Quads exercise
Leg PressHow to do it, with form in numbers
- Also works
- Hamstrings, Adductors
- Equipment
- Machine
- Level
- Beginner
How to do it
How do you do the Leg Press?
- Sit with your back and head flat against the pad.
- Place your feet hip-width apart in the middle of the platform.
- Release the safety handles and slowly bend your knees towards your chest.
- Stop when your knees reach about a right angle.
- Press through your whole foot until your legs are almost straight.
Cues
- Keep your lower back on the pad.
- Knees in line with your toes.
- Soft knees at the top.
Common mistakes
- Lowering so far that your hips roll up off the seat.
- Locking your knees straight at the top.
- Letting your heels lift off the platform.
Form in detail
What does good form look like?
Starting position
Sit with the hips pushed into the crease of the seat, back and head flat on the pad. Feet in the middle of the platform, hip- to shoulder-width apart, toes turned out a little, whole foot flat. Press the sled up off the safety stops, release the stops and hold the side handles.
The movement
Lower the sled by bending the knees and hips together. The knees travel towards the chest and stay in line with the feet, neither caving in nor flaring out. The sled moves in a straight line along the rails. Stop before the pelvis starts to curl up off the seat. Press back by pushing through the whole foot, heel and forefoot together, until the legs are nearly straight.
End position
Bottom: knees at about 90° of bend with the hips and low back still on the pads. At that point the thigh is close to vertical, and with the back pad at 30° above horizontal the hip sits at about 115° of flexion. Deeper knee bend quickly forces the pelvis to roll off the seat.
Tempo
2 s down, 0.3 s pause at the bottom, 1.5 s up, 0.5 s at the top.
Form in numbers
What are the angles and distances?
| Measure | Target | Good range | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sled rail angle to the floor | 45° | 45° (machine) | [4] |
| Back pad angle above horizontal | 30° | 25–35° | [4] |
| Foot platform size (one model) | 90 × 45 cm | — | [4] |
| Stance, heel to heel | 1.0 × hip width | 1.0–1.4 × (hip to shoulder width) | [1] |
| Toe-out, each foot | 10° | 0–30° | [1][3] |
| Knee flexion at the bottom | 95° | 85–110° | [1] |
| Knee flexion at the top | 10° (soft knee) | 5–15° | [1][2] |
| Pelvis lift off the seat | 0 cm | 0 cm | [2] |
The targets our 3D demo was built to, from the references below. Bodies differ, so treat the ranges as a guide for your own build.
For coaches
Use this demo in your clients’ programs
The Leg Press is in Trainaq’s exercise library. Add it to a workout, and your client sees this demo in the free Trainaq app above the sets they log.
Sources
