Why is squat better than leg press

Like all exercises that use resistance machines, the leg press is sometimes looked down on by those who spend a lot of time in the gym because it is not deemed as effective as free-weights moves like the back squat. Machines are also good for beginners looking to master a movement before they try it with a loaded barbell.

Most gyms will have two kinds of leg press machine to choose from. One of them involves sitting up straight with bent legs resting against a horizontal plate.

You then push your body away from the plate by straightening your legs. With this kind of machine, you select the weight by sticking a pin in a weight stack.

The other kind of leg press machine involves you sitting at an angle that puts your feet against a platform above your head You push away from you by straightening your legs, and you set the resistance by loading the machine with weight plates. Both types of machine have benefits to all kinds of gym-goers, and equally there are reasons that you might choose to eschew both in favour of free weights. The leg press is a unique movement. For an exercise with quite a short range of motion, it stimulates the quads, glutes and hamstrings to their maximum potential.

Place your feet on the pad shoulder-width apart. If you want to place more stress on the glutes, position your feet high on the pad. If greater quad growth is more of a goal, position your feet towards the bottom.

However, a study by Escamilla et. The study included 10 lifters who performed the squat, a high foot placement leg press, and a low foot placement leg press employing a wide stance, narrow stance, and two-foot angle positions feet straight and feet turned out.

Check out my other article discussing the 5 different foot placements in the leg press. There is one further outcome to consider: the squat saw greater stress at the level of the knee compared with the leg press. This is not entirely a cause for concern because as a muscle works harder activates more , the joint is usually experiencing greater stress as a result. This is common among all free-weight exercises using dumbbells and barbells compared with movements using machines.

The important takeaway is that the squat requires a higher degree of technical proficiency to execute effectively and keep the joints safe. These hormones help you:. When we consider doing the leg press over the squat, one consideration might be whether there is a better hormone response doing one movement over another.

In other words, is there a greater increase in testosterone or growth hormone after doing leg press or squat? In a study by Shaner et al. From a sports performance perspective, what we want to consider is whether the leg press or squat has a better transfer effect to the skills required in our various sports.

An important skill we need in most sports is to produce explosive power, such as jumping or moving our body quickly in one direction. In a study by Wirth et al. When compared with the leg press group, the jump squat increased by only 3. Therefore, if strength training programs aim to improve explosive power, including jump performance, then the squat should be the go-to choice for athletes. An important reason why we lift weights in the first place is to achieve a better body composition.

In other words, gaining lean muscle and losing body fat. So, does the leg press or squat lead to better body composition results? The right exercise for you may have more to do with what you want to get out of your workout.

This article will take a closer look at both exercises in an effort to help you decide when and why one may be better suited to you. Both leg presses and squats primarily work your quadriceps , or quads.

But they also work your hamstrings muscles opposite your quads at the back of your thighs and glutes the muscles in your buttocks. Because most of your body moves to perform squats, they tend to engage other muscle groups, such as your abs and hips, whereas leg presses just involve movement of the legs.

To start, sit with your back against a padded backrest and your feet on two large footrests. Your knees are bent to start the exercise.

To move the weight, you must straighten your legs and then return them to the bent position. Conversely, squats are done with your feet on the ground, though there are several variations of this exercise. With some squats, you start with your legs straight and the weight behind your neck. In other variations, the weight — such as a barbell or dumbbells — is in front of you. The challenge is to bend your knees and then straighten up with the weight providing resistance.

Some types of squats are done with the weight starting on the ground and your knees bent. There are also squat machines. Leg presses are effective at building leg strength, but they can be risky if you try to move too much weight or lock your knees.

Squats also give your quads a great workout, and they work your glutes and hamstrings to a greater degree than leg presses. But if balance is a problem, or you have shoulder or back pain, then leg presses may be a better choice.

Though leg presses and squats work the same muscle groups, they do so from slightly different angles and with greater emphasis on one group or the other. That means balancing your leg workouts with both exercises may be the best approach. A study looked at the strength, body composition, and functional outcome of participants who did either back squats, leg presses, or a combination of the two exercises.

The study lasted 10 weeks, and participants did two lower-body workouts per week. At the end of the study, the researchers concluded that both exercises were beneficial as part of a lower-body workout program.

Instead of using both legs at the same time, use one leg at a time to make sure each leg gets a thorough workout. It requires more effort from your quads and less from your glutes and hamstrings. Squats offer more variations than leg presses do, and each type of squat works your muscles in a slightly different way. Squats can also be done without any weights.