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Which do you preffer squats or leg presses?

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In this article we will compare the traditional Squat against the 45° Leg Press. We know that there are many variation on each populating gyms across the world these day but these 2 are the one you see most often in commercial and private clubs everywhere. These 2 lifts have been synonymist with bodybuilding for over the last 30+ years. So here we GO!

The Squat(Squattin):

Lets talk Squattin! Yeah I said Squattin not squatting. The difference being that one a few people do and the other everybody does. Squatting comes natural to us as you see babies squatting ass to grass without a care in the world everyday. Now Squattin is when your crazy enough to crawl your self underneath a loaded barbell and lay it across you back and upper shoulders and precede to sit down and stand up with it as many times as possible, just because you can! Thats Squattin! When done to your limit capacity it is THE HARDEST EXERCISE YOU WILL EVER DO! I know the deadlift is very hard but nothing shocks your body as completely as heavy Squattin. Think of it this way, you can see lifters progress in the deadlift and reach some great heights but never gain a pound in extra weight. That NEVER happens with the Squat. Squattin demands that you either grow or you don't progress. The impact on your CNS(Central Nervous System) demands this growth. Old timers used this as their offseason primer to eat more and grow larger. Squattin heavy and hard consistently during a contest prep will help you burn more bodyfat and deliver you in probably the best shape of your life. We didn't go into the mechanics of the movement or some BS junior league engineering equation, we talked about the movement!

The Leg Press:

Ah the leg Press! Leg presses come in many different variation today from laying horizontal to vertical but the one we see time and time again in most commercial and private gyms or training centers is the 45&dreg; Leg Press. The 45&dreg; leg press depending on how its constructed is a very versatile piece of equipment to your leg development. Many have adjustable seats back to accommodate many different body types. Leg press are said to accommodated more body types than the squat because you can better adjust foot placement to lessen stress on your knees and lower back. Leg presses allow you to use allot greater poundages than if you were squatting in relative safety compared to the squat. With the equipment more readily available to most gym goer's the use of the leg press machine over the old fashion bar bell has taken off over the past 30+ years.

The Person:

It depends on You! Squatting requires your to have a fair amount of mobility in your hips, achelies tendons, anckles, lower back, uper back, traps, delts, and arms. If your are lacking in any one of these areas squatting becomes a chore. It doesn't matter your height, weight, or width it becomes a chore! Its not impossible to squat under less than perfect condition, you just have to work at the movement more than someone that is more flexable. Being taller doesn't mean you should skip squatting and go straight to leg presses only. For taller athletes in any sport that requires you to jump or do power or explosive movements squats are extremely benificial. For anyone having difficulty squatting we suggest that you place 10Lb plate underneath each heal to help you go a little deeper while slowly working on improved flexability. As flexability increases replace the 10Lb plate with a 5Lb plate and continue working until no adjustment needed. Flexability also is just as important on the leg press. Over extension of the lowback is caused when the trainee lets the knees come down to the point the hip raise up off the pad. This cause vertabrea compression and over time pain. Incorrect foot placement can also cause hip and groin issues.

Our Opinion:

In writing about the Squat versious the Leg Press it all come down to personal preference and what your goals are. No bodybuilder, powerlifter, strength athlete, sprinter, cyclist or any one relying on explosive leg power to help you reach your goals - Squats are your #1 exercise. For those looking to be generally physically fit and require just a little strength then leg press should dominate your training regimine with squats done now and then. Personal prefrence and goals dictate which you choose. Up to us we all be SQUATTIN!

Tags: Bodybuilding Life Legs