You may not realise, but your foot position during your leg press has a significant capacity to bias the work of different muscle groups. As a blanket rule, it is always important to change your workouts, incorporate different movements and bias different muscle groups in order to prevent muscle asymmetries and encourage adaptations in our trained muscle groups.
Squatting v Leg Press
Firstly, let’s look at the primary differences between squatting and the leg press.
Squatting works more major muscle groups than any other resistance training movement (although an argument can be made for deadlifts here- I won’t start that fight!) Not only are the quads, hamstrings and glutes targeted, but the trunk muscles are also incorporated for stabilisation throughout the movement.
The leg press has a reduced demand for our stabilisers due to being seated throughout the movement. For this reason, we can load the legpress with heavier weights than we could otherwise squat. It also allows for different muscles to be biased depending on your foot position.
High Foot Position
A high foot position increases the amount of hip movement achieved with a leg press and reduced the range of movement demands on our knee joints. As such you will feel greater stretch, and a higher load being placed through the glutes and hamstrings.
This is important for the quadriceps dominant athlete!
Low Foot Position
Conversely, a low foot position decreases the movement of our hip joint but increases the movement of the knee joint. As such, this biases the quadriceps much more strongly, compared to the glutes and hamstrings!
For the quadriceps dominant athlete, or those with knee pain, this increase in quadriceps activation can increase pressure through the knees.
Foot Width
A wider foot stance will place greater emphasis on the muscles of the inner thigh (this may be more quadriceps or hamstrings/adductors depending on your foot height).
When leg pressing in this position, it is still important to ensure that your knees are tracking over the middle of the foot to prevent knee maltracking issues.
A narrow foot stance will increase activation of the quadriceps and outer thigh muscles.
The following image is from simplygym.co.uk/5-ways-to-leg-press
A high foot position increases the amount of hip movement achieved with a leg press
leg press
The leg press is a compound weight training exercise in which the individual pushes a weight or resistance away from them using their legs. The term leg press machine refers to the apparatus used to perform this exercise.
and reduced the range of movement demands on our knee joints. As such you will feel greater stretch, and a higher load being placed through the glutes and hamstrings. This is important for the quadriceps dominant athlete!
The reason foot placement matters is that when you change where your feet land on the platform, you're changing which muscles are targeted. The quads, hamstrings, and glutes each get their share of attention, depending on the foot angle. Plus, altering your foot placement impacts your joint angle.
Step 1: Sit in the leg press machine with feet hip to shoulder width apart and straight ahead on the leg press platform. Ensure foot height placement allows for good range of movement at both the hip and knee. Let one foot rest on the foot rest below. Draw in and brace the abs.
Positioning your feet inwards during the extension will target the vastus lateralis (outer thigh), whilst turning the toes out will target the vastus medialis (inner thigh) also.
This is because the leg press is a machine-based exercise that provides a fixed range of motion and may not engage the core and stabilizer muscles as much as free-weight exercises.
When you're setting up in the leg press machine, your foot positioning on the sled will affect which muscles you target more. For example, positioning your feet low on the sled will make you feel the burn more in your quads while setting your feet high on the sled will hammer your glutes.
The leg press machine works mostly with the quads and hamstrings, as well as the glutes. Depending on how you do them, you may also work the calves. However, the squat forces you to balance, and this engages your back and core. The squat works more muscles and therefore has additional benefits on this front.
Choosing the right leg press variation depends on your fitness goals, preferences, and any existing injuries or limitations. The vertical leg press is great for targeting the quadriceps, while the leg press and the 45-degree leg press provide a more comprehensive lower body workout.
If the thighs dip too low, you could hurt the knees. It is vital to allow your kneecaps to go through the path of the feet during your exercise. If you bring the knees too close together it can also injure the knee. Usually, one set of 12 to 15 reps is good for most people.
A high foot position increases the amount of hip movement achieved with a leg press and reduced the range of movement demands on our knee joints. As such you will feel greater stretch, and a higher load being placed through the glutes and hamstrings. This is important for the quadriceps dominant athlete!
The feet should be positioned shoulder-width apart, with the toes pointed slightly outward. Placing the feet too high or too low can increase the risk of knee pain and injury. Maintaining proper form and technique throughout the leg press exercise is crucial to minimize the risk of knee pain and injury.
Also, be sure to keep the amount of weight even on both sides of the bars. Uneven weight distribution can be dangerous to you and cause the equipment to break.
Brace your abdominal muscles and push the platform away with your heels and forefoot. Your heels should remain flat on the footplate. The front of your foot or toes should never be used exclusively to move the pad forward. While exhaling, extend your legs and keep your head and back flat against the seat pad.
A huge benefit is the ability to activate more muscle and recruit more fibers. These shoes allow you to push through the floor much easier, which will allow you to produce more force during a lift.
Aiming to get your knees to a minimum of 90 degrees will ensure the legs are sufficiently challenged, however the deeper you go the more strength you will build at end range motion. A good approach is to perform some sets at a weight that allows you to reach 90 degrees, then dropping the weight to increase the depth.
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