Banded leg press

[Golden]

I've never used them, but I've been meaning to ever since I saw this video:

If you don't feel like watching it, it's Stan Efferding talking about how banded leg presses alleviated his knee issues

I’ve always just seen banded hack or leg press as an excuse to put more plates on the machine for show but helping with knee pain, I’m all ears for that

 

[d4ve]

I’ve always just seen banded hack or leg press as an excuse to put more plates on the machine for show but helping with knee pain, I’m all ears for that

I think you're confusing banding with reverse banding...the latter of which has become so common, it's almost as if people have forgotten (or never knew) you can use bands to make a given bar weight MORE challenging, lol.

In the Efferding video you posted, he's 100% talking about leg pressing against bands. You'll modify the resistance profile in a similar way with a reverse band setup, which may alleviate some painful sensation from the bottom of the movement. But you won't be getting the more restorative, elastic feel from pressing against band tension, nor will you get the nice "locked-into-place" feeling.

I guess reverse-banding still has its place, and there are certainly a handful of great bodybuilders with ridiculous quads who heavily RB their hacks (Brett Wilkin comes to mind). But my lower quads have never progressed as fast as when I stopped using that setup and just stuck to straight weight with an occasional foray into hack squatting against bands.

Leg press...I press against bands all the time, but the only time I've found a reverse setup was warranted was using the absurdly heavy, absurdly STEEP leg press at the EliteFTS compound. The thing had like 3 bands per side already set up in reverse, and after I peeled a couple off I realized it wasn't just ego lifters that put them on their in the first place

 

[EnhancedFatGrappler]

Am I the only one here who's never used bands even once?

John Meadows was big on them. He threw them on anything, DBs, BBs, Machines, bodyweight, etc.

But I just don't see the reason for them in a normal gym with machines. I already get weird looks, can't imagine what happens when I start bringing in a stack of bands lol

 

[Golden]

I think you're confusing banding with reverse banding...the latter of which has become so common, it's almost as if people have forgotten (or never knew) you can use bands to make a given bar weight MORE challenging, lol.

In the Efferding video you posted, he's 100% talking about leg pressing against bands. You'll modify the resistance profile in a similar way with a reverse band setup, which may alleviate some painful sensation from the bottom of the movement. But you won't be getting the more restorative, elastic feel from pressing against band tension, nor will you get the nice "locked-into-place" feeling.

I guess reverse-banding still has its place, and there are certainly a handful of great bodybuilders with ridiculous quads who heavily RB their hacks (Brett Wilkin comes to mind). But my lower quads have never progressed as fast as when I stopped using that setup and just stuck to straight weight with an occasional foray into hack squatting against bands.

Leg press...I press against bands all the time, but the only time I've found a reverse setup was warranted was using the absurdly heavy, absurdly STEEP leg press at the EliteFTS compound. The thing had like 3 bands per side already set up in reverse, and after I peeled a couple off I realized it wasn't just ego lifters that put them on their in the first place

I assumed in the likes of a hack squat, the band would be at its tightest so as to aid the bottom part of the lift where most stress would be on the knee. I thought that’s how stan was taking load from his knees

 

[TheOtherOne55]

John Meadows was big on them. He threw them on anything, DBs, BBs, Machines, bodyweight, etc.

But I just don't see the reason for them in a normal gym with machines. I already get weird looks, can't imagine what happens when I start bringing in a stack of bands lol

There's a reason why you dont see guys banding 185lbs....because you band when you incredibly strong and not just having really good workouts. Banding is MORE challenging so obviously one wouldnt even neeed to make something more challenging when they are still a looong ways to go from advanced. Not saying you arent advanced, but youre reply is a, "why would i need to band..." and there are plenty of reasons when you are a 290lb hulking human.

 

[primobolan]

For arguments sake. You're reducing the maximum load you would normally use in the stretched position thus reducing hypertrophy. Nuance, it’s all good.

 

[EnhancedFatGrappler]

There's a reason why you dont see guys banding 185lbs....because you band when you incredibly strong and not just having really good workouts. Banding is MORE challenging so obviously one wouldnt even neeed to make something more challenging when they are still a looong ways to go from advanced. Not saying you arent advanced, but youre reply is a, "why would i need to band..." and there are plenty of reasons when you are a 290lb hulking human.

So how are you using bands in your training? Every workout? Every exercise? Just a few? Curious !

 

[TheOtherOne55]

So how are you using bands in your training? Every workout? Every exercise? Just a few? Curious !

For me, maybe a couple times a week depending on what body part and the intensity. I’m much more likely to use them on chest and leg days than anything else. A great way to make a leg day even more killer.

 

[d4ve]

For me, maybe a couple times a week depending on what body part and the intensity. I’m much more likely to use them on chest and leg days than anything else. A great way to make a leg day even more killer.

Exact same re: chest and legs. Once you’re really strong, it’s heavy pressing and heavy squat patterns that really get risky with straight weight, done early in the workout.

My favorite sequence for chest lately is banded DB press - smith incline - one or two fly movements. Maybe one of the flies first.

I may do the backoff set on DB press with straight weight but at that point all the warmups and top set with bands have everything nice and warm and just the right amount of pre-fatigued.

 

[d4ve]

For arguments sake. You're reducing the maximum load you would normally use in the stretched position thus reducing hypertrophy. Nuance, it’s all good.

I haven’t honestly read the research here (not that I put a ton of stock in it), but I don’t think this is true, at least not in all cases. Not every muscle gets the best stimulus at the lengthened position.

Ironically chest and quads I’m pretty sure DO get a lot of passive tension / lengthened range stimulus, but you have to put it in context. I’d rather string together a year’s worth of 8-9 / 10 sessions than weeks of maybe 10/10 only to get injured- which is more than likely if I bang away at the lengthened range constantly on heavy presses and squats.

I think Meadows generalized this idea better than almost anyone. His sessions were sequenced perfectly to make the most of lengthened range tension, load, pump, etc. in a relatively safe way.

 

[danieltx]

For arguments sake. You're reducing the maximum load you would normally use in the stretched position thus reducing hypertrophy. Nuance, it’s all good.

I haven’t honestly read the research here (not that I put a ton of stock in it), but I don’t think this is true, at least not in all cases. Not every muscle gets the best stimulus at the lengthened position.

Ironically chest and quads I’m pretty sure DO get a lot of passive tension / lengthened range stimulus, but you have to put it in context. I’d rather string together a year’s worth of 8-9 / 10 sessions than weeks of maybe 10/10 only to get injured- which is more than likely if I bang away at the lengthened range constantly on heavy presses and squats.

I think Meadows generalized this idea better than almost anyone. His sessions were sequenced perfectly to make the most of lengthened range tension, load, pump, etc. in a relatively safe way.

This is like when guys tell me I'm destroying my knees and missing out on hypertrophy by using knee wraps every week on heavy squats and leg press. I've never had knee issues and have one of the best sets of quads on this board. Science and real-world bodybuilding are two different - often extremely different - things.

 

[3BILLS]

and have one of the best sets of quads on this board.

Seems like your the only person that keeps saying this...

 

[EnhancedFatGrappler]

For me, maybe a couple times a week depending on what body part and the intensity. I’m much more likely to use them on chest and leg days than anything else. A great way to make a leg day even more killer.

Could you please give me an example how you use it on a typical leg day? And what you would do differently if you don't have bands? I'm still not yet really wrapping my head around, haha.

 

[SouthernMuscle]

Could you please give me an example how you use it on a typical leg day? And what you would do differently if you don't have bands? I'm still not yet really wrapping my head around, haha.

For me on a chest day the exercises remain the same and I’ll add bands to incline and flat press. I just put the band around the pegs on the bench and then around the bar.

I like to use a decent amount of resistance on the bands so the weight added to the bar is lower than without bands.

 

[3BILLS]

For me on a chest day the exercises remain the same and I’ll add bands to incline and flat press. I just put the band around the pegs on the bench and then around the bar.

I like to use a decent amount of resistance on the bands so the weight added to the bar is lower than without bands.

 

[Bigpoppaseth]

The bands are great. Just don’t use them every workout imo

 

[juggy38]

Banded leg press, reverse band hacks/smith, banded RDL pulling hips back