Leg press

Type

Strength

Equipment

Gym

Area

Lower back

Level

Advanced

Starting dose in Remedy

3 sets of 12, last two reps hard

How to do it

1. Sit in the machine with your back and hips flat against the pad.
2. Place your feet flat on the platform about hip-width apart.
3. Release the safety and lower the platform under control until your knees are bent, stopping before your low back peels off the pad.
4. Push through the middle of your feet to straighten your legs without locking your knees.

Form cues

• Feet flat, push through mid-foot.
• Don’t let the low back curl at the bottom.
• The last two reps should feel hard.

Common mistakes

• Going so deep the hips roll up and the low back rounds off the pad.
• Locking the knees hard at the top.

Easier and harder versions

• Easier: Goblet squat

Why it helps a sore back

It lets you load the legs heavily while the seat supports your back, which is useful for gym-goers training around a sore back.

How Remedy uses it

In the app it is called Leg Press. Remedy is more likely to pick it if you say your back is bothered by working out. A typical starting dose is 3 sets of 12, last two reps hard, and the program adjusts reps as the weeks go on. Every exercise in the app has a demonstration video.

General fitness information, not medical advice. Stop any exercise that causes sharp pain, or pain, numbness, or tingling spreading down a leg.