NEW York Giants star Saquon Barkley never skips leg day.
Known for his powerful running style and notoriously sizable quads, 26-year-old Barkley looked in prime shape this past season.
Having been limited to fifteen appearances between 2020-21 for the Giants, he rushed for just 627 yards prompting concerns about his future.
However, a Pro Bowl-worthy 1,312-yard season later and the doubters are nowhere to be found.
And workout footage shows exactly how Barkley keeps himself in shape during the offseason.
Back in 2019, he explained that he was “finding ways not only to stay strong for four weeks of the season or just for preseason, but stay strong for 20 weeks of the season.
“And that’s the way that I’ve been trying to go at it and it’s listening to your body and understanding that there might be some days you’ve got to take a little bit easier.”
Barkley also noted the importance of durability, commenting: “Your best ability is availability in the NFL.”
When it comes to the weight room, Barkley told Giants.com that he likes to focus on his lower body.
He explained: “As a running back, you’ve got to be explosive, got to be powerful.”
One of the key exercises to Barkley’s lower body strength is squats – as evidenced by the size of his legs.
He previously told Men’s Journal: “I’m able to squat 650-700 pounds.
“I’m not doing it to put on weight or be a musclehead. Those 650-pound lifts are about helping me run through a 350-pound defensive tackle.
“If I do a 405-pound power clean, that can make me explosive enough to make an NFL linebacker miss and help me jump over tacklers.
“The more explosive you are, the higher you can jump and break out that speed—nabbing 70 to 80-yard touchdowns.”
Not that Barkley limits his workouts to just squats.
He’s also been filmed doing deadlift/box jump combos, Nordic hamstring curls, balance board workouts, dumbbell press workouts, push-ups, chin-ups, various resistance band workouts, sprints, and cone drills, per Touchdown Time.
Now a two-time Pro Bowler, it seems safe to say Barkley’s crazy workout routine is doing the trick.
His remarkable comeback year also secured him, at the very least, another year with the Giants.
With Barkley set to his free agency this offseason, New York placed him under a non-exclusive franchise tag on March 7 in order to facilitate further contract negotiations.
Should these not pan out, the Giants will be able to keep him for the season on a $10.091million salary for the year.
