Best Quad Exercises on Leg Day
Ready for leg day? I’ve already shared my favorite exercises for the hamstrings and glutes (i.e. buttocks) . It’s time to target the main muscle group we think of when we think of legs: the quadriceps.
What are fours?
The quadriceps muscles are a group of four muscles on the front of the thighs. They:
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Rectus femoris muscle (the one that runs vertically up the middle of the thigh)
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Vastus lateralis muscle (on the outside of the thigh)
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Vastus medialis (on the inner thigh)
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Vastus intermedius (under the rectus muscle, in the middle of the thigh)
If you really want to get curious,there are some detailed pictures of each muscle here . All four muscles come together into one giant tendon at the knee, and this giant tendon attaches to the kneecap.
The function of these muscles is to straighten the knee. Three muscles (those with the word “vastus” in their names) begin on the top of the femur. When they contract, they pull on the kneecap, which pulls on the front of the tibia, so the knee straightens.
Another muscle in this group, the rectus femoris, actually originates in the front of the pelvis. He straightens his knee and flexes his hip. (For example, if you march with a high knee position, the hip flexors help you raise your knees high. The rectus muscle is one of the hip flexors.)
There is another submuscle you may hear about: the VMO, or vastus medialis oblique. This term refers to the part of the vastus medialis muscle that has oblique (diagonal) fibers.
So, to work our quadriceps, we need to do exercises that require straightening our knees. And since these are large muscles, we will have to lift significant weight to truly challenge them. Ready to get started?
Best exercise for quadriceps: squats.
I know you’re asking what else you can do, and below I’m listing a few less obvious exercises. But squats truly are one of the best leg exercises, and we need to talk about why.
When you squat, you bend your knees and hips until you are in a semi-sitting position (sometimes trainers tell you to sit on an invisible chair) and then stand up. The most common types of squats are:
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Unweighted squats (“body weight”) , in which the weight you lift is only your own body.
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Goblet squats , where you hold a dumbbell or kettlebell in your hands at approximately chest level.
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Squats with a barbell , placing the barbell on your back. (There are low and high positions for the bar, but for our purposes today, you can place it wherever is most convenient)
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Front squats , in which the barbell rests on the front of the shoulders.
They are listed roughly in order of difficulty. Beginners often start with bodyweight squats and progress to goblet squats. Eventually your leg strength will exceed the amount of weight your arms can easily support on a goblet squat, and then you’ll move on to barbell squats. (You can also start on day one with barbell squats, so don’t feel like you have to do goblets first.)
How to Get the Most Out of Squats If You Can’t Squat Very Low
Squats can be a challenging exercise, but don’t write them off just because you’ve struggled with them in the past.
For many people, the biggest barrier to good squats is ankle flexibility. To perform a full squat (hips parallel to the ground or even lower), your ankles must bend enough to allow your knees to move forward. The longer your femurs, the more ankle mobility you need. If your heels tend to lift off the ground when you squat, your problem may be ankle mobility. Ankle mobility exercises may help . The squat itself is an ankle mobility exercise, and squatting as low as possible will improve your ability to squat over time. (Try pausing at the end of each squat during your warm-up.)
Raising your heels can also help. The quickest and dirtiest way to do this is to take a couple of small weight plates and stand with your heels on them. If your gym has a slant board (a wedge-shaped object you can stand on), give it a try. But do you know what real weightlifters do? They wear shoes with built-in wedges . It’s not a scam, it’s just a smart accessory. I wear squat shoes even though I have excellent ankle mobility. They help me get my body into a stronger position.
Finally, there is no law that says you have to squat to parallel (or below) . It is better to reduce the depth than to give up squats altogether. Half squats are still a great quad workout and are perhaps more specific to athletic goals such as running and jumping.
The only catch with squats above parallel is that you need a way to maintain consistency in your squats. My favorite options to do this are:
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Box squats. Place a plyo box or bench behind you (tilt the box so you’re sitting in a corner) and tap the box with your butt for each rep.
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Anderson crouches. Use a squat rack and set your harness to a height you can handle. Gently tap the barbell against the guards with each repetition.
No barbell? Use the leg press
If you’re stuck at Planet Fitness or another gym that doesn’t have barbells, but you still want to train your legs with heavy weights, you can use the leg press. There are many types of leg presses (horizontal, vertical, squats, etc.), but they all do roughly the same thing: force you to straighten your legs against resistance in a squat-like movement.
Best Single Leg Squat Exercises: Bulgarian Split Squats
Bulgarian split squats are a great glute exercise , but they also work the quads. The straighter your torso is during the exercise, the more attention you will pay to the quadriceps muscles of your front leg.
For Bulgarian split squats, place one foot on a bench or other support behind you and bend your front leg to lift and lower the weight. This weight could be a pair of dumbbells in your hands, a pair of dumbbells on your shoulders, or a barbell on your back, to name the three most common ways to add resistance.
If you don’t like Bulgarian split squats, you can do regular split squats (with both feet on the ground), box raises, or lunges in any direction you like. (The most common ones are forward lunges, backward lunges, and walking lunges.)
Best isolation exercises for squats: Leg extension machine.
All of the squat variations above (including split squats) work the quadriceps, as well as the glutes and hamstrings. Sometimes you just want to give your quads a little more fun, and the leg extension machine is great for that.
There is a myth that this exercise machine is “bad for your knees” because there will always be someone who claims that such and such exercises are always bad for your knees. I remember staying away from this machine because I was taught that “physical therapists hate it.” But when I tore my ACL and needed to build up my quads after surgery, what machine did my physical therapist make me work on every week as soon as I was cleared to do so? You guessed it: leg extensions.
If your knees are shaking when using this machine, your posture is likely to blame. The machine has a hinge or hinge on which the arm can rotate. This should be right next to your knee, not in front or behind it. Fix this and the car will become much more comfortable.
Best kept secret: flip squats
Finally, what if you don’t have a barbell or leg machine? Goblet squats and kettlebell front squats are great options, but I wanted to share something special: It’s a little tricky to set up, but it’s a really killer exercise once you get the hang of it. Here’s the flip squat, a closed-chain quad exercise that’s as close to quad isolation as you can get outside of the gym:
The idea is to rest your forearms on the crease of your thighs and hold a kettlebell in your hands. You need to ensure that your hands remain in this position so that the weight does not slip and remains in contact with the top of your legs.
Then straighten your knees without straightening your hips. I think it’s called a flip squat because your head goes down and your butt goes up in the air like you’re about to do a somersault. Grab something heavy and enjoy the burn.