Leg press vs bulgarian split squat which is better?

[CheekyCuntt]

Do they both train hamstrings as well as the quads?

[BeginnerGainz]

To involve the hamstrings (and glutes) more in the leg press, you want the feet high and wide, with toes pointed out slightly.

For split squats, you want to add more forward lean during the eccentric part of the movement.

Neither are ideal for hamstrings though, but both are great for quads (and really the lower body as a whole). If I had to pick one, I’d go with split squats.

[ECGordyn]

They both train hamstrings less than the quads.

For hams, you really need a hip hinge rather than trying to manipulate a knee extension movement. Deadlift, RDL, Good Morning, etc.

[BeginnerGainz]

They both train hamstrings less than the quads.

For hams, you really need a hip hinge rather than trying to manipulate a knee extension movement. Deadlift, RDL, Good Morning, etc.

Or cable pull throughs, KB swings, back extensions, hip thrust, glute bridges, stability ball leg curls, glute ham raises....

[leidenesLK]

To involve the hamstrings (and glutes) more in the leg press, you want the feet high and wide, with toes pointed out slightly.

For split squats, you want to add more forward lean during the eccentric part of the movement.

Neither are ideal for hamstrings though, but both are great for quads (and really the lower body as a whole). If I had to pick one, I’d go with split squats.

x2 split squats. Less equipment, easier on the lower back, potential for stability/imbalance improvements and better assistance to barbell squats with the greater hip extension and stabilizer recruitment than a leg press.

They both train hamstrings less than the quads.

For hams, you really need a hip hinge rather than trying to manipulate a knee extension movement. Deadlift, RDL, Good Morning, etc.

Yep. Ideally 1 hinge and 1 knee flexion to fully develop hams. Deadlift + GHR, RDL + Leg Curl etc.

[zerocoolflo]

They both train quads. Hamstrings too little to even matter. I would suggest you Leg pressing as your main exercise and split squats as your secondary exercise (maybe higher reps) to build some volume.

[UltraLightBeamz]

You should have some kind of unilateral leg exercise in your training routine.Some people swear by leg press, all I know is a proper split squat with pretty light weight (say 20kg dumbbells) takes more out of me than a 150kg+ leg press.

[Heisman2]

For those saying bulgarian split squats do not work the hamstrings, you can modify them so they do. Put your front leg far in front of you, sink back and down on the descent while bending forward, and then at the bottom you'll have a lot of tension on the glutes/hams. As you stand up you can essentially do a leg curl motion into the ground while you propel yourself upward with a hip extension at the same time. These hammer my glutes and hit the upper portion of my hamstrings really hard as well. The front leg should be far enough in front that it does not lock out at the top of the movement. I'm not saying this is the best exercise out there by any means and I imagine people with different anthropomorphic features will experience them differently, but for me personally this is an absolutely tremendous exercise.

[ezra76]

I did the split squats for 1st time basically in place of squats due to constantly reaggravating a hip strain. My glutes have never been so sore and felt a lot in the outer quads for a few days. Just my experience trying them for 5 sets of 12-15 with a single 40lb db.

[bLinkMoore]

Definitely shouldn't rely on either of them for hamstring work--that being said, I definitely feel split squats more in my hamstrings compared to leg press.