9 Best Leg Press Alternatives (With Pictures)

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The leg press is a machine-based exercise that predominantly targets the quads, with a secondary emphasis on the glutes and hamstrings. Leg presses are a great compound exercise for the lower body, as they place no load on the spine and have no stabilization requirement.

That said, you might not have access to a leg press machine at your gym, or you’re just looking for a leg press alternative to jazz up your leg training. 

The 9 best leg press alternatives are:

1. Hack Squat
2. V-Squat
3. Belt Squat
4. Resistance Band Squat
5. Sissy Squat
6. Bulgarian Split Squat
7. Safety Bar Squat
8. Front Squat
9. Back Squat

I own a small personal training studio, and having a leg press takes up quite a bit of space. Because of that, I don’t own one currently, but I still want to reap the benefits a leg press can offer.

In the article below, I’ll cover each leg press alternative in detail — including what it is, how to perform it, and a pro tip so you can master it in no time. Without further ado, let’s get started!

This article is an extension of my Best Hack Squat Alternatives (With Pictures) article. In there, you’ll find some fantastic variations for the lower body — check it out next!

Why Would You Use a Leg Press?

• Work your quadriceps without loading your spine
• Easy exercise for beginners
• Adding variety to your routine to increase adherence

Leg presses allow you to target the quads when you don’t want to overload the spine. They’re good for people with lower back injuries who still want to train the lower body. 

They also don’t involve much work from other muscle groups like the hamstrings and glutes, making them a good option if you want to isolate the quads.

Furthermore, leg presses are an easier exercise for beginners to learn. Most squat variations are technical, and you need to remember a lot of cues to do them correctly. But with leg presses, it’s a seated exercise. You sit in the leg press machine, place your feet on the platform, and push the weight away. There’s not much more to it.

Are Leg Presses Necessary?

Despite the benefits, leg presses aren’t necessary. There are many alternatives to the leg press machine that similarly work the quads. Many leg press alternative exercises also recruit more muscle groups, like the core, hamstrings, and glutes.

So while leg presses are a good movement if you’re working around an injury or looking for more quad isolation, other exercises are better if you’re looking for more total body engagement.

Read More: How To Leg Press Using Your Glutes 

Leg Press Alternatives with Machines

1. Hack Squat

If you’re looking for a machine leg press alternative, consider adding the hack squat to your routine. It’s a close variation that works all the same muscle groups, making it a fantastic leg press substitute.

With the hack squat, you are basically performing a machine-assisted squat in a strict up-and-down motion. The machine does not allow forward or backward travel of the torso, and no stabilization is required.

While there’s minimal work on your abdominals and back during the hack squat, the load is still supported on your shoulders. This means that there is significantly more spinal loading than the leg press — albeit the amount is reduced slightly since your body is inclined backward on the machine.

I compared both the leg press and hack squat in a separate article: Leg Press vs Hack Squat

How To Do It

1. Step onto the hack squat platform
2. Ensure your shoulders are in contact with the shoulder pads 
3. Grasp the handles beside your shoulders
4. Adopt your regular squat stance
5. When ready, stand up and disengage the stopper
6. Descend by bending at your knees
7. Once you’ve achieved your desired depth, push the platform away to stand up
8. When your set is complete, re-engage the stopper to step out of the machine

Pro Tip

A common concern for lifters in the hack squat is whether allowing your knees to travel beyond your toes is safe.

In short — yes, it’s safe. Provided the weight and workload are reasonable, and fatigue is managed appropriately, your knees can go beyond your toes without concern.

Programming Recommendations

Our Favorite Hack Squat Machine

Can the knees pass the toes when squatting? Read the full article.

2. V-Squat

The v-squat is an ideal leg press alternative as it’s a machine-based exercise that targets the quads and glutes.

As a machine variation of the back squat, the v-squat targets similar muscle groups as the leg press. It also removes the stabilization requirements that are present in all free-weight squat variations.

While it does a solid job of working your quads and glutes, the design of the machine requires you to lean forward slightly as you descend. As a result, you’ll find that your abdominals and back get a little more work when compared to the leg press.

How To Do It

1. Step onto the v-squat platform
2. Ensure your shoulders are in contact with the shoulder pads 
3. Grasp the handles beside your shoulders
4. Adopt your regular squat stance
5. When ready, stand up so that the stopper releases
6. Descend by bending at the knees
7. Once you’ve achieved your desired depth, push the platform away to stand up
8. When your set is complete, engage the stopper to step out of the machine

Pro Tip

With the v-squat, you’ll likely find your sticking point right around when your thighs are parallel to the floor.

If you’d prefer to overload the top half of the exercise, secure a medium-to-large resistance band around the machine. In this way, the band will stretch as you stand up and apply a large amount of tension on your quads at the top of the movement.

Programming Recommendations

3. Belt Squat

The belt squat is a solid leg press replacement since the lifter can closely replicate the upright torso and knee-dominant positions seen in the leg press. 

With the belt squat, multiple variations can be done based on the equipment you have access to. Some options include: an actual belt squat machine (the default variation), a landmine attachment, a cable machine, or a couple of boxes and a dip belt. 

As long as you can squat down to a reasonable depth without the plates hitting the floor, any of the abovementioned variations will work as an alternative exercise to the leg press.

How To Do It

1. Put on a dip belt, and kneel down to fasten it to the belt squat machine
2. Without acquiring the tension of the machine, get into your squat stance
3. Lightly place your hands on the handrails and stand up 
4. Push away the stopper, so you can squat down freely
5. Bend at your knees while using the handrails to stay balanced
6. Once you’ve achieved the correct depth, stand up by pushing the platform away

Pro Tip

If you’re doing a variation of the belt squat at home, a dip belt will make performing this exercise much easier.

Programming Recommendations

Our Favorite Belt Squat Machine

Our Favorite Dip Belt

Leg Press Alternatives With Resistance Bands

4. Resistance Band Squat

Consider the resistance band squats if you’re wondering how to do a leg press at home. It’s an awesome leg press at-home alternative, effectively targeting the quads and glutes. 

This bodyweight squat targets the quads, glutes, and a slight amount of work on the abdominals and back.

Unfortunately, the bodyweight squat is unlikely to provide enough stimulus to develop your leg muscles if you’re leg pressing a decent amount of weight. To make the bodyweight squat harder and get a more challenging leg workout, simply perform it with a resistance band. 

For this exercise, you’ll need continuously-looped resistance bands. Here is the setup:

How To Do It

1. Grab a medium or heavy continuously-looped resistance band and allow the other end to rest on the floor
2. Set your feet on top of the band in your squat stance 
3. Drop into a deep squat 
4. Place one side of the band over your left shoulder, then do the same on your right side
5. The band should now be resting on your front delts
6. Holding the band in position with your hands, stand up by pushing the floor
7. The band will tighten as you stand up, working your quads and glutes

Pro Tip

Since you’ll probably be performing this exercise at home, it’s more likely that you might be exercising with bare shoulders (wearing a tank top or no shirt).

With the resistance band squat, the band will be under significant tension at the top — this can rip body hair right off your skin if the band starts to slide.

Make sure you stay safe by wearing a regular t-shirt to protect your skin.

Programming Recommendations

Our Favorite Resistance Bands

Bodyweight Leg Press Alternatives

5. Sissy Squat

The sissy squat is a stellar leg press machine alternative since it focuses solely on the quads.

As a leg press alternative you can do at home, the sissy squat is an underrated bodyweight exercise. The range of motion during this exercise places a high demand on the quads.

Further, the lack of equipment required makes it a suitable at-home alternative for the leg press.

As a downside, the sissy squat is an exercise that involves very little hip flexion (bending). Because of this, your glutes will end up being neglected.

How To Do It

1. Set your stance about shoulder-width apart
2. Grab onto a sturdy object about hip-height
3. When ready, push your knees forward
4. As your knees move ahead, allow yourself to lean backwards
5. At the bottom, your heels should raise up off the floor so that you’re only standing on the balls of your feet
6. To stand up, push through the balls of your feet and drive your chest forward

Pro Tip

A common complaint during the sissy squat is having trouble staying balanced at the bottom of the exercise. 

If you’re struggling with the free-standing version, you can place a dumbbell or yoga block on the floor to rest your heels on top of it throughout the movement.

Programming Recommendations

Our Favorite Sissy Squat Machine

6. Bulgarian Split Squat

The Bulgarian Split Squat is an effective leg press alternative, placing a high unilateral demand on your quads and glutes. It’s one of my favorite free-weight leg exercises to add to my lower-body training days.

The Bulgarian Split Squat emphasizes your front leg as a single-leg leg press alternative. Since it’s often performed with bodyweight only, it is an excellent at-home replacement for the leg press. It’s also a great alternative to the leg press if you’re in a gym that doesn’t have a leg press machine.

That said, the movement can easily be made more difficult by adding weight as a weight vest, dumbbell, or barbell.

How To Do It

1. Find a raised surface (a bench works well) that is roughly knee-height
2. Face away from the bench and take 2-3 steps forward
3. Place the top of your toes on the edge of the bench, with the sole of your foot facing upwards
4. This should place you in a lunge stance with your back foot elevated
5. Keeping your balance, focus on dropping your back knee toward the ground (but don’t touch)
6. After reaching a reasonable depth, push the floor away to stand up
7. After doing the required reps, switch your feet and do the same reps with your dominant leg forward.

Pro Tip

In the Bulgarian Split Squat, you’ll want to find a sweet spot for the distance between your front foot and the bench behind you. 

Too narrow of a stance might cause you to make contact with the bench and throw off your technique. Too wide of a stance will require significant flexibility in your hip flexors, and reaching an adequate depth won't be easy.

Once you find the right distance from the bench to your front foot, stick a piece of tape on the floor or draw a small line of chalk in front of your toes to mark the spot.

Programming Recommendations

For more exercises like this one, check this article out: The Best Leg Exercises That Don't Use Hip Flexors

Leg Press Alternatives With Free Weights

7. Safety Bar Squat

The safety bar squat is a great free-weight alternative to the leg press when you don’t have access to a leg press machine but have access to other unique pieces of equipment. It uses a specialty bar that helps the lifter target similar muscles as in the leg press — making it a great leg press substitute.

With the leg press, the high amounts of knee and hip flexion (bending) make your quads and glutes work hard. 

In a similar vein, the design of the safety squat bar helps you stay more upright and place a significant amount of work on the lower body muscles. It does this while minimizing the work on your back at the same time.

Not sure if safety bar squats are right for you? Here are 4 reasons to do them.

How To Do It

1. Using a rack, place the bar at shoulder height
2. Dip under the bar, with the vertical pads of the bar resting on your shoulders
3. Grab the handles and keep your elbows tucked into your sides
4. Stand up and take a couple steps back to clear the hooks
5. Take a deep breath in and brace your core
6. Squat down by bending simultaneously at your knees and hips
7. After reaching an adequate depth, push the floor away to stand up

Pro Tip

Safety bar squats are often the tool lifters use in response to a low back injury while back squatting. 

Research has shown that safety bar squats are easier on your back than traditional back squats. This is largely due to the more upright torso angle throughout the exercise.

Programming Recommendations

Our Favorite Safety Squat Bar

8. Front Squat

The front squat is another great way to do a leg press without a machine.  It is a barbell-based squat variation that places a large focus on the quads, making it a great leg press alternative. 

In the front squat, you’ll place a barbell on the front of your shoulders. This placement of the bar requires you to allow more forward knee travel to remain balanced in your mid-foot (their center of balance).

As a result, there is only a small amount of forward lean throughout the exercise. While the front squat is a free-weight exercise, this positioning highly demands your quads and glutes — making this free-weight squat perfect to mimic the leg press.

Want to do the front squat, but can’t?  Check out my article on the best front squat alternatives. 

How To Do It

1. Place the bar at shoulder height in a rack
2. Put your hands on the bar, just beyond shoulder-width, and aim to get the base of your fingers around the bar
3. Drive your elbows under, then upwards, so that your triceps are parallel to the floor
4. This should wedge the bar in the crook of your shoulder
5. Stand up to lift the bar from the rack
6. Take a couple of steps back, and set your squat stance 
7. Bend at your knees while trying to stay in an upright position as you squat down
8. Once you reach your preferred depth, push the floor away to stand up

Pro Tip

Sometimes this exercise can be limited by your upper body mobility. If you find that your wrists hurt during the front squat, you’re welcome to place the tips of your fingers on the bar instead of trying to get most of your fingers around the entire barbell.

Alternatively, you can also grab the bar with an overhand grip with your arms crossed in front of you. This will eliminate all extension demands on your wrists. You can also wear wrist wraps to help your wrist joint stay neutral. To learn more, check out my article on the 8 Best Wrist Wraps For Lifting.

Programming Recommendations

You can also wear wrist wraps to help your wrist joint stay neutral. To learn more, check out my article on the Best Wrist Wraps For Lifting. 

9. Back Squat

The back squat is often considered the ultimate lower-body exercise. It primarily targets the quads and glutes while allowing greater loads to be used, making it an effective alternative to the leg press machine. 

Like the front squat, the back squat uses a standard barbell. You’ll also need a squat rack.

The main difference between the two is that the bar is placed on the front of your shoulders during the front squat.

Since the barbell is placed on your back during a back squat, you must lean more forward to stay balanced over the middle of your foot (your center of balance). In addition, the greater horizontal angle of your torso will activate additional muscle groups (spinal erectors, abdominals, adductor magnus) compared to the leg press.

Due to the amount of forward lean present, the back squat might not be the best choice if you’re looking for alternative exercises for the leg press because of a lower back injury.

How To Do It

1. Using a rack, place the bar at shoulder height
2. Place your hands on the bar and duck underneath it
3. Put the barbell in a comfortable position on your back
4. When ready, stand up and take a couple of steps back to clear the hooks
5. Take a big breath in and brace your core
6. Bend simultaneously at your knees and hips to descend
7. After reaching an adequate depth, drive your feet into the floor to return to a standing position

Pro Tip

When performing the back squat, some lifters prefer placing the bar up on their traps (high bar position), and others prefer putting the bar on top of their rear delts (low bar position).

Both bar placements have their own pros and cons. The most important thing is that you find the ideal bar position for you.

Programming Recommendations

Our Favorite Barbell

Read The Full Answer: Where Should You Put The Bar When Squatting?

Bonus Leg Press Alternatives

1. Foam Roller Wall Squat 

This is a very easy exercise to set up and is great for those without access to a V Squat or Hack Squat machine. Remember to squat as low as you can each rep. 

2. Dumbbell Static Lunge

This exercise is close to the Bulgarian split squat – but it’s a little easier to start with. And even if you’re a gym veteran – this exercise will light up your quads.

3. Heel Elevated Goblet Squat

This is a great exercise because you’ll need a plate and either a dumbbell or kettlebell. Stay as upright as possible as you squat low.

What Makes a Good Leg Press Alternative?

A good leg press alternative will accomplish the following: 

1. It targets similar muscle groups as those worked in the leg press 
2. It places minimal load on the spine

Muscles Used In The Leg Press

The muscles used in the leg press are: 

• Quadriceps
• Gluteus (maximus and medius)
• Hamstrings
• Calves

Since leg presses require a large amount of knee and hip flexion (bending), the quadriceps and glutes act as the primary movers in helping you push the platform back to the starting position.

The remaining muscle groups (hamstrings and calves) assist in extending (straightening) the knees and hips in the lep press. However, they’re less active than the quads and glutes, making them more of a secondary focus.

Takeaway: An effective leg press alternative needs to primarily work the quadriceps and glutes.

Leg Press: Reduced Spinal Loading

As a machine-based exercise with the lifter laying at an upward angle (usually about 45 degrees), the leg press removes the spinal loading that is present when performing any free-weight squat variation. 

On a similar note, the stabilization that the lifter would typically require during these free-weight counterparts is no longer present.

Takeaway: An ideal replacement for the leg press (machine-based or free-weighted) will reduce the spinal loading on the lifter.

Take a look at my article where I compare the Leg Press vs Squat. I cover all of the pros and cons of each exercise, the muscles used, and which one you should do based on your lifting goals.

Frequently Asked Questions

Final Thoughts

An effective leg press replacement targets similar muscle groups as leg presses, which are the quads and glutes. An ideal replacement for the leg press also minimizes the amount of spinal loading that is placed on the lifter.

In a nutshell, the best leg press alternative for you will depend on:

1. The equipment you have available
2. Whether you’d prefer a machine or free-weight substitute for the leg press
3. How much spinal loading you’re comfortable with throughout your leg press replacement

When purposefully chosen, any of the movements listed in the article above can be incorporated into your training program as leg press alternative exercises and give you a great leg workout.

What to Read Next:

• 9 Best Bulgarian Split Squat Alternative
• 10 Best Hyperextension Alternatives (With Pictures)
• 17 Best Leg Curl Alternatives (Dumbbell, At Home, Cable)
• 5 Best Box Squat Alternatives (With Pictures)
• 17 Sissy Squat Alternatives (With Pictures)
• 7 Wall Ball Alternatives (Dumbbell, Kettlebell, Bodyweight)
• 10 Best Box Jump Alternatives (With Pictures)