Let’s face it—we’ve all been guilty of skipping leg day at one point or another. It’s how you bounce back that matters most. If your body is a temple, then your legs are the foundation, keeping you balanced and moving throughout your day-to-day life. It’s vital that you provide them with the care that they deserve.
However, keeping your legs in shape is easier said than done. Fortunately, when you know what leg workouts to use, it’s much easier to plan your leg day routine and keep yourself on track. In this guide, we’ll cover some of the essential leg workouts you can do at the gym with various leg exercise machines that will help you kick your leg day workout into gear.
ACTIVATE ALL YOUR LEG MUSCLES
Your legs feature some of your largest and most powerful muscles. The gluteus maximus is the largest muscle in the body, while the quadriceps are one of the muscles capable of producing explosive exercises. These muscles, along with the rest of your network of leg muscles, help propel your body during sports and daily activities. If that’s not convincing enough—strong muscles even help protect your joints, bringing stability to your knees and hips.
Given that your leg muscles have so much responsibility, it’s important to set them up for success with the right workouts. By incorporating a mix of different leg exercises with machines into your gym routine, you can hit each of the muscle groups and build yourself a strong, muscular foundation.
THE BEST LEG MACHINES AT THE GYM
Leg machines at the gym give you a positive direction for structuring your leg day and offer the perfect starting point for a solid leg workout routine. Here are some of the workout machines that will get your leg muscles burning in the best way possible.
LEG PRESS
Muscles Targeted: Quadriceps, Glutes, Hamstrings
Gyms offer different leg press machines—some machines are set angled upward so that your legs are pushing the weight up, while others will have you sitting with your body pushing the weight away from you horizontally. Trying different leg press variations will access different accessory muscles for a complete leg workout at the gym.
For a standard leg press, start with your feet hip-width apart against the platform and your knees bent at a 90-degree angle. Push into your heels and forefoot and move the platform away from your body. Extend your legs until your knees are only slightly bent—do not lock your knees. Make sure to choose a weight that you can comfortably move with for at least 8-10 reps.
LEG CURLS
Muscles Targeted: Hamstrings
The leg curl machine is a staple when it comes to leg machines at the gym. A leg curl machine may either start with you sitting down or lying on your stomach so that you can target the hamstrings on the back of your thigh. On both types of machines, you’ll start with the backs of your ankles against a padded bar.
For seated leg curls, bend your knees and push the padded bar down toward the floor. When lying down, push your ankles into the bar and bend your knees, bringing the bar towards your glutes as far as you can go.
Be sure to focus on flexing your hamstring as you pull the bar in. Start slow and add weight once you get more comfortable, and make sure not to strain or put stress on your knees.
LEG EXTENSION
Muscles Targeted: Quadriceps
The leg extension machine is the opposite of the leg curl machine, targeting the muscles on the other side of your leg—the quadriceps. Add this leg workout machine into your routine and you’ll have strong, solid quads in no time.
Sit in the machine so that the front of your ankles are pressed against the padded bar. Your knees should be bent at a 90-degree angle. Focus on tensing your quads to bring the weight up with your ankles and extend your legs all the way out. Then, bring the weight back down to the starting position in a slow and controlled movement.
The most important thing is to choose an only slightly challenging weight so that you’re not straining too hard to complete each rep.
SMITH MACHINE
Muscles Targeted: Quadriceps, Glutes, Hamstrings
The Smith machine is more of a whatever-you-want-it-to-be machine, but it’s one of the best leg machines at the gym. The smith press is a great machine for beginning gym-goers since it allows you to do safe and controlled squats.
For an effective squat, start by setting the bar at shoulder height so that it will sit along the top of your shoulders at the back of your neck. Set your feet hip-width apart and grip the bar a little more than shoulder-width apart.
Keeping your back straight with your eyes pointed forward, bend your knees, and lower yourself down to the floor. Then, push into your feet and raise the bar back up to the starting position, straightening your knees.
HIP ABDUCTOR/ADDUCTOR MACHINES
Muscles Targeted: Abductors, Adductors
This machine provides one of the most underrated leg workouts at the gym. This workout targets the adductor muscles on the inner part of your thighs or the abductors on the outer part of your thigh by the hip.
Your hip abductors and adductors provide you with stability, balance, and agility moving side-to-side, so this leg workout machine is great for everyone, especially athletes. Strong thigh muscles also help protect the hips, pelvis, and knees.
Sometimes the abductor and adductor will be two separate machines, but some machines can make both motions. To work your inner thigh, start sitting on the machine with your knees pointed outward and opened away from each other. The pads should be spread out and resting against the inner part of the knee. For 8-10 reps, push into the pads and bring your knees together.
For the outer thigh abductors, you’ll start with your knees together and the pads resting against the outer portion. Then, push the padded stands outward, opening your knees away from each other.
GET A TOTAL LEG WORKOUT AT EōS FITNESS
For the best results from your leg workouts, incorporate each of these leg exercise machines into your gym routine. Including a variety of exercise machines for the legs will ensure you hit each muscle group and build yourself a strong foundation. At EōS Fitness, you have access to all of these machines and more, so you can build a complete full-body workout. Walk through Jeremy’s leg day at EōS Fitness in the video below!
If you’re unsure about how to structure your leg workouts at the gym, you can always turn to a Personal Trainer. A Personal Trainer will provide you with a training plan and walk you through how to use each leg machine at the gym properly. When you sign up for a membership at EōS Fitness, you also receive a Complimentary Welcome Workout with a Personal Trainer to get you started on the right foot.
Find an EōS location near you and start building the perfect leg workout routine today.
