The leg press exercise has seen its fair share of praise, as well as criticism. These mixed opinions come as a consequence of the resistance machine being fairly dangerous when used improperly. Nevertheless, this is not to say that other exercise equipment is spared of negative commentaries as there are upsides and downsides to all items found in gyms, in general. Thus, it is expected for it to have some flaws mingling among all of the awesome paybacks it offers.
Pros:
- If you’re working at an office job and a hectic life in general that prevents you from running, walking, or doing anything else and active, the likelihood is that you feel your leg muscles are weak. That’s because they’re not working enough on them frequently means that your muscles turn into the evaporation of what they were. Pressing them, the problem will be resolved by strengthening your feet.
- Are you having difficulty managing your knees as you straighten or bend them? This could mean you’ve got a muscle problem in your foot, a problem that you can quickly treat by working on this particular region of your body using the press. It is also recommended to perform stretching exercises every day when you are suffering from this condition to stop any future health problems from arising.
- A large number of people dream of having huge quads. This is a goal that is not achievable without working on the leg press since it is among the most effective types of equipment that can be used to strengthen the leg muscles. Start your workout with weights that are comfortable to you. Work to increase until you feel you cannot go further to achieve results.
Cons:
- It’s easy to be enticed by how much you can manage, only to hurt your back or knees due to over-stimulation of these body parts. Take slow and be patient in your relationship with the body to avoid this from happening. The results will take time to gain the strength and mass of your muscles, which is something that you shouldn’t forget.
- If you fail to pay attention to following the directions correctly when using them, you risk hyper-extending the knees and then bending them backward. The best thing to do is raise your feet to a certain point but not stretch them completely.
- When you hold your back in a fixed position for the exercise duration, you won’t achieve a full range of motion. Therefore, this part of your body isn’t taken care of, which means that you may not progress in the way you want to. It would help if you combined it with other equipment for workouts and ideally used a home gym.
The most common misconception about this exercise is it’s an unreliable piece of equipment that focuses only on a couple of muscles of the lower part of the body. It’s quite the opposite. It is a lot more fun than you imagine when you know the right exercises to do. In addition, there are many alternatives you can try exercises that provide different levels of resistance for the muscle groups involved as opposed to the norm.
- Escalating Exercise: If your physical condition permits it, this is the workout you should do for maximum results and to increase leg muscle mass quickly. Begin with a 25-pound increase and gradually increase to a total strength of around 240 pounds. Overextending this limit or pushing yourself beyond what is safe will have dire consequences for the bones and muscles and should be stopped whenever you experience too much pain. Complete 16 reps with an interval of a micro-stop after every fourth rep, after which your partner can add an increase – one more in weight before you begin to take off. One set is sufficient for a training session since this is challenging even for those with an excellent fitness level.
- 3 Second Descents: Put your legs into the posture that you think is best for your strongest force. Perform slow-pace repetitions, where you increase the weight until you get to the resistance threshold that is your highest level at this point. Once you have reached this threshold, perform eight repetitions of 3-second descents so that all your muscles throughout your legs along with the gluteal region will feel your “burn.” When you do this exercise, it helps you improve your endurance under tension, gaining more resistance, which will allow you to gain more endurance during your exercise routines.
- Drop Sets: If done correctly, drop sets can benefit those looking to build muscles. What you need to do is choose a level of resistance that will cause you after 8-12 reps to experience muscle failure; not necessarily the most extreme kind, however, since you don’t wish to risk injury due to being too zealous. Once you have reached the “stop” moment you’re familiar with, lower your opponent’s weight by about 15% and repeat eight repetitions. Also, reduce your opponent’s weight by 15%, and keep working until there’s no weight remaining.
- Quad Sweep Sets: In the beginning, you must ensure that you are in the correct position to perform this exercise. The best way to do this is to adopt a wide posture and then turn your feet out and allow your knees to drop out from your body. If you have stopped, it’s optimal to set them up high so that you can rest before rapidly hitting the platform. Begin with the smallest weight that you can, complete 20 reps, and gradually increase weight resistance after every 20-rep set. Take two-second breaks to ease tension if you feel the increased resistance is unnaturally high.
Are there risks involved when you do leg press exercises?
Certain issues can occur as a result of misuse. Most of the time, injuries occur due to one of two reasons incorrect posture or using heavier weights than you’re expected to do for your fitness level. No matter what type of machine you choose and whether it’s horizontal or vertical or inclined, make sure you are aware of the posture you are in and the amount you exert yourself to ensure that you don’t end up on the bench in the event of an injury that is serious.
There are two types of injuries that fitness athletes can encounter while using the machine: lower back injuries and knee injuries. The lower back can become an area of injury when you are sitting in a wrong posture or over-loading the plate and must bend your back into an unnatural posture. The knee is targeted when you completely close your back. There is a great deal of stress on the knee joints rather than the quads and when you bring your knees together and press against the platform.