4 Frequent Leg Press Errors and Fixes
There’s numerous love and hate that surrounds the leg press.
Some assume it’s not very useful since you’re sitting in your butt and urgent, which resembles nothing achieved exterior the health club. Different lifters swear by it because it permits them to elevate heavy weights and construct muscle with out the compressive load of the barbell on their again.
Most of us although, fall someplace in the midst of this debate. Nevertheless, when achieved proper, the leg press can construct some critical muscle and energy. With the fastened vary of movement and the soundness of sitting down, you possibly can transfer some critical weight. As a result of you possibly can go heavy, errors could be made.
Though the leg press is just not a technical train, errors can creep in, resulting in accidents and a lack of beneficial properties. Right here we’ll dive into find out how to do the leg press, what’s wanted for good type, and 4 frequent leg press errors and find out how to repair them.
Learn how to Carry out the Leg Press
Relying in your physique kind, the leg press will look completely different for various lifters. Earlier than beginning, modify the machine to offer most security and luxury to your physique.
- Sit on a leg press machine and place your ft on the platform in your most well-liked place.
- Decrease the protection bars and press till your legs are totally prolonged however with a gentle knee bend.
- Decrease the platform till your knees are at a 90-degree angle.
- Push the platform again to the beginning place.
- Reset and repeat.
What’s Wanted For Good Type
The great thing about the leg press is that even in case you have hip mobility shortfalls or decrease again ache, you are able to do it. Listed below are a couple of basic items wanted for good leg press type.
- Take the time to arrange. As a result of all of us include completely different limb lengths, take the time to regulate the seat and carry out a couple of reps with the empty platform to see if you may get a 90-degree angle together with your knees with out compensation.
- Preserve your ft flat on the platform at some stage in the set.
- There isn’t any must go wild with foot width as shoulder-width aside works for many lifters.
- At all times maintain your decrease again and glutes glued to the seat.
- Preserve management of the load on the eccentric and be explosive on the concentric contraction.
4 Frequent Leg Press Errors
Errors usually are not dangerous. It’s the first approach we study to do it proper; as soon as you understand higher, you do higher. Listed below are 4 frequent leg press errors moreover ego and an excessive amount of weight as a result of you understand about these two, proper?
Lay Off the 1RM
Going heavy and discovering your 1 RM max on the leg press is just one thing it’s best to sometimes do. Principally, it’s best to leg press so as to add muscle to your quads, and one of the best ways to do that is to manage all elements of the rep, together with the eccentric. The load is simply too heavy should you can’t management the eccentric contraction.
Repair it: Deal with pressure and management and rather less on the burden on the platform.
Preserve It Glued
The one a part of your physique it’s best to transfer and really feel is your knees and glutes. That’s it. In case your ft usually are not glued to the platform or your decrease again, and hips usually are not glued to the seat, then you’re doing it mistaken.
Repair It: Take note of your setup. Your ft ought to be shoulder-width aside in the midst of the platform, and your knees ought to get to a 90-angle with out butting into your torso. If that is taking place, change the seat angle to 1 the place all of your physique elements keep glued to the platform and pad.
Don’t Brief Your self
Your knees should get to 90 levels to profit from the leg press most. It would really feel good for the ego to half-rep an enormous weight, however it can do nothing to your beneficial properties, and your knees could find yourself hating you.
Repair it: Rather less ego and weight on the platform is required right here. Use a weight you possibly can management at a 90-degree knee angle.
It’s A Quad Train
This will ruffle some Instagram influencer feathers, however the leg press is primarily a quad train with slightly hip extension thrown in. Inserting your ft greater on the platform to focus on the glutes and hamstring extra is, IMO a waste of time when there are approach higher workout routines to focus on them than the leg press.
Repair it: No repair for this per se. Use higher workout routines to focus on your hamstring and glutes, like hip thrusts, RDL, and hamstring curl variations.