Lever Horizontal Leg Press

Also known as: Seated Leg Press, Horizontal Leg Press Machine, Seated Horizontal Leg Press

StrengthPush

Track Lever Horizontal Leg Press in SmartWorkout and watch your numbers go up

Log sets, weights and progress for free, with no workout limits.

Body Part: Legs

Description

Sit upright with your feet on a fixed footplate and straighten your legs so the seat slides back on its rails: hard quad work with no bar on your back. The front of your thighs does most of the pushing, including the inner part just above the knee, and your glutes help in the bottom half, where your hips are deeply bent. With nothing to unrack or balance, it suits beginners, works as a back-friendly squat substitute and makes a good high-rep finisher after squats. Compared with the 45-degree Leg Press you move less weight over a shorter range, but setup and weight changes take seconds.

How to Perform

Set the weight first: move the pin in the stack, or load plates if your machine takes them.
Sit with your hips all the way back and your back on the pad. There is no headrest, so hold your head level.
Put both feet flat in the middle of the footplate, about hip-width apart, toes pointing up or slightly out, heels down.
Set the seat position so your knees start bent about 90 degrees with your feet on the plate.
Hold the handles beside the seat with straight arms. They keep your hips down; don't pull on them.
Breathe out and press through your heels and midfoot. The plate stays put while you and the seat roll back.
Keep your knees tracking over your second toe and pause for a beat just before they straighten fully.
Ride the seat forward over 2–3 seconds until your knees are back at about 90 degrees, touch the bottom lightly and press again.
When the set is over, let the seat settle against the stops before you take your feet off the plate.

What Muscles Work

Primary Muscle:

Secondary Muscles:

Tips

Sets of 10–15 reps are the usual choice for size (some people go up to 20); for strength, 6–10 reps over 3–4 sets. Add reps before weight: when all sets hit the top of the range with your knees back to about 90 degrees, move the pin down one plate (usually 5–10 kg, or 5 kg per side on a plate-loaded version) and restart at the bottom of the range.
The front of your thighs takes most of it, with the glutes joining in at the bottom. Lower back doing the work? The seat is too close. A sharp pain at the front of the knee means stop, shorten the range or move your feet a little higher.
Feet lower on the plate bend the knees more and load the quads harder, but the heels lift sooner; feet higher bend the hips more and bring in a bit more glute. Keep the heels down either way. If 90 degrees at the knee is too much for now, set the seat so they bend only to about 100–110 degrees and go deeper as you get stronger.
Substitutes: Leg Press (heavier loads and a deeper range), Single Leg Press (one side at a time), Machine Hack Squat, or a Dumbbell Goblet Squat when there is no machine. To make this one harder without adding weight, pause 1 second at the bottom and take 3 seconds on the way back.

Common Mistakes

Seat set too close, so your knees start bent well past 90 degrees and your lower back curls off the pad at the bottom. Move the seat back until your hips and lower back stay put on every rep.
Snapping the knees straight at the top. Finish with a soft bend and keep pressure on the plate before you let the seat roll forward.
Knees caving in as you press. Point them over your second toe, turn the toes out slightly if needed, and drop the weight if they still collapse.
Heels peeling off the plate at the bottom so you push through your toes. Place your feet a little higher or move the seat back.
Yanking on the handles and lifting your hips to grind out a heavy rep. The handles only keep you seated; lighten the load until your hips stay down on every rep.