What’s better? Barbell squats or leg resistance machines? We welcome Rolandas Malinausakas, PT and British Natural Bodybuilding Vice-Champion, who takes a look at the pros and cons of each…

Barbell squats are the king of resistance exercises. You can see why barbells are great when you look at their diverse range of benefits, such as toning your backside and legs, reducing cellulite and of course, they’re great for the stimulation of natural testosterone and growth hormone levels.

Squats are a compound movement, which simultaneously engage a few different muscle groups. Do they have any downside? Only that to squat correctly and safely is challenging, even dangerous, to do without expert training.

And what about leg resistance machines? Well, these offer a more controlled way to get some of the same results as squats. For example, when it comes to hypertrophy and strength, leg presses have various benefits. Plus, they can also be used for training specificity. Leg resistance machines may also help you to increase your speed and improve performance in sports that involve the vertical jump - football, volleyball and basketball, etc.

Here's a more detailed look at the pros and cons of squats vs. leg resistance machines

Squats

Squats are a compound exercise that engage the following muscles:

  • Prime movers – quadriceps (front thigh), gluts (buttocks)
  • Secondary (assisting) movers – hamstrings (back thigh)
  • Fixators – midsection (core, abs, lower back), upper back, shoulders (on weighted squats)

The Pros:

  • Squats are great for developing legs and inner core muscles' strength and endurance.
  • As the exercise is intense, hormones are released, which are vital for muscle growth in your entire body.
  • Knees are made stronger and more supple.
  • Squats can improve your flexibility.
  • Squats firm your buttocks up.
  • Circulation is improved, and this in turn leads to reduced or banished cellulite.
  • They help you remove waste from your body, with the knock-on effect of improved digestion.

The Cons:

Squats have important benefits. However, if you don't know the correct technique of squatting, it is a very dangerous exercise. Even knowing (having read or seen) how to squat is not enough to guarantee safety.

Also, you have to be able to sustain the correct form while being under pressure of a relatively heavy weight. And that is a skill which takes time and teaching of an expert in order to be learned properly. Here’s a video of me showing how to achieve correct squats form, but I recommend asking for a 1-2-1 demonstration.

Leg Resistance Machines

This is where resistance machines come to the rescue. They make your movements much more controlled and therefore safe.

  • Leg press: The leg press is a compound exercise, which works your body identically to squats, except for engaging the fixators.
  • Leg extension: Leg extension is an isolation exercise, isolating the quadriceps. Leg extensions put much more emphasis on the bottom of the quadriceps in comparison to squats.
  • Leg curl: This is an isolation exercise, which isolates the hamstrings. Squats engage hamstrings only as a secondary muscle therefore leg curls are very relevant even if your squatting technique is sorted.

The Pros:

  • The leg press targets a range of different muscles, therefore making it an efficient choice.
  • Offers safety for those who do not have an expert to hand.
  • Can help to maximise quadriceps hypertrophy – while keeping your back stable and operating a shorter motion range.
  • The leg press can improve quad strength.
  • Proper positioning is promoted.
  • The leg press allows changes of foot positions, so you can target different leg muscle aspects.
  • Leg curls prioritise the hamstrings, which give you that “hang” which is the definition of legs that are well-defined.
  • When you superset leg curls or leg extensions with squats, it works well to produce lactic acid and it also triggers growth hormone release. It gives you that burning and pumping sensation in your muscles, which works well for muscle endurance and is good for burning fat.
  • Leg curls are a great way to start your workout. By starting this way, your knees need less warming up.

Think of the sturdiness curls give your legs – it's kind of like having a strong tree trunk that supports so much more of what you do during training and everyday life.

A few recommendations...

I recommend the following leg machines:

The Cons

If you are looking to get quicker results from a bodybuilding regime, then leg resistance machines may be a slower route than squats.

Conclusion

Squats vs. leg resistance machines has been the subject of debate for many years now. There's evidence that suggests that barbell squats are more effective in comparison to leg presses, in terms of increasing overall strength. However, evidence also shows that leg presses may result in greater quadriceps hypertrophy.

In my opinion, I feel squats are superior as they engage core muscles and trigger the release of testosterone more than machines. However, leg machines are better suited to those who do not have a good squatting technique as the machines help to prevent injuries and allow you to push yourself harder than you would on poorly executed squats. You may wish to combine the use of both in your strength training programme.


Rolandas Malinausakas is a fully qualified personal trainer and British Natural Bodybuilding Vice-Champion. Based in London, Rolandas was featured on the BBC as an expert voice in a report about the danger of anabolic steroids. Rolandas can help you with body sculpting, health and physique improvements. Find out more and arrange a free consultation with Rolandas at www.personaltraining4u.net.