Leg Press

The leg press is a machine-based lower-body strength exercise. You sit on a fixed seat and push a weighted platform away with your feet. It mainly trains the quadriceps and glutes, with help from the hamstrings and calves.

Set the seat and back pad so your lower back can stay flat against the pad at the start. Sit with your head, shoulders, and hips supported. Place your feet in the middle of the platform, about hip-width apart. Keep your heels down and your knees lined up over your toes.

Unlock the platform and straighten your legs without locking your knees harshly. Lower the platform by bending your hips and knees together. Keep your lower back pressed into the pad and stop when your hips just start to tuck or your lower back begins to round. Press the platform back up by driving through your whole foot until your legs are nearly straight.

Breathe in as you lower and brace your midsection; breathe out as you press away. To make it easier, use less weight or reduce the range of motion to a depth that feels controlled. To make it harder, add weight within the same comfortable range, or slow down the lowering portion.

Fault: Feet placed too high or too low on the platform, changing the feel at the knees or hips. Fix: Keep your feet mid-platform and about hip-width apart, with your knees tracking over your toes.

Fault: Lowering the platform too far and letting the lower back round off the pad or the hips tuck under. Fix: Stop the descent as soon as your hips start to tuck or your lower back pulls away from the pad.

Fault: Locking the knees hard at the top or letting the knees cave inward. Fix: Keep a soft bend in your knees at the top, and push your knees outward so they stay in line with your feet.

Fault: Heels lifting off the platform during the press. Fix: Keep your whole foot in contact with the platform and drive through the mid-foot as you push away.