Leg Workout: Leg Day Plan, Gym and Dumbbell Only

Leg muscles: what each group does

Your legs hold the largest muscles in your body. Four groups do most of the work on leg day, and each needs a different movement to be trained fully. The glutes work on most of these exercises too and have their own glute exercises guide.

Leg muscle groups and their functions
Group	Muscles	Main job	Key exercises
Quads	Rectus femoris and three vastus muscles	Straighten the knee; rectus femoris also lifts the thigh	Squat, leg press, split squat, leg extension
Hamstrings	Biceps femoris, semitendinosus, semimembranosus	Bend the knee and extend the hip	Romanian deadlift, leg curl, Nordic curl
Adductors	Adductor magnus, longus, brevis, gracilis	Pull the leg in, help extend the hip in deep squats	Squat, sumo stance, adduction machine, Copenhagen plank
Calves	Gastrocnemius, soleus	Point the foot down, push off the ground	Standing calf raise (gastrocnemius), seated calf raise (soleus)

All leg exercises

Barbell back squatQuads and glutes

Barbell front squatQuads and glutes

Goblet squat: quads and glutes highlighted

Goblet squatQuads and glutesGuide

Bodyweight squatQuads and glutes

Box squat to benchQuads and glutes

Leg pressQuads and glutesGuide

Wall sitQuads

Romanian deadlift: hamstrings and glutes highlighted

Romanian deadliftHamstrings and glutesGuide

Dumbbell Romanian deadliftHamstrings and glutes

Single-leg Romanian deadliftHamstrings and glutes

Dumbbell walking lungeQuads and glutes

Reverse lungeQuads and glutes

Split squatQuads and glutes

Bulgarian split squatQuads and glutesGuide

Dumbbell step-upQuads and glutes

Leg extensionQuads

Lying leg curlHamstrings

Seated leg curlHamstrings

Nordic hamstring curlHamstrings

Standing calf raiseCalves

Seated calf raiseCalves

Single-leg calf raiseCalves

Hip adduction machineAdductors

Copenhagen plankAdductors

Barbell deadlift: glutes and hamstrings and lower back highlighted

Barbell deadliftGlutes and hamstringsGuide

Trap bar deadliftGlutes and quads

Kettlebell swingGlutes and hamstrings

Best leg exercises, ranked

Back squat: trains quads, glutes and adductors with the heaviest loads you can handle on two legs. If the barbell feels hard to learn, start with the goblet squat.
Romanian deadlift: the best hamstring builder with free weights, loading them in a long stretch. Form is in the Romanian deadlift guide.
Leg press: heavy quad work without balancing a bar on your back, great for higher reps. Foot position matters; see the leg press guide.
Bulgarian split squat: the hardest single leg exercise most people do, and one of the best for quads and glutes with only dumbbells. The Bulgarian split squat guide covers stance length.
Deadlift: a full posterior chain lift. On a lower day it often replaces the RDL. Read the deadlift guide first.
Lying or seated leg curl: the knee bending job of the hamstrings is not trained by RDLs, so a curl completes them.
Leg extension: isolates the quads, including the rectus femoris, which squats train less.
Standing calf raise: full stretch at the bottom, one second pause at the top. Calves need consistent direct work.

Leg day workout for the gym

This leg day workout takes 60 to 75 minutes. Do the heavy compound lifts first while you are fresh.

Gym leg day workout
Exercise	Sets x reps	Rest	Focus
Back squat	4 x 5 to 8	2 to 3 min	Quads, glutes, adductors
Romanian deadlift	3 x 8 to 10	2 min	Hamstrings, glutes
Leg press	3 x 10 to 12	2 min	Quads
Lying leg curl	3 x 10 to 15	60 to 90 s	Hamstrings
Leg extension	2 x 12 to 15	60 s	Quads
Standing calf raise	4 x 10 to 15	60 s	Calves

On push pull legs this is your legs day. Training legs twice a week on an upper lower split? Use this as lower day A and make lower day B hinge focused: deadlift or hip thrust first, then Bulgarian split squats, seated leg curls and seated calf raises.

Dumbbell leg workout (home or gym)

A pair of dumbbells and a chair or bench is enough for a hard leg workout. Single leg exercises make light weights feel heavy.

Dumbbell leg workout
Exercise	Sets x reps	Rest	Focus
Goblet squat	4 x 8 to 15	90 s	Quads, glutes
Dumbbell Romanian deadlift	3 x 8 to 12	90 s	Hamstrings, glutes
Bulgarian split squat	3 x 8 to 12 per leg	90 s	Quads, glutes
Dumbbell step-up	2 x 10 per leg	60 s	Quads, glutes
Single-leg calf raise holding a dumbbell	3 x 10 to 15 per leg	60 s	Calves

The gap at home is a hamstring curl. Nordic hamstring curls with your heels under a sofa, or sliding leg curls on a towel, fill it. For a bodyweight leg workout, use the same list with slow 3 second lowering and single leg versions.

Quads vs hamstrings: balancing your leg day

Most leg workouts are quad heavy: squats, leg press, lunges and leg extensions all straighten the knee. The hamstrings get less unless you plan for them. A good rule of thumb is at least one hinge and one leg curl for every two quad exercises.

Quads vs hamstrings
	Quads	Hamstrings
Main job	Straighten the knee	Bend the knee and extend the hip
Compound exercise	Squat, leg press, split squat	Romanian deadlift, deadlift, good morning
Isolation exercise	Leg extension	Lying or seated leg curl, Nordic curl
Typical reps	5 to 15	6 to 12 on hinges, 8 to 15 on curls
Common gap	Rarely undertrained	Knee bending job often skipped

Sets, reps and frequency for legs

Weekly leg training by level
Level	Leg sessions per week	Hard sets per week (quads / hamstrings)	Reps
Beginner	2	6 to 8 / 4 to 6	8 to 12
Intermediate	2	10 to 14 / 8 to 12	5 to 15
Advanced	2 to 3	12 to 20 / 10 to 16	3 to 20

These are typical ranges. Two leg days a week let you train hard and still recover. Calves do well with 6 to 12 sets a week. Add 2.5 to 5 kg (5 to 10 lb) to squats and RDLs when you hit the top of the range in every set; see progressive overload. To see how your squat compares, check the squat strength standards.

Gripp

Gripp plans the next leg day for you

Gripp is coming to iPhone. Log your squats, presses and curls set by set and Gripp tells you what to lift next time. Each exercise has an estimated max on a progress chart, and your legs are rated against people of your age and bodyweight next to your other muscle groups.

Join the waitlist

Leg workout mistakes

Skipping hamstrings. Add an RDL and a leg curl every week.
Shallow squats. Go as deep as you can with a neutral back. Quarter squats limit how much the quads and glutes grow.
Knees caving in. Push the knees out in line with the toes on squats, presses and lunges.
Bouncing calf raises. Pause in the stretch at the bottom and at the top. Calves are springy and will cheat otherwise.
Leg press with the lower back lifting off the pad. Stop the descent before your hips curl up.
Ignoring knee pain. Change depth, stance or exercise. If pain stays, see a physiotherapist.

See every squat, hinge, lunge and calf exercise in the exercise library.

Questions people ask

What is the best leg workout?

One that combines a squat or leg press, a Romanian deadlift, a single leg exercise like the Bulgarian split squat, a leg curl and a calf raise, done twice a week with steady progression.

Can I build legs with only dumbbells?

Yes. Goblet squats, dumbbell RDLs, Bulgarian split squats and step-ups train every major leg muscle. Single leg exercises keep them hard as you get stronger.

How many exercises should a leg day have?

Four to six: one or two compound lifts for the quads, one hinge, one hamstring curl and one calf exercise. Beginners can start with three or four.

How often should I train legs?

Twice a week suits most people. Once a week can work if that session is hard enough, but two shorter sessions usually recover better.

Should I train quads and hamstrings on the same day?

Yes, most programs do. Start with the exercise you most want to improve. Some lifters prefer a quad focused day and a hamstring focused day on an upper lower split.

Are squats enough for a leg workout?

Squats train the quads, glutes and adductors, but they barely train the hamstrings' knee bending job or the calves. Add a hinge, a leg curl and a calf raise.

Leg workout: a complete leg day for the gym and at home