Is' Leg Day' Overrated? Americans Swap Squats For More Arm And Chest Exercises
Leg day should not be skipped, yet Americans frequently forget (and neglect) their lower body, according to a new report from fitness tracker company Skulpt.
The company put together its Fitness State of the Nation Report after it studied the body fat percentage and muscle quality collected from more than 600 of its users living in the United States. Skulpt divided the largest muscle groups into 10 different categories — biceps, abs, calves, and so on — and labeled which specific muscles were strongest in each state. Turns out, very few states like to work out their calves.
"By in large, most gym goers tend to focus on the most visible and most talked about body parts," Skulpt advisor George Dorsey told NY Daily News. “For men, it's normally arms and chest and for women it's mostly hips and abs."
In Wisconsin, gym goers seemed to spend more time on their shoulders, while it's all about the glutes in Las Vegas. Overall, the four most muscular states were all located in the South: Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, and Tennessee.
Skulpt used an Electrical Impedance Myography (EIM) device to measure the country's muscle group strengths. Holding the EIM over a muscle group, it sends out an electrical current through the skin. The device’s high frequency moves through fat and muscle layers to measure the muscles' fiber quality and fat percentage. A person’s fat-to-muscle ratio can change throughout a day, which makes measuring and monitoring each muscle group an effective way to track small changes. It’s those small changes that will make the big difference when working towards certain fitness goals.
According to experts at BodyBuilding.com, this should include your lower body. Legs represent the largest muscles on the body and can provide athletes with an immense amount of endurance and power.
Check out Skulpt's fitness map to see which muscle groups are strongest in your state.