While in Panama recently, I trained at a gym chain down there called PowerClub. Great place and may be doing some business with them in the future.:ph34r:
I don’t get it. A video of you working out?
It looks like every other Globo-Gym to me.
Be thankful you had a/c. My last trip to Brazil had me in a hotel with a great gym and nothing but open windows with a breeze. Of course, it was summer time there and it was raining most of the time. There was humidity there that would make New Orleans look like a desert.
It’s hard to explain the humidity in that part of the world. It’s “special”
Next time I’d figure out the highest concentration of yoga pants and film then 
You got that right. Southern China isn’t anything to write home about either.
Hey, thanks for your article on thyroid; you cannot believe what a Godsend that was for me and my wife. That article prompted me to jump into my Doc’s business and get him to take a very close look at my wife’s hypothyroidism. Once he understood the history, he was on it like the plague. He’s a friend, and we just started going to him a short time ago.
Her previous doctor wanted to prescribe antidepressants. She was also exhibiting symptoms of Hashimoto’s as well. The depression was a killer for me - she has no reason to be depressed.
Glad the articles helped. I wrote for those in need of some specific guidance there.
Fancy gym. Didn’t see any squat racks.
Not sure on the squat rack, but there is a power cage, so squats can be done at least. I check for a dedicated squat rack when I return. 
Maybe it’s me but squats are overrated. I’m using a Cybex plate loaded leg press, and having a great time shredding the thighs. Best part is no danger of dropping the weights, and my knees are thanking me for it too.
Since most S&C coaches will disagree with you, I wonder how much were you squatting and how deep before you switched to a leg press machine?
Squat racks/cages will the weight from buckling you to the floor, if that is your primary concern.
Plus you are missing the great work for the full body that squats offer compared to leg presses.
Plus you are missing the great work for the full body that squats offer compared to leg presses.
It’s you.
Your knees may be thanking you but your back is probably plotting revenge. Leg presses force your back to conform to the pad that supports you. Not all support is good support. Chances are that your squat form was not perfect and that is what caused the knee pain. I can recommend “Starting Strength” by Mark Rippetoe as the best source for learing how to squat from a book or DVD. I used to squat 3xweek using the Starting Strength 3x5 and Bill Starr 5x5 templates without any problems other than needing larger pants. After a serious LOD injury when I was struck by a car and subsequent hip surgery I can still squat. Running is my priority now (was part of PT and kinda got hooked) so squats take a back seat and only get done once a week. I’m not pushing weight like I was yet, but that is mostly fear of pushing too much weight too soon. According to my Dr. 3xweek squats and quad development is saved me from having a shattered femur from my accident.
I’m sure that you are right that some of it is me, but I prefer the control that I have with the plate loaded press. I can press far more weight than with the bar, and I can concentrate on form for the quads and be able to take things to near failure. 7 sets and my legs were quivering like jellyfish.
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Quality, not quantity, is what is important.
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Actually the leg press controls you. It only goes up/down on the guides regardless of your body’s proportions and how you move.
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Focusing on the quads only exaggerates the strength imbalance between the quads and posterior chain. That can lead to injury.
Best of luck in your training.
Couple of thoughts-
Frying your legs til they quiver like jellyfish doesn’t necessarily produce the best results. Most strength training programs wouldn’t have you do seven sets of the same exercise. It would be way too much volume for me, I can say without a doubt. (I don’t know about bodybuilding programs, maybe they would.)
And systematically going to failure - the hallmark of millions of high school kids’ bodybuilding program - is even out of favor as well. (So while I have missed lifts and dumped the bar on squats, it’s not something I strive to do.)
As someone mentioned, squatting loads the entire posterior chain, not just your quads.
That you can ‘lift’ more weight with the press machine isn’t relevant. Frankly, it sounds like your thinking is in line with where I was a few years ago before I started reading about strength training. You might google “5x5” and “starting strength” and get an idea how strength coaches are doing it these days.
Actually, this is the press I’m currently using: http://www.cybexintl.com/products/strength/16150/intro.aspx not a vertical leg press. I had one of those when I was younger and hated it.
Exrecises are alternated between this machine, or squats when I am at home. Maximum weight is seldom used, but high reps are used a lot. For me, 325 is all that I need for high reps. I also use leg curls but not extensions because they irritate my legs.
Legs get worked once to maybe twice per week depending on rotation. I hit weights 5 days a week due to work schedule, and use Saturday for my long run, which for me is 5 or 6 miles. Normal routine for me is to run 2 miles after all non-leg workouts. I run 1 mile prior to a leg workout just to warm them up.