Last Updated on July 5, 2022 by San San

Starting out your fitness journey isn’t easy, and if you ask anyone who works out, your routine now does not work for you forever. You will always have to switch up or be creative and work on different routines until you form a solid one for your fitness journey.

One of the hardest routines involves the legs – so we have some single-leg press alternative workouts that won’t pressure you into buying the actual equipment for your home.

Single-Leg Press Alternative

Heaving a healthy diet is an important factor to keep ourselves healthy, but that isn’t enough. We also want to build our physical bodies as well to lower the risks of injuries. Building those muscles will keep the strain away from the joints and tendons. It doesn’t matter whether you are an athlete or not. Bodybuilding is still just as important.

One of the most important body parts to start building your muscles is the legs. As the saying goes, never skip a leg day. Leg workouts are important for good reasons, but it is more often than not ignored in favour of upper-body workouts. So what makes leg workouts important?

Why Leg Workouts Are Important

Most people only want to develop upper muscles since they can easily flex them against their mates. However, while it looks good to have toned upper muscles, it isn’t practical. Without solid leg muscles, your athletic performance isn’t as well developed.

To develop an all-around body type, such as increased speed, agility, and balance, you need strong leg muscles. Leg muscles are important to stay consistent in almost any workout program. Plus, with strong leg muscles, you can easily adapt to any workout program and develop good posture habits.

After all, if the legs are not strong enough, what would keep the upper body balanced? Your legs are like your body’s pillar, and if it lacks strength, they could collapse. And meaning to say, you are more prone to injuries if you don’t have strong leg muscles.

Lower leg muscles create a strong and stable foundation. With your feet firmly planted, you can easily resist any resistance applied to you. You will now easily perform batting or throwing without relying on the tendons and your back.

One of the best ways to start developing those leg muscles is through a single-leg press. But, leg press requires the use of gym equipment. With the recent lockdowns, it’s getting hard to have easy access to gyms. So what are some good alternatives to doing single-leg presses? Before we engage that topic, let’s learn which specific muscles the leg presses target. That way, we can identify which workouts we are going to start doing.

What Muscles Do Leg Presses Target?

You can only do single-leg by using gym equipment. It predominantly targets glutes, quads, calves, and hamstrings. The single-leg is great for beginners, and you don’t have to be concerned about proper form.

The main feature of this machine is that you won’t have to rely on your back. You are firmly seated in place and fully leaning in the seat. On the other hand, the single-leg doesn’t train you how to stabilize your movement. But, if you are solely focusing on just training those leg muscles, then a single-leg press is good enough.

For us to find the best alternative, those workouts should have the same effect.

Single-Leg Press Alternative And How To Do Them

Here is a list of workouts that develop muscles the same way as the single-leg press does. You can do all of these workouts without any use of gym machines.

Please take note, however, that when you do these next series of workouts, do it properly. Avoid using your knees as the primary movement, and doing so will put unnecessary strain on your knees, and this can cause injuries. We are doing these workouts to work out your leg muscles, so use them.

Squats

The squat is the simplest one on this list. Squats primarily target the quads, glutes, and hamstrings. However, back muscles, calves, and ankles play an important role in making this exercise effective. Here is how to do your squats:

1. Stand up straight and keep your feet shoulder-width apart. Plant your feet on the floor and raise your toes so that they don’t touch the floor.
2. To balance yourself, either raise your arms forward or clasp them together as you go down.
3. Put your hips back as if you are going to sit on a chair. Bend the knees and lower the buttocks, and as you go down, keep your back straight and chest outward.
4. Lower your buttocks enough until it is parallel to the floor.
5. Now use your lower muscles to stand up. Repeat the process as many times as you want.

To make it challenging, do some weighted squats. Hold some dumbbells on both hands to increase the weight.

Single-Leg Press By Using Resistance Bands

This workout works the same way as the regular single-leg press. But instead of a machine, we use resistance bands as a replacement. Here is how you can do leg press by using resistance bands:

1. Lie flat on the floor. Next, lift your legs by 90 degrees and bend your knees.
2. Hold the ends of the resistance band with your hands and wrap them around your feet. Make sure to keep both of your feet on the same level.
3. Finally, stretch out your legs until it is fully straight. Once that’s done, bring back your legs to the previous position.
4. Repeat it as many times as you need to.

To increase the resistance from resistance bands, simply increase the number of wraps.

Bridge Workout

The bridge workout targets both the core and your buttocks, offering the same benefits as single-leg press machines. Here is how to do bridges:

1. Lie on your back and bend your knees.
2. Both of your arms should be on the side. You won’t need them for this workout.
3. Raise your hips by tightening the buttocks. As my instructor previously mentioned, It’s like holding a coin in your buttocks and making sure to not let them go.
4. Raise your hips until it is a straight line from your knees to your hips. After that, slowly put them down.
5. Repeat as many times as you need to.

Add some weights on your hips if you want it to be more challenging.

Lunges

Lunges are also as simple as squats. Just like single-leg, lunges will not put any strain on your back. It looks fairly simple, and everyone can do it. Lunges develop your hamstrings, quads, and glutes. Here is how you can do it:

1. Stand up straight and step one foot forward until the leg reaches a 90-degree angle.
2. After that, lift the lunging leg back and return to standing straight.
3. Finally, do the first step again, and this time, use the other leg and repeat the steps.

Make it more challenging by doing lunges with dumbbells. Have each hand hold a dumbbell while performing lunges. Hold them sideways or in front of you.

The Conclusion

These are some of the best alternatives for your single-press workout. You can easily do each of them in the comfort of your home without needing the actual single-leg press equipment. Aside from you’re saving money, you’re saving time by staying home and you’re comfortable going through your routines without being troubled by anyone else.