bailey’s legs were one of her biggest strengths during her competitive bodybuilding career. Although she last competed in a pro show in 2015, she still trains hard and heavy in the gym.

Bailey trains her quads by combining high-volume supersets and Tabata training to maximize her pump. A National Strength and Conditioning Association study found a significant positive correlation between muscle pumps and hypertrophy. The study suggests that “the greater the muscle swelling immediately after a resistance training session, the greater the muscle hypertrophy.” (1)

Check out Bailey’s detailed training techniques in the video below, published on her YouTube channel on Aug. 28, 2023: 

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Dana Linn Bailey Quad-Focused Leg Workout

Here is a snapshot of Bailey’s lower body workout:

• Leg Press Calf Raise
• Narrow-Stance Barbell Back Squat
• Superset — Goblet Box Squat & Kettlebell Jump Squat
• Barbell Walking Lunge
• Superset — Leg Extension & Sumo Kettlebell Squat
• Tabata Superset (Assault Bike & Wide-to-Narrow Jump Squat)

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Leg Press Calf Raise

Bailey opened with calf raises on a horizontal leg press machine. Since calves are a lagging muscle group for Bailey, she trains them at the beginning of her lower body session when she is most energized. 

For each set, Bailey performed 21 reps: seven with her toes pointed outward to bias the inner gastrocnemius head, seven with toes pointed inward to emphasize the outer gastrocnemius heads, and seven with neutral foot placement. She paused at the top of each rep while contracting her calves in their fully shortened position.

Narrow-Stance Barbell Back Squat

Bailey used a high-bar position — barbell placed atop of the rear delts — and maintained an upright torso to better bias her quads. She used a squat wedge and a closer-than-hip-width stance to achieve greater knee flexion and maximize quad engagement.

Goblet Box Squat & Kettlebell Jump Squat

Bailey used a box, allowing her hips to dip her knees on eccentrics. She paused at the bottom of each rep, holding a kettlebell at chest height with a slight torso lean. After completing 12 goblet squats, Bailey performed 12 sumo-stance kettlebell jump squats with an upright torso to keep the tension on her quads (if she wanted to bias her glutes or hamstrings, she could hip hinge to lengthen either muscle group. 

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cv8UtDzvh3G/?img_index=1

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Barbell Walking Lunge

Bailey prefers barbells more than dumbbells for walking lunges, as the latter could make grip a limiting factor. Maintaining a proud chest, she took small steps so her rear knee aligned with her opposite leg’s heel at the bottom to maximize knee flexion to load the quads. Longer strides, where the upper and lower legs are at 90 degrees, bias the glutes and hamstrings. 

Leg Extension & Sumo Kettlebell Squat

Bailey performed 12 reps through her full range of motion on the leg extension. She followed with five partial reps in the top half. She superset the leg extension with sumo kettlebell squats, holding a kettlebell between her legs with her arms extended.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CwQu4FphzlS/

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Tabata Superset (Assault Bike & Wide-to-Narrow Jump Squat)

Bailey ended her quad session with a Tabata superset — four-minute high-intensity interval training that alternates between 20 seconds of work and 10 seconds of rest. She went full send on an Assault bike for 20 seconds, rested for 10 seconds, then performed wide-to-narrow squat jumps for 20 seconds before taking a 10-second breather. She alternated between the two exercises for four minutes.

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References

1. Hirono T, Ikezoe T, Taniguchi M, Tanaka H, Saeki J, Yagi M, Umehara J, Ichihashi N. Relationship Between Muscle Swelling and Hypertrophy Induced by Resistance Training. J Strength Cond Res. 2022 Feb 1;36(2):359-364. doi: 10.1519/JSC.0000000000003478. PMID: 31904714.

Featured image: @danalinnbailey on Instagram