When it comes to building lower body strength and size, it’s important to be able to target specific muscle groups effectively. Knee-dominant/quad-dominant exercises focus on the quadriceps, the four (where the “quad” in quadriceps comes from) large muscles on the front of your thighs (trust us, there are four, whether you can see them or not), and are essential for sculpting an impressive pair of legs.
Understanding these exercises and how to integrate them into your workout routine can significantly improve your overall strength, mobility, and athletic performance. This article will cover what knee/quad-dominant exercises are, highlight the best exercises, and provide tips on how to include them in your fitness program.
What Are Knee-Dominant Exercises?
Knee-dominant exercises are movements that primarily involve bending and extending the knee joint, placing a significant emphasis on the quadriceps. These exercises are called “quad-dominant” because they primarily target the quads, though they also engage other lower body muscles, including the glutes and hamstrings to a lesser extent, depending on the exercise.
Key Characteristics of Knee-Dominant Exercises:
Primary Movement: Flexion and extension at the knee joint.
Primary Muscles Worked: Quadriceps, with secondary involvement of glutes, hamstrings, and calves.
Benefits of Knee-Dominant Exercises:
Builds Quad Strength: Essential for leg development and balanced muscle growth. This becomes even more critical to keep mobility as we get older.
Improves Functional Fitness: Helps make everyday activities such as standing up from a seated position, climbing stairs, and walking easier.
Supports Athletic Performance: Key for athletes in sports requiring explosive leg movements, like basketball, soccer, and cycling. Want to increase that vertical jump? Start hitting those quads.
Aids in Injury Prevention: Strengthens the muscles around the knee joint, providing better stability and reducing the risk of knee injuries.
Top Knee-Dominant/Quad-Dominant Exercises
This is in no way a complete list of these exercises, just our favorites.
1. Squats
The fundamental movement for lower body strength, targeting the quads, glutes, and hamstrings. Unless you have a medical reason why you can’t, you should be trying to incorporate some sort of squat into your routine. Squats have been proven multiple times to increase testosterone levels in the body¹, meaning they can actually help you see gains in other muscle groups.
Variations include: back squats, front squats, goblet squats, and split squats. Learn more.
2. Lunges
If you were to look up a description of lunges, you’d probably get something along the lines of, “Lunges are a versatile exercise that challenges balance and coordination while targeting the quads.” The real description should be, “Lunges will make you second-guess every decision you’ve made in your life, and make you question why you’re doing them almost every step of the way.” They are that hard. But, I find myself doing them every week, because they work. Your quads, hamstrings, and glutes will all be burning so good by the end of your set.
Variations include: forward, reverse, lateral, and walking lunges. Learn More.
3. Step-Ups
I know, I know. You see step-ups and think of exercise videos with Spandex in neon colors and rolled down slouch socks. But step-ups can actually be an outstanding addition to any lower-body workout, no matter the fitness level. Starting with a simple fitness step and working up to a weight bench or plyo box, step-ups will give your quads a beastly workout, with more hamstrings and glutes getting involved with a higher surface.
Variations include: goblet step-ups, lateral step-ups, crossover step-ups
4. Leg Press
You’ve seen people in the gym do these all sorts of interesting ways. The guy that loads every single plate in the gym on it, then has a friend sit on top, just to move to the weight about a half inch. The person that rolls up like a cinnamon bun at the bottom of the movement. Both great ways to get hurt doing this exercise. If you want to see results, you’ll follow the advice from Jay Cutler above. Move your feet to different positions on the footplate to target different areas of your legs.
Variations include: narrow stance, wide stance, feet high on the footplate, feet low on the footplate
5. Leg Extensions
This exercise certainly isn’t for everyone. If you have had knee surgery, or recurring knee problems, you’re probably going to want to consult your doctor before making these a mainstay in your workouts. This is truly a knee-dominant exercise, with that being the only point of movement. Leg extensions are a great way to get volume into a leg workout, my favorite thing to do is use them for burn-out sets at the end of my workout to really finish off my quads.
Variations include: toes in, toes out, negatives, partials
Related: 5 Best Substitutes for Leg Extensions
6. Wall Sits
This exercise is a little different from the others on this list, since it’s an isometric hold. I was first introduced to wall sits at a soccer camp when I was 12 years old, and based on that you can see how much of an impact they had on me. 60 seconds felt more like 60 years. Once you slide down into position, it won’t be long until you start feeling the burn deep in your quads. But fight through it! You’ll be rewarded with a strong base for squatting.
Variations include: narrow stance, heels raised, single-leg, with forward plate hold
7. Bulgarian Split Squats
Imagine doing a really deep lunge. Ok, now imagine doing a deeper one, and not getting any relief at the top of the movement. Bulgarian split squats take the brutality of lunges and take it up a level by elevating your back foot. A word of caution, make sure you’re within arm’s reach of a railing when going up or down stairs after these bad boys.
Variations include: Zercher BSS, negatives, isometric holds, landmine BSS
How to Incorporate Knee-Dominant Exercises Into Your Workout Routine
Balance With Hip-Dominant Exercises: To avoid muscle imbalances, combine knee-dominant exercises with hip-dominant ones (deadlifts, glute bridges), like deadlifts and glute bridges. This ensures that both the anterior (front) and posterior (back) muscle groups of your lower body are equally strengthened.
Program Frequency and Volume: Include knee-dominant exercises in your routine 2-3 times per week. For beginners, start with 2-3 sets of 8-12 reps per exercise. Advanced trainees can increase the sets, reps, or resistance based on their strength and fitness goals.
Warm-Up and Mobility: Properly warming up with dynamic stretches and mobility drills, focusing on the hips, knees, and ankles, can improve your range of motion and reduce injury risk.
Progression and Variation: Progressively increase resistance or complexity, such as adding weights or trying unilateral (single-leg) variations. Introducing changes like tempo adjustments (slower descents or explosive rises) can also challenge your muscles differently.
Mind Your Form: Always focus on maintaining proper form to protect your knees and lower back. Use mirrors or seek guidance from a fitness professional if needed.
Wrap-Up
Knee-dominant exercises are a key component of a balanced and effective lower body workout routine. By incorporating a mix of these movements into your program, you’ll not only build stronger quads but also enhance your overall functional fitness and athletic performance.
Remember to balance these exercises with hip-dominant movements, listen to your body, and progress gradually to achieve optimal results. Start including these exercises today, and experience the benefits of stronger, more powerful legs!
Related: Key Exercise Movement Patterns You Need To Train
References:
Wilk, Michal, et al. “Endocrine Response to High Intensity Barbell Squats Performed with Constant Movement Tempo and Variable Training Volume.” Neuro Endocrinology Letters, vol. 39, no. 4, 1 Oct. 2018, pp. 342–348, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30531700/.
