Do Leg Curls Work Glutes?

Execution

The leg curl is considered an isolation exercise because it isolates or uses one joint, in this case the knee joint. Regardless of your positioning or the equipment you are using, leg curls involve slowly flexing your knees and bringing the heels of your knees towards you buttocks. You then slowly lower your legs to the starting position and repeat.

Muscles Worked

A study in the May 1999 issue of the "Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research" concluded that the leg curl is an effective exercise for strengthening the hamstrings or the back of the legs. The synergist muscles or those that assist in the exercise and are thus also strengthened are gastrocnemeus in the calf, the sartorius and gracilius in the upper leg and the popliteus or knee flexors. Depending on the variation of the exercise that you are using, you may also be able to work your glute muscles to a lesser extent.

Variations

The glutes are made up of three different muscles: The gluteus maximus, medius and minimus. Some variations of the leg curl use one or more of these muscles as secondary movers. The stability ball leg curl uses the gluteus maximus as stabilizer while the cable standing leg curl and the cable bent-over leg curl uses the gluteus medius and the gluteus minimus as stabilizers. The lever kneeling leg curl uses the gluteus medius and the gluteus maximus as stabilizers.

Glute Exercises

A study published in the 1999 issue of the American Council of Exercise’s magazine “Fitness Matters” ranked the top glute exercises. The study noted that quadruped him extension is the best exercise for strengthening both the gluteus maximus and the gluteus minimus. The study further noted that this exercise is much more effective than the traditional squat which has long been thought to be the gold standard for strengthening the glute muscles.