While many take it as an article of faith that all trainees must squat, the reality is far different. Only a handful of athletes truly must squat and that’s because the movement is part of their competition. But for everyone else, squats are an optional movement. And factually, some simply are not built to squat well. And if their goal is simply getting bigger legs, in many cases it may be better for them to avoid squatting and choose a movement such as the leg press instead.
A properly done leg press exposes the legs to a similar range of motion as your typical parallel squat. Certainly squats “feel” harder but does this mean it’s automatically a superior movement for growing the legs? At least some of that feel is the technical involvement, balance, and the increased use of stabilizer muscles. But this has nothing to do with the legs per se.… Keep Reading