Ditch the Leg Press: 5 Bodyweight Alternatives for Stronger Legs at Home

Ask trainers to name the best leg exercise, and most of them will say squats. That’s hardly surprising, given how effective squats can be for building muscle mass and strength. Squats are also a highly functional movement, so it’s no wonder they’re often called the king of exercises.

However, squats are not the only way to build the lower body of your dreams. For some lifters, leg presses may be a better choice.  

The leg press guides the weight so you can push your muscles to failure in relative safety. They also provide plenty of back support. Additionally, in my experience as a veteran personal trainer, leg presses are easier to learn than squats, so they’re an excellent choice for beginners.

But what if you work out at home? In that case, you probably won’t have access to a leg press machine – or a squat rack, for that matter. Thankfully, there are plenty of exercises you can do at home that are just as effective as leg presses.

In this article, I reveal my top five bodyweight leg press alternatives for building muscle size and strength at home.

5 Best Bodyweight Leg Press Alternatives for Home Exercisers

Don’t let the lack of a leg press machine stop you from developing a strong, muscular lower body. Build your workouts around these five bodyweight alternatives to achieve your training goals anywhere and anytime.

1. Wall Squat

Wall squats are an isometric or static exercise, meaning your muscles generate force without changing length. Because you’re working against an immovable object, you’re free to push as hard as you want, making wall squats an excellent way to build brute strength. As an added benefit, wall squats are a very joint and spine-friendly exercise.

Steps:

1. Stand with your feet roughly shoulder width apart, back against a smooth wall.
2. Bend your legs and slide down the wall until your thighs are approximately parallel to the floor.
3. Press your lower back against the wall as hard as possible.
4. Hold this position until you feel your strength starting to fail.
5. Stand up, rest a moment, and repeat.

Tips:

• Perform this exercise with your feet together to emphasize your quadriceps or further apart to engage your hips and inner and outer thighs more.
• Instead of pushing as hard as you can, you can also push with less force but for longer to develop muscular endurance. Both approaches work, so try them both.
• For more of a strength challenge, try working one leg at a time like this:

2. Bulgarian Split Squat

Many home leg exercises are too easy because you use both legs to lift your body weight. Bulgarian split squats put roughly 70% of your weight on your front leg, making them considerably more challenging. In addition, this exercise is an excellent way to improve balance and hip mobility while addressing any left-to-right strength imbalances.

Steps:

1. Stand with your back to a bench, chair, or step. Bend one leg and place the top of your foot on the platform behind you.
2. Hop forward into a split stance. Most of your leg should be on your front foot. Use your rear leg mostly for balance.
3. Bend your legs and descend until your rear knee lightly touches the floor. Keep your torso relatively upright and your front knee behind your toes throughout.
4. Stand back up and repeat.
5. Rest a moment, swap legs, and do the same number of reps on the other side.

Tips:

• Hold a dumbbell in each hand or a kettlebell in front of your chest to make this exercise more challenging.
• Place your front foot on a 4 to 6-inch platform to increase your range of motion and, therefore, the mobility demand and difficulty of this exercise.
• Descend slowly but then explode upward to turn this exercise into a Bulgarian split squat jump, which is a VERY challenging bodyweight leg exercise:

3. Shrimp Squat

One of the best ways to make bodyweight training better for building strength is to work one limb at a time. Shrimp squats are a simple yet effective unilateral leg exercise that most people can master in just a few workouts. In addition to being a great strength builder, shrimp squats are also an effective exercise for developing better mobility and balance.

Steps:

1. Stand with your feet together, arms by your sides.
2. Shift your weight over onto one leg, bend your knee, and lift your foot off the floor.
3. Bend your supporting leg and descend until your bent knee lightly touches the floor. Do not let your non-weight-bearing foot touch down.
4. Simultaneously, raise your arms forward for balance.
5. Stand back up, lower your arms, and repeat.
6. Rest a moment, switch legs, and do the same number of reps on the other side.

Tips:

• Do this exercise next to a handrail or similar and use it for balance if necessary.
• Stand on a 4 to 6-inch platform so you can descend further and make this exercise even more challenging.
• You can also do this exercise “old school calisthenics style” by holding your non-weight-bearing foot and keeping it pulled into your butt, like this:

Read more about shrimp squats in our in-depth guide.

4. Jumping Lunge

Lunges are one of the best bodyweight lower body exercises around. Emphasizing one leg at a time, lunges work all your major walking and running muscles, making them ideal for athletes from all sports, as well as general fitness enthusiasts. While there is nothing wrong with conventional lunges, adding a jump takes this exercise to a whole new level.  

Steps:

1. Stand with your feet together and your arms by your sides.
2. Step forward and bend both legs, lowering your rear knee down to lightly touch the floor.
3. Drive off your front leg and jump into the air.
4. While in the air, sweep your front leg back and your back leg forward.
5. Land in a split stance, descend into another lunge and repeat.

Tips:

• The higher you jump, the more demanding this exercise becomes.
• Use your arms for extra momentum.
• Do this exercise with dumbbells to make it more challenging:

5. Pistol Squat

Pistol squats are arguably the most challenging bodyweight leg exercise. Requiring equal amounts of strength, balance, and mobility, this exercise can humble even the most experienced lifter. So, don’t worry if you cannot do them straight away; they may take a few weeks to master. Keep practicing, though, as pistol squats are a very rewarding, worthwhile exercise.

Steps:

1. Stand with your feet together and your arms by your sides.
2. Shift your weight over onto one leg. Extend your other leg out in front of you.
3. Extend your arms, bend your supporting knee, and squat down as deeply as you can. Keep your non-weight-bearing leg out in front of you, making sure it does not touch the floor.
4. Stand back up and repeat.
5. Rest a moment, switch sides, and repeat.

Tips:

• Start off by squatting only halfway down. Increase your range of motion as you get stronger.
• Hold a light dumbbell out in front of you for better balance.
• Use a TRX or similar suspension trainer for assistance if required:

Read more about pistol squats in this in-depth guide.

At-Home Bodyweight Leg Workouts for Strength

While any of these bodyweight exercises will help you build strength at home, you’ll experience better results if you follow a structured training program. To that end, here are two workouts that include the five exercises listed above, plus some additional movements for your hamstrings and calves.

But, before you begin either program, make sure you prepare your muscles and joints with an appropriate warm-up. Start with a few minutes of light cardio, e.g., jump rope or jogging, followed by dynamic mobility and flexibility exercises for your ankles, knees, hips, and lower back.

Ready? Then let’s get to work!

Workout One

Do this workout as part of a split routine where you train your upper body later in the week. For example:

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
Leg Workout 1	Upper Body Push	Cardio & Core	Leg Workout 2	Upper Body Pull	Cardio & Core	Rest

 

	Exercise	Sets	Reps*	Recovery
1	Pistol squat	4	4-6 per leg	2 minutes
2	Bulgarian split squat	3	10-12 per leg	90 seconds
3	B-Stance Romanian Deadlift	3	10-12 per leg	90 seconds
4	Reverse Nordics	3	8-10	2 minutes
5	Tiptoe farmer’s walk	3	15-20 yards	90 seconds

*Adjust your rep count to reflect your current strength. Continue each set until you are close to failure, but your form is still good. Try to increase your rep count over the coming weeks.

Workout Two

Do this workout 2-3 days after #1 to allow adequate time for rest and recovery.

	Exercise	Sets	Reps*	Recovery
1	Shrimp squat	4	8-10 per leg	90 seconds
2	Jumping lunge	3	8-10 per leg	90 seconds
3	Nordic curls	3	10-12	90 seconds
4	Wall squat	3	20-30 seconds	90 seconds
5	Single-leg calf raise	3	12-15 per leg	60 seconds

*Adjust your rep count to reflect your current strength. Continue each set until you are close to failure, but your form is still good. Try to increase your rep count over the coming weeks.

Related: The Squat vs. the Leg Press – Which Exercise Reigns Supreme?

Conclusion

Squats are the crowned king of exercises, and leg presses come a close second. However, neither of these exercises is compulsory, and you can build a strong, muscular lower body without either of these gym staples.

Movements like Bulgarian split squats, shrimp squats, and pistols require nothing more than your body weight and a little space, making them ideal for home workouts. You can also do them while traveling or on vacation, so there really are no excuses for missing leg day.

While you may need to do more reps to reach failure, that doesn’t matter much. Research tells us that muscle tension and proximity to failure are what drives your strength training success, not your rep range (1).

So, don’t feel that training at home dooms you to a life of weak, skinny legs. Embrace the exercises and workouts in this article and build the lower body of your dreams wherever and whenever you train.

Next Read: The Best Calisthenic Leg Workout

References:

1. Grgic J, Schoenfeld BJ, Orazem J, Sabol F. Effects of resistance training performed to repetition failure or non-failure on muscular strength and hypertrophy: A systematic review and meta-analysis. J Sport Health Sci. 2022 Mar;11(2):202-211. doi: 10.1016/j.jshs.2021.01.007. Epub 2021 Jan 23. PMID: 33497853; PMCID: PMC9068575.

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