Is a 340lb leg press good for a female?
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If you are happy with your work out and feel like you gave a good effort the actual amount of weight is irrelevant, no need to compare yourself to anyone else just give a good effort every time and challenge yourself.
Also go ask those jacked guys to have the rack, I love nothing more than seeing a girl in the power rack working hard. I would gladly give up my rack, for a lady.0 -
If you are happy with your work out and feel like you gave a good effort the actual amount of weight is irrelevant, no need to compare yourself to anyone else just give a good effort every time and challenge yourself.
Also go ask those jacked guys to have the rack, I love nothing more than seeing a girl in the power rack working hard. I would gladly give up my rack, for a lady.
+1
Women squatting are awesome to see! I would personally confront any guy that wanted to deny a female access to the squat rack. I'm usually pretty passive in the gym, but for this, I would be very active.
Personally, I feel like women are the best clients, they listen a lot more, and when you tell them to "squat the bar" and focus on form, they actually do it. Men try to pretend there's 400 lbs on the bar even when they are squatting it empty for form. It's actually kind of funny.0 -
15 yrs ago, in my mid 30s, (5'6" 150)I got into some serious weight training with some pro/semi pro Body builders. My legs are naturally strong, and I quickly worked up to 360 on the leg press, squats with over 200, walking lunges with a 160 bar on my shoulders, easily did an hour on the stair climber, leg extensions higher than an other girl in the gym and many of the men, etc. I loved seeing my quads pump up and split, and became addicted to going heavier. Fast forward a few years and my knees are shot. Weight gain over the past 10 yrs hasn't helped either, but knee surgery in 99 was what derailed me before the weight came on. I am trying to lose it so I can put off knee replacement as long as possible. At least until they figure out a way to replace them without the huge Frankenstein scars down the middle.
This to say- Be careful! I don't know if women's bones and joints are made to take this much abuse, but apparently mine weren't. I have super strong bones, but joints sure took a beating. I found out I also have a Q-angle, where my knee caps don't track properly, so the repetitive flexion with the high weight was grinding away at my kneecap and joint.
If you feel any clicking, or crispy/crunching when you work your legs, then get it checked out quickly to see if you are doing damage. Also have your Q-angle checked to make sure your kneecap is tracking properly. Having large quads can pull your angle out of alignment as well as genetics.
I wish I would have listened to my body years ago, but when we are young we think we are invincible. Just be careful.0 -
Women squatting are awesome to see! I would personally confront any guy that wanted to deny a female access to the squat rack. I'm usually pretty passive in the gym, but for this, I would be very active.
Has this ever happened in the history of the modern world? Is there someplace where men are denying women access to fitness equipment? I've never seen anything approaching this in my lifetime.0 -
This. Squatting in a rack will give you much better results than a leg press. The press balances the weight for you and gives false confidence because it allows you to do much higher weight than you would be able to do on your own. The machine is basically doing a lot of the work for you.
Free weights will truly work all the major and stabilizer muscles, and although you won't be able to do as much weight at first, you can be confident that you are lifting every one of those pounds on your own.
^ agreed with this
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because a leg press uses leverage you don't have when you squat. You are supported behind your back/butt by the back of the machine.For you experts out there... How is it that I can do 320 on the leg press, but can barely do a squat with ANY weight? It is not too heavy by any means... But my knees just kinda lock up after a certain point, and I can't get into full formation. I have tried for years...
Sooooo... How do I transition from the leg press to squats? Why do my knees "lock". 0 -
because a leg press uses leverage you don't have when you squat. You are supported behind your back/butt by the back of the machine.For you experts out there... How is it that I can do 320 on the leg press, but can barely do a squat with ANY weight? It is not too heavy by any means... But my knees just kinda lock up after a certain point, and I can't get into full formation. I have tried for years...
Sooooo... How do I transition from the leg press to squats? Why do my knees "lock".
If your knees are locking (I'm not even sure what that means), talk to a doctor.0 -
use the smith machine to start with squats until you get your full strength up
NO DO NOT USE THE STUPID SMITH MACHINE! AAAAACKKK!0 -
As long as you are doing it with the proper form then I'd say it's pretty good. But ****ty form = not impressive at all + chance of injury.0
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Leg press is probably the most abused piece of equipment at most box gyms. its very easy to use bad form, and very easy to let your ego have fun and load it up with weight (typically with a tiny ROM). that being said, I can not say if 340 is a "good" number for you as we have no video to judge if you are doing it with anything close to a good technique. I have seen guys at one of the gyms i belong to literally loading every plate that will fit on a machine, then doing a 3 inch range of motion (with lots of "look at me" screaming, etc.)
my vote would be to do body weight squats at first.. then progress to goblet squats, or Bulgarians squats.. when strong enough to go to parallel (a very strong and stable position for the knee actually) then you can go to front squats.
back squats are ok, but typically there is a form failure in the core before the legs are fully loaded. I do front/back/overhead/one leg/bulgarian squats as part of my program. back squats are primarily integrated to help with my Oly lifting (coming up from the catch position)
with good form, and developing from bodyweight, etc.. deep squats are safe and effective and truly one of the kings of exercise movements.0 -
Women squatting are awesome to see! I would personally confront any guy that wanted to deny a female access to the squat rack. I'm usually pretty passive in the gym, but for this, I would be very active.
Has this ever happened in the history of the modern world? Is there someplace where men are denying women access to fitness equipment? I've never seen anything approaching this in my lifetime.
Sure, I've seen guys not let people jump in. I saw a guy actually tell a woman "I'll be done in 30 minutes, then it's all yours" about the squat rack once. I was like, dude, there's 1 squat rack, share. As did like 2 other guys as well. He moved away from the area, I never saw him there again, I assume he changed gyms. There are some jerks at the gym.0 -
The question really is... Is this good for YOU... With the reconstruction I would take care to not overdo and to build slowly. If this is providing significant resistance for you, then yes, it is really good. If your joints are hurting after doing it, you may want to back down a bit. We have a leg press machine at our gym that allows you to use weights to add resistance so the limit is not bad. You said that your machine only goes to 380 so that tells me it is likely a bar-weight machine... You can expand this capacity to 760 effective pounds by doing single leg extensions. These are usually better than using both legs anyway because it prevents you from using your dominant leg more heavily than the first; in squats, (this usually is not an issue because if you use one leg more than the other, you would fall toward the weak side). In my case I do double leg extensions due to an old knee injury in one knee so the other leg provides support for that leg... but optimally, it is better to do single leg extensions. Best wishes on your continued success.
there is quite a bit of science to indicate that the leg extension is NOT something you would use beyond rehab.. it puts a significant amount of shearing stress on the knee. a good ROM on a one or two leg squat is more stable and easier on the knees and creates a better overall impact to your body (i.e. more work). i will note that this is an active debate, with good science on one side and what appears to be personal perspective (i.e. i have done it and i feel a burn and my knees did not explode yet) for the ones that are supporters. It seems that the thought of muscle isolation that really got its start in bodybuilding, is on the decline and the idea of functional movements are gaining in popularity. i will also say that leg curl machines have the same detractors, especially since we know understand that the hamstrings role in knee flexion is NOT its primary role (but what the leg curl was designed to emulate). The beauty in this is we actually learn more about the human body over time, and we need to take new evidence into consideration and not base our workouts on what we read 30 years ago. lol0 -
After doing some research I've gotten some mixed reviews on leg press machines, I would rather do squats but I typically don't go to the gym with anyone and I would want to have a spotter. Today I leg pressed 340lbs, the max on the machine is 380lbs, I am 5ft 9.5inches and around 197-198lbs I also had my ACL reconstructed last year. I'm just trying to gauge how well I'm doing, seeing as it seems like an impressive amount of weight.
Thanks for any feedback!
Well I can only press 8 -45 plates, so that is about 360 lbs plus the weight of the sled and Ive been at this for a few years so I would say hell yeah thats impressive.0 -
That might work if the load were the same but unloading and reloading plates and set up can be a pain in the butt. I wouldnt bother someone to work in, I would just ask them to let me know when they were finished.0
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Women squatting are awesome to see! I would personally confront any guy that wanted to deny a female access to the squat rack. I'm usually pretty passive in the gym, but for this, I would be very active.
Has this ever happened in the history of the modern world? Is there someplace where men are denying women access to fitness equipment? I've never seen anything approaching this in my lifetime.
Sure, I've seen guys not let people jump in. I saw a guy actually tell a woman "I'll be done in 30 minutes, then it's all yours" about the squat rack once. I was like, dude, there's 1 squat rack, share. As did like 2 other guys as well. He moved away from the area, I never saw him there again, I assume he changed gyms. There are some jerks at the gym.
Yes, it most definitely happens. It is not common, but I have encountered guys that will not share with me, or look at me in an annoying fashion when I am using "their" weights/machine - but the minute another guy comes up will let them jump in.
And it is at these times that I like to lift heavy and show them that girls can kick *kitten*, too.
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use the smith machine to start with squats until you get your full strength up
NO DO NOT USE THE STUPID SMITH MACHINE! AAAAACKKK!
This is the first i've heard/read where multiple ppl are against a specific machine. I don't have a spotter, so i use some machines once I get to an uncomfortable level on free weights, bench, squats, etc.
What is it exactly that isn't good...? Just curious... Getting ready to go into a short (clean) bulk & I want to consider any new information I need to beforehand...0 -
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what are the "sissy" bars? the 5 ft ones? i'm curious because the olympic bar kind of intimidates me, though i plan on trying it tomorrow.I love doing squats and as I dont' have a spotter I don't do it to the point of failure. As long as there's a squat rack I don't see it as a problem. I'd be pretty proud to leg press 340lbs!
^This! Also, check and see if they have sissy bars, if that would make you feel more comfortable.0 -
Also, if you need to resort to using the safety bars, how would you get out of that position in order to "drop" the bar? It seems like it'd be a messy situation getting out of the back squat.0
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Well, SHE sure is an inspiration! lol0 -
use the smith machine to start with squats until you get your full strength up
NO DO NOT USE THE STUPID SMITH MACHINE! AAAAACKKK!
This is the first i've heard/read where multiple ppl are against a specific machine. I don't have a spotter, so i use some machines once I get to an uncomfortable level on free weights, bench, squats, etc.
What is it exactly that isn't good...? Just curious... Getting ready to go into a short (clean) bulk & I want to consider any new information I need to beforehand...
http://stronglifts.com/smith-machine-squats-power-rack-free-weights/0 -
Ummm let me think....hell yes!!!0
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use the smith machine to start with squats until you get your full strength up
Oh god no, don't use the smith machine.
Just squat weight you know you can squat without a spotter in the squat rack.
it can be argued all day how "bad" it is for you, but for starters and injured use light weight to get the motions down...though it changes when you start using free weights...its not an exercise you want to always do...
the other machine you can use is the hack or power squat, i love those
The problem with machines in general is that they isolate specific muscles whereas free weights allow you to target groups of muscles. If you isolate large muscles (like with a smith machine) the stabilizing muscles that need to work in conjunction with those larger muscles remain weak and are more likely to lead to injury. This is the reason you're better off doing free weights than staying on the machines.0 -
That's a lot of weight, so good job. But, weight training is about competing with your previous self, not with other people. Trying to match or beat other people's records will get you injured. Just make sure you're always doing a tiny bit better than you were last week.0
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hi katie, not sure if anyone has mentioned it on here ....soo many responses but have you tried deadlifting? it works most of the muscle groups in your body not just your legs and its a good way of changing up your routine if you've many have been doing machine or squats... and since the weight is only travelling up to weight height its a very safe exercise to do without a spotter...0
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damn! I'd say yes that's great!! i'm not anywhere near that!0
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340 is for a girl if she press it a lot0
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I think 340 lbs is a goog leg press but it is dépends the number of reps0
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Yes it is excellent. Do not think for a second that you must use free weights to make tremendous progress. Keep up the good work!0
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It is good for many reps, not for only 2 or 3 reps0
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