Being in front of the body, the quads are the most prominent muscles of the leg. When strengthened, they can directly increase the aesthetics of the lower body while having tremendous carry-over to general performance and daily activities.
Furthermore, there are plenty of ways to modify existing exercises or implement specific movements to place an increased focus on the quads.
Here are the best quad dominant exercises:
- High bar close stance squats
- Front squats
- Single-legged squat
- Cossack squat
- Close stance leg press
- Close stance hack squat
- Banded leg extensions
- Banded front squats
- Rear foot-elevated split squats
- Goblet squats
- High step ups
- Sissy squats
- Walking lunges
- Leg extensions
In this article, I have provided banded, machine, cable, barbell, dumbbell, and bodyweight quad dominant variations to give you the flexibility to train anywhere.
Let's get started!
Table of Contents
What Is A Quad-Dominant Exercise?
A quad-dominant exercise will place greater focus on the quad muscles:
- Vastus intermedius
- Vastus lateralis
- Vastus medius
- Rectus femoris
Exercises such as the squat or leg press can be modified to recruit the quads to a greater degree.
Unlike isolation exercises, quad-dominant exercises may still be compound movements. However, they will have been modified to emphasize quad muscle activation. This usually results in narrower stanced movements or elevating the heels to increase the demand for knee extension.
Takeaway: A good quad-dominant exercise places greater emphasis on at least one or all of the quad muscles.
Benefits of Doing Quad-Dominant Exercises
Strengthen Lower Body Pressing
Quads are responsible for knee extension and any pushing motion that happens with the lower extremities – for example, pushing out of the bottom of a squat or propelling forward while running.
Implementing quad-dominant movements can help increase sports performance, and running performance, and carry over to compound leg exercises (squat, deadlifts, lunges, etc.) that primarily utilize the quads.
Developing a Well-Rounded Physique
Typical movements performed to target the lower body can result in targeting the glutes, quads, and hamstrings in varying degrees. For this reason, it is important to implement a proper balance of quad-dominant and hamstring-dominant exercises to have a well-rounded physique.
Specifically, when working the quads, we are targeting the largest muscle group in the legs, which will require greater focus to even out a physique.
Injury Prevention
Quads and hamstrings act on the knee, and if either gets stronger than the other, it can ultimately lead to an increase in injury risk. Ensuring you have a well-balanced program that addresses the quads, hamstrings, and glutes in equal proportion can reduce your overall injury risk.
Ultimately, creating space for quad-dominant movements can assist in increasing knee health and subsequently lowering the risk of a knee injury.
Quad Dominant Exercises: 14 Exercises
1. High Bar Close Stance Squats
High bar close stance squats move the base of support further in, which places an emphasis on quad muscle activity.
Moreover, high bar close stance squats enhance postural position by requiring you to be more upright. This has direct carryover to other exercises as well.
How To
- Ensure that the j-hooks in the squat rack are set up to be in line with the lower chest/armpits.
- Place the bar directly over your upper traps while building additional tension by driving your entire body into the weight before unracking the weight.
- Stand up with the bar by extending at the hips and taking three careful steps out.
- Begin the descent by initiating at the hips while letting the knees travel over the second and third toes.
- Continue the squat descent until the upper thighs are parallel with the floor.
- From the bottom, drive through the midfoot while extending the hips forward to return to the starting position to complete the repetition.
Pro Tip
Implementing tempo reps where you slow down the descent can improve squat technique and increase total body muscle activation.
Tempo reps also make lighter weights more difficult, which can further decrease the absolute load that is placed on the body. Lower absolute loading can lead to enhanced recovery and decrease the risk of injury.
Learn more about tempo squats in 7 Reasons To Do Tempo Squats (Plus, How to Program It).
2. Front Squats
Similar to the high bar close stance squats, front squats have a narrower base. Furthermore, positioning the bar in the front of the body makes this exercise even more quad-dominant.
Since the bar is over the front of the shoulders, there is an increased demand for maintaining an upright posture while engaging the core, which can be beneficial for improving total body musculature and building a strong back.
How To
- Ensure that the j-hooks in the squat rack are set up to be in line with the lower chest/armpits.
- Place the bar directly over the front of your shoulders while either crossing your arms over the bar or punching your elbows up and holding the bar only with your second and third fingers.
- Build additional tension by driving your entire body into the weight before unracking the bar and depressing or driving the traps down while opening up at the chest.
- Stand up with the bar by extending at the hips and taking three careful steps out.
- Begin the descent by initiating at the hips while letting the knees travel over the second and third toes.
- Continue the squat descent until the upper thighs are parallel with the floor.
- From the bottom, drive through the midfoot while extending the hips forward to return to the starting position to complete the repetition.
Pro Tip
If you have difficulty maintaining the “front rack position” where the fingers are positioned under the bar, you can wrap straps around the bar to act as handles instead. This is great if you don’t have shoulder mobility or if the forward bar position places stress on your elbows, wrists, and fingers.
We discuss the benefits of doing front squats with straps in more detail in .
3. Single-Legged Squat
The single-legged squat is great for developing balance and increasing quad demand. Additionally, the single-legged squat requires minimal equipment and can be loaded in various ways, which makes this a great at-home or on-the-road quad-dominant exercise.
How To
- Shift all of your weight to a single leg.
- Stand on that leg for this movement while straightening out the opposite leg in front of you.
- Initiate the movement by squatting back with the hips and letting the knee of the planted leg travel over the second and third toes.
- Continue squatting until the upper thigh of the planted leg is at or just below parallel with the floor.
- Push through your entire foot to stand back up.
- Complete all repetitions on one leg or alternate legs for each one until you’ve completed all repetitions.
Pro Tip
If you struggle with performing a single-legged squat, you can hold onto a PVC pipe, or TRX handles to assist with balance. The more you rely on the PVC pipe or TRX handles for support, the less of a balance component there is to the exercise.
Over time, aim to rely less on the support to ultimately improve balance and technique during this activity.
For more tips on how to maintain your balance when doing single-legged squats, check out Can’t Balance Doing Pistol Squats? (Try These 6 Tips).
4. Cossack Squat
The Cossack squat is great for developing the inner thigh muscles and loading the quad through its full range of motion, making this a great quad-dominant exercise.
How To
- Stand with your feet a bit wider than shoulder-width apart while shifting your entire load to one side.
- Squat towards the side where your body is shifted while straightening out the opposite leg and letting the toes come up.
- Continue squatting down until you feel a complete stretch in the quads.
- Push yourself back towards the starting position to complete the repetition.
- Repeat these steps for the opposite side.
Pro Tip
To make the Cossack squat more challenging, you can perform the exercise with a plate held out in front of you. Holding out the plate increases muscle recruitment from the supporting muscles and the quads, resulting in greater overall gains.
Alternatively, for a simpler challenge, you can hold a kettlebell or dumbbell at upper chest level to further load this activity.
5. Close Stance Leg Press
The leg press is one of my favorites for targeting the quads. Moving your feet in closer makes it even more of a quad-dominant movement.
How To
- Set up the back of the leg press to allow your legs to be comfortably positioned on the platform.
- Position the feet to be right next to each other.
- Extend the knees and remove the safety.
- Take a deep breath to brace the abdominals.
- Bend the knees so they travel over the second and third toes.
- Continue lowering the weight until the thighs are parallel with the platform.
- Push away to complete the repetition.
Pro Tip
Changing this exercise to be single-legged can improve the rate at which this exercise isolates the quads.
Additionally, deeper reps that are controlled can decrease the stress placed on the joints and increase quad muscle involvement in the close stance leg press.
For other ways to modify your stance and target different muscle groups with the leg press, check out Leg Press Foot Placements: 5 Stances Explained.
6. Close Stance Hack Squat
An alternative to the close stance high bar squat, the close stance hack squat is much safer, allowing you to focus on technical execution and quad involvement within the confines of the hack squat machine.
How To
- Set the machine height to unrack upon standing up.
- Position the feet to be right next to each other.
- Sit back until you have reached the desired depth of the squat movement.
- Maintain proper tension in the glutes, hamstrings, and quads.
- Stand back up with the weight on your shoulders.
Pro Tip
With this exercise, you can wear shoes with an elevated heel to further prioritize quad muscle activation. Elevating the heels will decrease the hip's range of motion while increasing the knee's range of motion and demand.
In turn, this will recruit the knee extensors/knee flexors (quads/hamstrings) while placing less emphasis on the hip muscles.
7. Banded Leg Extensions
The banded leg extension can be performed anywhere and require minimal experience or skill to properly execute. This makes it a versatile at-home or on-the-road quad-dominant exercise for any experience level.
How To
- Sit on a box or bench with your legs bent at 90 degrees off the side.
- Have a band anchored behind the seat, level with about the lower shin.
- Wrap the band around your ankle.
- Kick your leg out until the knee is completely extended.
- Bend the knee and return to the starting position to complete the repetition.
Pro Tip
For this exercise, you can implement higher rep ranges and go to failure more often since it is less fatiguing. For example, two to four sets of 20 reps with a final set going to failure is an effective means of implementing the banded leg extension.
Additionally, doubling up on bands is a way to increase difficulty within this exercise before going up in band resistance.
8. Banded Front Squats
Banded front squats have the additional benefits of increasing postural support and targeting the quads while requiring minimal equipment. This is especially great if you don’t have access to dumbbells or barbells.
How To
- Place the band across the upper chest in front of your shoulder while standing over the band.
- Initiate with the hips by sitting back and allowing the knees to travel over the second and third toes.
- Sit back until your upper thighs are at or below parallel with the ground.
- Stand back up until your knees and hips are completely extended.
- Repeat the previous steps for the following repetitions.
Pro Tip
If you are more advanced or looking for a challenge, implementing timed sets while cranking out as many reps as possible can improve the difficulty of the exercise. Timed sets can also help set rep goals within the confines of the set time.
9. Rear Foot-Elevated Split Squats
Rear foot-elevated split squats are a quad-dominant exercise that places an emphasis on developing single-legged strength, which is fundamental for balancing out muscular asymmetries.
How To
- Elevate the back foot with a bench just above your knee's height.
- Initiate with the hips sitting back until the front thigh is below parallel to the ground.
- Let your knees naturally travel over your second and third toes as you descend into the squat.
- Drive your front foot into the ground until the hips, and front knee are completely extended.
Pro Tip
Positioning the front leg to be planted closer to the bench is a great way to further increase the focus on quad recruitment. Moreover, adding a front foot elevation can increase the range of motion and demand placed on the quads.
To load this exercise, you can utilize dumbbells, barbells, or bands or increase the repetition duration. This allows you to perform the rear foot-elevated split squat in various settings regardless of the equipment you have access to.
If rear foot-elevated split squats are too difficult for you, start with a simpler Bulgarian split squat progression instead.
10. Goblet Squats
You might not be able to perform the barbell high bar close stance squat, or you may want to squat more frequently by adding more squat variations to your program. In either scenario, goblet squats are an exceptional quad-dominant addition to your routine.
How To
- Hold either a kettlebell or a dumbbell in the heels of your hands.
- Initiate with the hips and sit back until thighs are at or below parallel to the ground.
- Try not to let the weight drop or chest cave during the rep.
- Stand up until your hips and knees are completely extended.
Pro Tip
To increase quad recruitment, you can wear heeled shoes or elevate the heels with a 5lb plate.
Additionally, performing this exercise for multiple sets of 10-20 reps or doing slow and controlled 4-count lowered reps can increase the difficulty for intermediate to advanced lifters.
11. High Step Ups
A higher box step up will place more demand on the quads, making this exercise an excellent addition to your quad-dominant exercise routine.
How To
- Stand in front of a box that is at knee-to-hip height with your feet hip- to shoulder-width apart.
- Lean your torso forward as you place your whole foot onto the box in front of you.
- Load the leg on the box as you forcefully drive your opposite knee up into the air until your thigh is parallel to the ground.
- Control your driving leg back towards the ground to return to the starting position.
- Repeat these steps for all subsequent reps on both sides of the body.
Pro Tip
High step-ups can be loaded with a barbell or dumbbells. Depending on your goals, you can implement more explosive reps, otherwise known as power high step-ups, at three to five reps per side, or you can increase strength by primarily focusing on progressively overloading the movement at three to five reps per side for multiple sets.
If your goal is to build muscle, you can either perform timed sets for 15-30 seconds or aim for 10-20 repetitions on each side.
12. Sissy Squats
Sissy squats are a low-stress bodyweight quad-dominant exercise that can help accelerate the quads' growth rate. They are also a minimal-equipment exercise that can be easily implemented in a variety of settings.
How To
- Begin this exercise with the feet shoulder-width apart.
- Elevate the heels by placing them on the edge of blocks or two 5lb plates. The elevation should be about two to four inches high.
- Upon initiating the movement, let the knees travel forward while letting the upper torso lean back.
- Lean back until the body forms a straight line from the neck to the knees.
- Return to the starting position to complete the repetition.
Pro Tip
When first starting out, this exercise can be quite difficult. You can easily regress it by shortening the range of motion in which you perform the exercise. Once mastered, you can aim for a deeper ending position, where the torso is more parallel to the floor.
Furthermore, you can increase the difficulty by adding a dumbbell or performing the movement inside of a Smith machine or squat rack.
If you cannot perform sissy squats, you can also implement one of these sissy squat alternatives.
13. Walking Lunges
Walking lunges are an effective quad-dominant movement that you can load in various ways. You can also easily perform them on the road or at home.
How To
- Carefully take a big step forward into a lunge.
- Sit into your hips while bending the front knee until the thigh is parallel to the floor, the back heel is coming off the floor, and the knee is bent 90 degrees.
- From this position, bring the back foot forward to be in line with the front foot to return to the standing position.
- Alternate legs, and step forward with the foot that wasn’t used in the initial rep.
Pro Tip
Walking lunges are most effective when implemented at higher rep ranges from 10-20 reps on each side.
Additionally, you can perform walking lunges for distance or yardage, which can be a fun challenge, instead of aiming for a specific rep count.
14. Leg Extensions
Leg extensions recruit the quads more than any other movement, making them fundamental to quad development.
How To
- Sit in the leg extension machine with the leg lock firmly positioned in front of the lower shins in a position where the knees are bent at 90 degrees.
- Kick your legs out until the knees are completely extended.
- Bend the knees and return to the starting position to complete the repetition.
Pro Tip
Implementing single-legged leg extensions is a way to equalize natural imbalances resulting from performing bilateral (two-sided) movements.
Additionally, you can perform a superset between single and two-legged leg extensions as follows:
- Left side leg extensions: 1 x 10
- Right side leg extensions: 1 x 10
- Both side leg extensions: 1 x as many reps as possible
In conjunction, these exercises performed together are effective at bringing up both of the quads equally.
Sample Quad-Dominant Workout
Quad-Dominant Workout For Hypertrophy
- Close stance leg press 4 x 10
- Walking lunges 4 x 10 on each side
- Leg extensions 4 x 20
Quad-Dominant Workout For Strength
- High bar close stance squats 5 x 3
- Rear-foot elevated split squats 3 x 6 on each side
- Leg extensions 4 x 10
Quad-Dominant Workout For Strength/Hypertrophy
- Front squats 4 x 4
- Close stance leg press 4 x 8
- Leg extensions 4 x 12
Quad-Dominant At Home Workout
- Goblet squats 4 x 20
- Walking lunges 4 x 20 on each side
- Banded leg extensions 4 x 20
Final Thoughts
The ways in which you can manipulate compound movements to be more quad-dominant are abundant. High bar close stance squats and close-stance leg press are my two favorite quad-dominant movements for simultaneously developing strength and hypertrophy.
Furthermore, I believe that every training program can benefit from implementing a leg extension since it contributes to the most quad muscle activation out of any other exercise.
About The Author
Javad Bakhshinejad was born and raised in the Washington Area. Currently, he is a student at Seattle University where he’s been pursuing an MS in Kinesiology, and has been a Strength Coach in the athletic department. He was a competitive bodybuilder for 8 years where he later transitioned to competitive powerlifting for 4 years. Currently, He has his own personal coaching business, where he works with powerlifters and bodybuilders.
