The quads are the muscles on the front of your thigh. There are four of them, the rectus femoris and three vasti, and all four straighten the knee. This page lists the quad exercises that already have a full guide on this site, says what the studies measured in each, and puts them into one short session. It's about training, and every muscle-activity result below comes from a single session in a lab, not from weeks of growth, unless I say otherwise.
The whole lower-body day, with the hips and hamstrings, is the leg day workout. The hip side of the thigh is the hamstring workout.
The quad exercises, and what was measured in each
| Exercise | What the studies measured |
|---|---|
| Leg press | In trained men and women, the inclined leg press produced the highest activity in the vastus medialis, the inner quadriceps muscle.1 In 14 women, a low foot placement drew more rectus femoris and vastus lateralis activity than a high one at the heavier of two loads.2 |
| Hack squat | Two training trials included it but did not isolate it. In 23 athletes over five weeks, vastus lateralis and rectus femoris thickness rose at the sites near the hip in all three groups: squats, forward hack squats, and sprint and jump training only.3 In 70 young women over ten weeks, thigh thickness rose similarly in a group that did the leg press and a stiff-leg deadlift every session and in a group that rotated the leg press, hack squat and Smith machine squat.4 |
| Bulgarian split squat | In 20 young women at 80% of their max, it produced more vastus lateralis activity than the hip thrust, 59.4% against 43.6%.5 In 24 resistance-trained men, six weeks of it with heavy loads and with light loads plus blood-flow restriction cuffs improved the thickness of that muscle similarly.6 |
| Lunge and step-up | In 19 recreationally active men, quadriceps activity was higher in the lunge than in the squat.7 In healthy adults, the lunge and the lateral step-up each produced more than 45% of a maximal contraction in the vastus medialis obliquus, the inner front-of-thigh muscle.8 In nine healthy men, the estimated forces in the vasti rose with load in the squat, the split squat and the step-up, often more steeply in the split squat and the step-up.9 |
| Leg extension | In two studies, the rectus femoris was more active in the knee extension than in the leg press.10,11 In 22 untrained men, each leg trained with the hip flexed to 40 degrees or to 90 degrees for ten weeks, and the rectus femoris showed a greater hypertrophic response at 40 degrees.12 |
| Squat | In a 12-week trial, deep squats favored knee-extensor size over shallow ones,13 while in a 10-week trial the quadriceps grew about 5% in both full and half squat groups.14 The depth studies disagree, which is why the squat guide covers depth on its own page. |
Why squats and presses aren't the whole list
The rectus femoris is the one quadriceps muscle that also crosses the hip. That changes what reaches it. In 15 men, its activity was higher in the leg extension than in the leg press, and the other quadriceps muscles were about the same in both.10 In 15 resistance-trained men, the knee extension machine again drew more rectus femoris activity, and the leg press more in the vastus lateralis.11 And in the 10-week squat trial above, the rectus femoris did not grow in either the full or the half squat group.14
None of that makes the presses and squats second-rate for the front of the thigh. A 2023 meta-analysis of 13 studies found no difference in muscle growth between free-weight and machine training in the five studies that measured it.15 And in 23 resistance-trained people, a shallower and a deeper leg press grew front-of-thigh thickness similarly.16 The point is the mix: a squat or a press for the whole group, a leg extension to cover the one muscle they reach least.
A quad session (practical)
This is a practical layout, not a protocol from a study.
- A squat or a press. Barbell squat, hack squat or leg press, whichever you can load and repeat. Three sets of 6 to 10.
- A single-leg move. Split squat, lunge or step-up. Two or three sets of 8 to 12 a leg.
- A leg extension. Two or three sets of 10 to 15.
Stop each set with a rep or two left. (How to judge reps left.) That is seven to nine hard sets; the 2026 stand's ten-or-more figure is something to build toward across the week, split over two leg days, not a number to hit in one session.17 Add a rep, then a little weight, when every set is easy: progressive overload.
At home
Dumbbell split squats and step-ups cover the single-leg slot, and a goblet squat covers the first slot. For the leg extension slot, the leg extension page has a band version and a no-equipment kneeling version. Take sets close to failure when the weights are light.
Common questions
Which quad exercise should I start with?
One you can repeat and add to: a goblet squat or a leg press. Add the leg extension after it, because the rectus femoris was more active in the extension than in the press in two studies.10,11
Are leg press or squats better for quads?
A 2023 meta-analysis found no difference between free-weight and machine training in the five studies that measured growth; it did not isolate squat against leg press.15 The leg press activity study above found high vastus medialis activity.1 Use both across the week if you like.
How many quad sets a week?
Muscle growth was enhanced by ten or more sets per muscle group a week in the 2026 American College of Sports Medicine stand.17 Count every hard set of the squat, press, lunge and extension toward it.
Do deeper squats work the quads more?
The two training trials above disagree: deep squats favored knee-extensor size in one,13 and full and half squats grew the quadriceps about the same in the other.14
If you'd rather not plan it alone
A quad session is easy to write down; fitting it around your hamstring work, your glutes and a week that keeps moving is the part a page can't do. Coaching is the version where your workouts are built around the days you actually have, and a weekly call looks at the week you just had and rebuilds the next one. Coaching to build muscle explains how that works, and here's how to apply. Otherwise: add three sets of leg extensions to your next leg day and write the weight down.
General education only, not medical advice. If you have a medical condition, are pregnant, or take medication, check with your doctor before changing how you train or eat.
Sources
- Martín-Fuentes I, Oliva-Lozano JM, Muyor JM. Influence of feet position and execution velocity on muscle activation and kinematic parameters during the inclined leg press exercise. Sports Health, 2022. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34085847/ (accessed October 24, 2026).
- Da Silva EM, Brentano MA, Cadore EL, et al. Analysis of muscle activation during different leg press exercises at submaximum effort levels. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 2008. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18545207/ (accessed October 24, 2026).
- Blazevich AJ, Gill ND, Bronks R, Newton RU. Training-specific muscle architecture adaptation after 5-wk training in athletes. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 2003. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14652496/ (accessed October 24, 2026).
- Kassiano W, Costa B, Kunevaliki G, et al. Muscle hypertrophy and strength adaptations to systematically varying resistance exercises. Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 2025. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39388663/ (accessed October 24, 2026).
- McCurdy K, Walker J, Kelly C, Polinski M. Hip and knee extensor activation during the hip thrust and rear-foot-elevated split squat in trained females. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 2021. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33900255/ (accessed October 24, 2026).
- Wang Y, Zhao X, Zhang L, et al. Unilateral low-load blood flow restriction vs. high-load training in the Bulgarian split squat: a randomized within-subject design on strength, hypertrophy, and asymmetry. Frontiers in Physiology, 2026. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC13070802/ (accessed October 24, 2026).
- Wu HW, Tsai CF, Liang KH, Chang YW. Effect of loading devices on muscle activation in squat and lunge. Journal of Sport Rehabilitation, 2020. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30676181/ (accessed October 23, 2026).
- Ekstrom RA, Donatelli RA, Carp KC. Electromyographic analysis of core trunk, hip, and thigh muscles during 9 rehabilitation exercises. Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy, 2007. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18560185/ (accessed October 24, 2026).
- Kipp K, Kim H, Wolf WI. Muscle forces during the squat, split squat, and step-up across a range of external loads in college-aged men. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, 2022. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32569122/ (accessed October 24, 2026).
- Ema R, Sakaguchi M, Akagi R, Kawakami Y. Unique activation of the quadriceps femoris during single- and multi-joint exercises. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 2016. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27032805/ (accessed October 22, 2026).
- Stien N, Saeterbakken AH, Andersen V. Electromyographic comparison of five lower-limb muscles between single- and multi-joint exercises among trained men. Journal of Sports Science and Medicine, 2021. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7919354/ (accessed October 24, 2026).
- Larsen S, Sandvik Kristiansen B, Swinton PA, et al. The effects of hip flexion angle on quadriceps femoris muscle hypertrophy in the leg extension exercise. Journal of Sports Sciences, 2025. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39699974/ (accessed October 24, 2026).
- Bloomquist K, Langberg H, Karlsen S, et al. Effect of range of motion in heavy load squatting on muscle and tendon adaptations. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 2013. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23604798/ (accessed October 22, 2026).
- Kubo K, Ikebukuro T, Yata H. Effects of squat training with different depths on lower limb muscle volumes. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 2019. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31230110/ (accessed October 22, 2026).
- Haugen ME, Vårvik FT, Larsen S, Haugen AS, van den Tillaar R, Bjørnsen T. Effect of free-weight vs. machine-based strength training on maximal strength, hypertrophy and jump performance: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMC Sports Science, Medicine and Rehabilitation, 2023. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10426227/ (accessed October 22, 2026).
- Larsen S, Wolf M, Schoenfeld BJ, et al. Knee flexion range of motion does not influence muscle hypertrophy of the quadriceps femoris during leg press training in resistance-trained individuals. Journal of Sports Sciences, 2025. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40113586/ (accessed October 24, 2026).
- Currier BS, D'Souza AC, Singh MAF, et al. American College of Sports Medicine position stand. Resistance training prescription for muscle function, hypertrophy, and physical performance in healthy adults: an overview of reviews. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 2026. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12965823/ (accessed October 11, 2026).