The leg press is a weight training exercise in which the individual pushes a weight away from them using their legs. The term leg
press also refers to the apparatus used to perform this exercise. The leg press can be used to evaluate an athlete's overall
lower body strength.
Using the diagonal sled-type leg press machine.
There are two main types of leg press:
- The diagonal or vertical 'sled' type leg press. Cast iron weight disks (plates) are
attached directly to the sled, which is mounted on rails. The user sits below the sled and pushes it upward with their feet.
These machines normally include adjustable safety brackets that prevent the user from being trapped under the weight. A common
mistake is to allow the sled to move all the way down, which may strain the knees and lower back. It should be lowered only until
the knees are bent at a right angle (90 degrees).
- The 'cable' type leg press, or 'seated leg press', commonly found on multigyms. The user sits upright and pushes forward with
their feet onto a plate that is attached to the weight stack by means of a long steel cable.
Muscle groups
The leg press works the following muscle groups:
Varying the angle between the sled and the backrest and/or the position of the feet on the plate puts more emphasis on one or
the other muscle group.
Being a compound exercise, the leg press is unquestionably more effective than isolation exercises like the leg extension or the leg curl. It is in turn less effective than the
squat, which works the muscles of the lower back as well. Due to the safety concerns
associated with the squat, however, the leg press is often used as the primary lower body exercise.
Magnitude of Leg Press Lifts
Since the leg press stabilizes the lifter and moves weights in a direction that is not vertical, it is possible for strength
trainers to press very heavy weights (compared to the weight used for other exercises). Bodybuilder Ronnie Coleman is featured in videos wherein he leg presses 2300 pounds (1 043 Kg). To compare, the world
record for the squat is 1220 pounds (553.4 kg), according to Monster Muscle Online.
Oftentimes, the amount of weight that is used for a 'leg press' may seem to be artificially high. For example, television host
Pat Robertson claims to have leg pressed 2,000 pounds (around 900 kg) and a later
statement also claimed that his doctor was capable of a 2,700 pound (1225 kg) leg press. An AskMen.com article states that it is not uncommon for men to leg press over 1000 pounds, with some men going
over 3000 pounds (1363 kg) using a limited-range of motion. However, a true leg press requires the full range of motion.
Typically a person cannot do much more than double the weight of their standard 1-repetition, full-range leg-press when
attempting limited-range strength straining (i.e., if they can do 500 pounds full-range they could do no more than 1,000 pounds
for limited range training).
Note: The angle of a leg press is very important when measuring how much one can leg press/lift. Even 3000kg isn't much if you
push it with a level settings
See also
External links
- AskMen.com AskMen.com: leg presses over 3000 pounds not rare
- [1] Video of 2300 pounds leg press
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