Legs · Squat and lunge
Seated Cable Leg Extension
The Seated Cable Leg Extension mainly trains your quads.
One cable
Stool or box
Wrist/ankle cuff
Standing, light pull
How to do it
- Sit on the edge of a bench or stool with your back to the machine
- Back of your knee at the edge, hands holding the seat
- Extend your leg fully against the pull and hold briefly at the top
- Lower slowly: then switch sides
Coach’s tip
Place the seat far enough from the pulley that the cable is already under tension with your knee bent. Ideal as a finisher after squats: not as a replacement.
Noticeably loads the knee. If you tell DCFT that this joint bothers you, the app leaves exercises like this one out and picks a better supported alternative.
Setup
Pulley
Pulley at the bottom, behind the seat
Grip
Cuff on your ankle, hands on the seat
Load
One cable
You need
Stool or box, Wrist/ankle cuff
Stability
Standing with a moderate load. Brace your core.
Alternatives
Other exercises for the same movement (squat and lunge). In DCFT you can swap with one tap, and the app only offers what your equipment allows.
Questions about this exercise
What muscles does the Seated Cable Leg Extension work?
Mainly the quads.
How do I set up the cable machine for the Seated Cable Leg Extension?
Pulley: Pulley at the bottom, behind the seat. Grip: Cuff on your ankle, hands on the seat. You also need: Stool or box, Wrist/ankle cuff.
What can I do instead of the Seated Cable Leg Extension?
For the same movement: Cable Belt Squat, Cable Bar Front Squat and Cable Split Squat. In DCFT you swap with one tap.
DCFT
The Seated Cable Leg Extension in DCFT
In the app this exercise comes with your weight: the plate to pin, what you lifted last time and a rest timer that starts by itself.
Free on the App Store for iPhone. Pro is a one-time purchase with no subscription.