As of yesterday, I am looking for a replacement for leg presses because i find i get alot of pressure on my lower back (which is an ongoing problem) when i do them. I can more or less reduce the risk of exacerbating it but it means lighter weight and thus less growth. Is there any comparable exercise? I do squats already, of course. I really like the way presses hit the muscles so i am looking for something that will hit the muscles in a similar way (i know this is hard). Cheers.
I'm not sure if I can tell you an alternative exercise to leg press, but I can offer a suggestion. Try them again. Now, if your butt comes off of the seat/pad you're not using proper form. The point is to come down as far as you can while keeping your butt held firmly in place. If you let it curl up, the first part of your rep is your lower back trying to get your butt back in place....with alot of resistance. That's all I got.
I'm not sure if I can tell you an alternative exercise to leg press, but I can offer a suggestion. Try them again. Now, if your butt comes off of the seat/pad you're not using proper form. The point is to come down as far as you can while keeping your butt held firmly in place. If you let it curl up, the first part of your rep is your lower back trying to get your butt back in place....with alot of resistance. That's all I got.
i was gona say the samething. when done properly leg presses take a tremendous amount of strain off the lower back. i used to do the same thing and one day i realized my lower back was coming off. i actually just wasn't sitting low enough on the seat. now i really wedge my butt in the seat...good luck
ya i think the problem is ur going way too low on the leg press bro. first of all dont go that low and go as low as possible BUT without ur butt lifting up from the seat. try using a closer stance than u do or maybe a wider one if ur using very small. everyones anatomy is slightly different and u may be doing it they way u have seen it done and its no good for u. u will still get good pumps on the quads!
I agre with the above suggestions. If this does not improve your problem, then it may be worth considering hack squats as these target your quads effectivelty whilst minimising back involvement. The leg press at our gym (which has now been removed ) doubled up as a hack squat station- yours may do the same!
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Yeah i am talking the 45 degree babies. Unfortunately i don't have one of those vertical puppies at my gym.
I think my form is kosher folks. I know to keep my arse down and not go down too low. I have a lower back problem, which i can generally work around but for squats (occasionally) and leg presses. One thing i have been meaning to do for a while actually is to strengthen my lower back but i have a chicken/egg thing going on because as long as it is f'ed i can't really work it effectively.
One suggestion I just thought of would be doing narrower stance squats then wider stance leg press. With your legs wider you can go lower and you butt is less likely to come up off the pad. Just a suggestion.
As i said, i actually think my form is OK, i do know the proper form - whether i execute it as strictly as i think i do is another question. For this reason, i will get someone to look at me next time.
I know my butt doesn't come off the pad, but maybe i am going just a tiny bit too low nevertheless.
) doubled up as a hack squat station- yours may do the same!
