— ARCHIVES —
Exercise of the Month - December 2009:
“No More Leg Extensions?”
While machines sadly remain the main piece of marketing for commercial health clubs (including the one I train most of my clients in), one specific piece of equipment that continues to see negative press in the Leg Extension (see pic 1 below).
This machine isolates the muscles known as your Quadriceps (see pic 2 below). The problem with training on a leg extension machine is that the exercise is not “functional,” in that in doesn’t carry over into everyday life.
Isolating those muscles, outside of a rehabilitative setting, does little to facilitate activities of everyday living (i.e. going up and down stairs).
Sergio Rojas, C.S.C.S., was recently quoted as saying:
“Since the load is placed on your ankle, far way from the knee joint, the amount of torque it puts on your knee is high. And at the point where your leg is almost straight, the added tension causes shearing forces on the ligaments and tendons of the knee joint. This can lead to a misalignment of the tibia and fibula and damage of the meniscus.”
Strength and Conditioning Coach Eric Cressey also wrote a fantastic article a few years back I highly recommend checking out that details the negative forces that leg extensions transmit to your quadriceps/knee joint: http://www.tmuscle.com/article/performance_training/the_truth_about_leg_extensions&cr=
My approach with clients is to focus on exercises where the lower body musculature works in a collective, more functional manner. These exercises include the following:
- Deadlift variations
- Squat variations
- Lunge variations
All of the above can be performed either bi- or uni-laterally (double, or single legged- respectively).
*E-mail me (paulconnolly123@gmail.com) your training questions.*