Bodybuilding is embedded in Erin Stern’s DNA, and as a former two-time Olympia winner, she’s got tricks up her sleeve. In a YouTube video shared on July 2, 2025, she detailed her top five favorite quad exercises that promote strength, mobility, and injury prevention.
“When it comes to building the ideal and complete physique, legs play a huge part in this,” shared Stern. “We’re not just talking about aesthetics here, we’re also talking about strength, mobility, and injury prevention.”
Erin Stern led the Women’s Figure category in 2010 and 2012, proving she had the tools to win back the sport’s most prestigious title. Though her reign eventually came to an end, Stern hasn’t turned her back on training and building a pristine physique.
With over 318,000 YouTube subscribers, she’s had a hand in helping her fans achieve the physiques they’ve long sought after. Maximizing quad development comes with its own challenges but Stern believes these movements will fast-track gains inside the gym.
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Erin Stern’s Top Quad-Building Exercises
Find the workout featured in her recent YouTube video down below:
- Heel-Elevated Dumbbell Hack Squat
- Weighted Step-Ups
- Narrow-Stance Front Squat
- Bulgarian Split Squat (Quad Focused)
- Leg Extension 21s
Heel-Elevated Dumbbell Hack Squat
To start the heel-elevated squat, Stern used a 45-pound bumper plate with light dumbbells. For maximum results, she shared that while you descend, pretend there’s a wall behind you that won’t let you hinge at the hips.
“I’m using a 45-pound bumper plate. The weight is pushed through the toes, light dumbbells here. Feet are together.
The main idea that I want you to really focus on is you want to descend with the idea that there is a wall directly behind you. It’s not going to allow you to hinge at the hips, pushing the hips back. You’re going to keep your body stacked with your shoulders, your core, and your hips directly underneath you.”
Weighted Step-Ups
Stern said to stick with lighter dumbbells for weighted step-ups and to let your lead leg do all of the work.
“This is going to be a bit more of a dynamic exercise. You’re going to grab light dumbbells with the idea here that we’re pushing through the toe on this exercise.
I want you to also think about the lead leg doing all of the work here, you’re going drive the knee of that non-working leg but think about pulling yourself up with that lead leg. We’re alternating sides here as we go.”
Narrow-Stance Front Squat
To maximize gains on the narrow-stance front squat, she instructed lifters to keep their feet as close as possible while pushing through the toes.
“If you can keep your feet as close together as possible, pushing through the toes, you’re going to get much more out of this exercise. Hold that bar in rack position so you want it across the divots of your shoulder, just touching your collarbone, keeping your elbows up.”
Bulgarian Split Squat (Quad Focused)
When performing the quad-focused Bulgarian split squat, Stern emphasized proper posture, encouraging lifters to keep the upper body tall and upright.
“We’re making it quad-focused by focusing on a few different things. Pushing through the toe of that working or that lead leg there, holding the dumbbell on one side and keeping the upper body tall and upright. The upper body is going to be almost perpendicular to the floor.”
Leg Extension 21s
To fully torch the quads, Stern uses leg extension 21s as a finisher, which starts with seven reps in the lower-half range of motion, another seven on the upper-half range of motion, and full range of motion for the final seven reps.
“Leg extensions 21s. So we’re going to start with seven reps in that lower half range of motion,” she shared. “Next, we’re moving on to seven reps in that upper half of that range of motion. Rep out all seven and then we’re going to go seven reps full range of motion.”
With summer upon us, Stern has consistently offered workouts that can help with fat loss. She recently broke down a pair of barbell complex finishers that accelerate fat loss while helping improve overall strength and endurance.
Stern’s specialized exercises illustrate the level of detail she brings to routines. She believes these five quad exercises are full of value if executed properly.
RELATED: Bodybuilder Erin Stern’s Calorie-Burning Back and Abs Workout for a Smaller Waist
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