How to interpret my tier list: All exercises are ranked based on muscle building potential. S tier - My favorite. Do them if you can. A tier - Strongly recommend. B tier - I still do these in certain contexts. There may be better options. C tier - There are better options for most people. Can still have value in some contexts. D tier - Probably not a great option for most people. F tier - Generally not recommended.
How do research studies measure volume. If longer time under tention decreases the amount of reps/sets/weight. How do we scientifically measure what concentric and essentric time is best for hypertrophy? Is a single rep of a 1s Concentric and 3s Eccentric the same as 3 reps of a 1s Consentric and 1s Essentric? Or maybe a single rep with a 3s Concentric and 3s Eccentric being 1:1 to 3 reps with a 1s Concentric and 1s Essentric.
I've recently been able to do hack squats without absolutely blowing out my front knee tendons and I'm very happy to see this. I always feel like I didn't do my leg days hard enough until I have to walk down the stairs of my gym and then I'm like "oh yeah, I did good"😂
id recommend you try to follow a program, theres plenty of free versions out there so id say go for 3-4day a week and do either full body workouts or split upper/lower body on different days, helped me a lot in the beginning both to learn and get a routine going.
I’m also a beginner, but I have been seeing a lot that it’s important to build a strong core early on with the compound movements like barbel squats and Bulgarian split squats, because you don’t want to build super strong legs on things that take your back out of the equation with pendulum squats, and hack squats and then later try to support these heavy weights with your weak back if you learn the barbell squats after the ones that don’t require a stable core as much. Hope that makes sense
@jeffNippard you just compiled my years of gym experience, my trial & errors, watching countless youtube videos & possibly my injury experience in one video. I couldn't agree more to what you said. Even i got the hack squat right as you said it being the best exercise. Man you're making a contribution to the gym community & guys I totally endorse what he says…. just follow it.
I'm sure these videos take so much work to make, but I find them the single most useful piece of bodybuilding content on RUclips. I really hope you cover every other major muscle group in this way. Appreciate the effort, sir!
As someone recently started working out at home with nothing but dumbells, I'm happy to see Bulgarian squats ranked high. In fact I did them for the first time a few hours ago, and will keep doing them till I build myself some space to put a power rack with a barbell.
Belt squats are a game changer. Been doing barbel squats for years, but my lower back, cardio, and anatomy were limiting factors, not my quads. I got a belt squat machine a year ago, and my legs blew up. I use a raised wedge platform so I get max knee flexion, and I can actually go until my quads fail, not my lower back or breathing. It’s my S+ tier quad movement.
Same here. Couldn’t squat heavy anymore cause of my back but squats were the only thing that really grew my legs. Discovered belt squats and they are incredible. For me I like them better than regular squats. I get way more depth and can go much slower
pretty sure he does get the credit ive seen memes about "first time in gym" and there is the shorts of him teaching technique, which is funny as many people, including me have been there for stuff like deadlifts and squats also have had a fellow gym bro and i who live close and just started working out with and discuss stuff like steroids, technique and exercises, and also who teaches them best and he brought up jeff before i could. great videos, good production value with good info that are not drawn out, and also conclusive and with meaning thats why he is the goat
THANKYOU for talking about front squats the way you did, no bs. I'm a long leg built squatter who loves the front squat because it forces me to use only quads and a upright back to get the weight up as i cant turn it into a hip hinging squat by raising my hips up first at the bottom of the squat. I've made great quad gains with them.
They are awesome. Don't listen to Dr Mike's BS. My legs are long too and I love hitting depth in front squat without rounding / leaning over like crazy. I have great ankle mobility and squat shoes but for the back squat it's not enough to combat how I'm built.
My poor belted squad didn't even get a ranking 😭. For me belted Squats are the best. I have a REALLY bad back since my mom got in a car crash when she was 7 months pregnant with me, so the weight sitting on my shoulder in a hack squats vs my hips on a belted squat makes a huge difference. I feel I can breathe, brace and go deeper on the belted squat.
@@robbyc8926 I think it's harder to find a pendulum squat :D You can also redneck engineer a belt squat by strapping weight to a belt and climbing on some boxes if you really like the movement :) I am very surprised it was not on the list
@@nihalbhamrah4726 a squat variation that loads the hips instead of the back, making your legs and hips the limiting factor instead of your back and core.
For me, who is someone who has disproportionately long femurs for my body, any squat exercise has been a constant struggle. It just doesn’t click like other movements. With that being said, leg extensions is my best exorcise for quads. You feel it immediately and aside from low rep high weight set ups, it’s amazing to feel your quads work.
If you ever get access to a pendulum squat, it’s a godsend. Problem with long femurs for me is I could never hit depth with barbell squats. Whenever I tried to make them work I’d use a really wide stance and end up working my glutes a lot more than my quads. Pendulum squat basically gives us long femured people the experience a short femured person gets when squatting. You can use a narrow stance, get lots of knee-over-toe and full ROM with your glutes coming down to your calves, as long as you start on a low enough weight. Also don’t need as much ankle mobility or specific lifting shoes as you would with a regular squat. It’s allowed my to target my quads, which became a weak point over the years from the inability to emphasise the quads with barbell squats. To the point that they’re almost strong enough for me to be able to go back to barbell squats with better form for the quads. So yeah, they’re rare, but if you can find a pendulum squat it’s the best thing ever for anyone with long femurs. That and leg extensions is such a good combo.
@@Anon97123 yeah I know what those are and wish my gym had one. Best I’ve found were belt squats. I kind of just gave up squatting because who cares? I spent hundreds of hours in college stretching, researching, exercising, all around improving my squat due to super narrow hips and trash ankle mobility that legitimately never got better no matter how much I worked. I had to widen my squat and while I did produce a decent 405 squat at around 200 bodyweight, my deadlift and bench were 555 and 385 respectively. People just can’t admit that weight lifting is hugely based on genetics that you most likely can’t improve. Obviously you can still improve but my workout partner back in the day had super long arms for his frame and never got the bench I did but squatted more than me and was close with deadlifts.
@@Anon97123 wide stance doesn't reduce quad activity at all, it just recruits more glutes and hamstrings which is why people can typically lift heavier with a wider stance. Sounds like you were using the wrong rep ranges for quad development.
@@darrell9294 it’s not that my quads didn’t grow when I squatted, it’s just that proportionally it caused my glutes to grow a lot more than I wanted. Bodybuilding to me at least is all about proportions. I didn’t like the way my body looked because of the way wide stance squats were making my quads grow relative to my glutes. I’m not an expert on squatting because I haven’t done barbell squats in years, but I feel like what you said also assumes the person is squatting with correct technique. If you have long femurs and therefore struggle to squat with proper form consistently, you can end up compensating for weakness in the quads with other muscles. In my case, my squat stance wasnt just wide, it was abnormally wide. Again, not an expert with squat mechanics but I definitely think I was using other muscle groups to compensate for a lack of quad strength, which resulted in not enough quad growth relative to those compensating muscles.
A Jeff Nippard video is always overdue. The GOAT of fitness videos that are educational and enjoyable. This should be awesome. Plus he doesn't endlessly plug his products in every video before he even gets to the end.
Jeff Nippard - no bulshit nerdy, info packed, high quality animation filled educational, videos on hypertrophy. Also natty. Mike Israetel - jokes and jackassing in between throwing some science based info-bombs. When your brain is slow and tired and bored go to Mr. Mike, he'll entertain the shit out you while giving HQ advice on hypertrophy. Enhanced and honest about it. Great personality and charisma too. Jeff from Athlean-X, excellent to strengthen your little muscles, check for muscle imballances, when safety and longevity of athletism is the priority. Although, some say he used fake weights. A little boring, but when you are injured, or limited in mobility, you don't care to be entertained. You go for what works, and his small hacks definitely work. Once you get cured off of your injuries, you will forget Jeff Cavalier, and go for hypertrophy prioritizing bloggers, only to remember him when you get injured again 😅 Me personally, love them all. And don't think a natty bodybuilder should go any farther than these three. 🎉
Generally if I want a really good leg day, I opt for plenty of bicep curls and tricep extensions. Maybe a set of leg extensions if I have time at the end
You just earned a subscriber, Jeff. I do competitive rowing for school, meaning I have a great back, although rowing primarily involves leg strength. Unfortunately for me, I am 15 years old, and I weigh 53 kilograms. I go to the gym 5 times a day during my lunch break at school, training legs 3 times a week. During that time, I do leg presses, squats, deadlifts, and leg extensions. (I don't have enough time for hamstrings/calves). And I have noticed that my strength has increased dramatically. (Squatting 90kg at 53kg, deadlifting 125kg at 53kg). However, I still face the problem of skinny legs. This problem is not something that you personally could help me with, but to anyone in youtube.
The fact that almost all of my leg exercises are in Aand S tier is really cool, shoutout to the random dudes in discord that helped me build a good PPL program
I think i speak for everyone Jeff when I say: make a series of this and cover all the big muscle groups! Weve got triceps, quads, chest, and back - im looking forward to some biceps and abs on that list, too! Youve made my workouts better and now, whenever i leave the gym, i just long to go back!
2 forgotten exercises : 1) V squat - A or S. Might be A because there might be a range of mission issue. 2) belt squat - never did but if I understand the exercise correctly, I think it should be A or S.
Also the Split squat (aka Static lunge) with a short step-length. They don't work the glutes when done like that, and they're perhaps the closest thing to doing a single-leg squat if you want some unilateral work (other than Bulgarians, but they're just way too tricky an exercise all-round). I would like to have heard Jeff's opinion on it, mainly because you can load the Split squat fairly decently given that you're really emphasising one leg at a time.
Yeah, I would like to have heard Jeff's opinion on it though, given that it can be loaded more than the others mentioned. But he may have just recommended just doing Back or Front squats for your heavier work, and doing the other exercises mentioned for unilateral work. Of course, they'll all work.
@@soots-stayingoutofthespotl5495 Belt squats have the added bonus of not compressing the spine. So it should rank higher than a standard squat because it would be more "feels good." As long as you're going to depth, of course. I plan on getting a belt squat attachment for my power rack next and look forward to having some more variety. I'm pretty pretty much limited to Squats when it comes to the most effective exercises on Jeff's list.
Came back to this video multiple times, just want to thank you Jeff for the knowledge I’ve gained from your videos. I think it’s more than ideal for new starters, people joining back like myself or intermediate lifters to watch these ranking videos too see which works best for each person. I’m more than grateful for your useful information thanks again!
If and when you do this tier list on the glutes, I would love to see you talk about the glute pushdown (on the assisted pull-up machine). IMO it is a good excersise as it gets a deep stretch, is easy to set up, and good for beginners. However, I am curious about how to feel about the actual movement in how it relates to glute activation.
Jeff this an amazing video as usual, so much value in all your videos. The only thing I think you missed on the back squat is how difficult back squat can be for individuals that have an incredibly long femur bones. This forces the torso into a forward leaning position which makes progressive overload more difficult and less comfortable for some. I have a friend with very long femur's and they hate doing squats...when they do, it looks like they are doing an RDL and a back squat mixed together with this excessive significant torso tilt and cantilever. Obviously some solutions can be a heel lift or more ankle mobility to get the torso more upright. All that said, this is something I think many people with average femur lengths (who LOVE squats) fail to recognize: long femurs and back squats often don't go well together.
god. i'm so thankful you did this vid. i might be the only one who actually likes leg day. and having a creator i trust regarding knowledge giving detailed account of the exercises is honestly what i needed. thanks. you're awesome.
I noticed something odd in your presentation. At 5:00, you are saying that smiths and free weights build muscle roughly equally, yet the graph shows free-weight squats win heavily over hack squat, AND the section itself is about hack squats. The x-axis doesn't show any metrics, so I have no idea what it's supposed to mean, but the graph makes it look like squat wins heavily over hack squat, yet you are saying both are the same.
The graph depicts the results of a meta-analysis of multiple studies. The x-axis shows whether each study favoured machines or free weights, with the distance from the centre being effect size. While the section is on hack squats, the conclusion drawn from the meta-analysis is on machines vs free weights in general. You can see that different studies keep getting different results for the same comparisons.
Для воркаутеров: 1) выпрыгивания 2) пистолетик 3) приседания с чем-нибудь отягощающим в руках 4) подъëм по ступенькам 5) бег (для эсс и бицепса, а если ещë и на короткие дистанции с остановками, то и для квадр)
me too, we in for a 4 hour anabolic myostatin deficient dog snoring supersetted with ''thank you fo bein mah freeeeeand'' supersetted with guitar riffs supersetted with horsecockology (pause) supersetted with ads
About leg extensions. I have patelar lateralization on both knees and this exercise is one of the few if not the only one that never gave me knee pain. Now I did a lot of cycling and really low weighted leg exercises to build up muscle so I can actually lift heavier in other exercises without pain but as far as it goes I never had pain while doing leg extensions :)
Jeff please post a B&W hamstring or Glute exercise soon.. BTW ur always my number 1 fitness influencer, your the only who post these vids basing on science. We need to know this stuff!
"but because they're so fatiguing and psychologically challenging" - it's nice to hear jeff stating this about bulgarian's, and the fact he programmes 2 sets makes me feel a lot better 😅🙏
Although Bulgarian split squats is definitely one of my favorite leg exercises, i love the fact that you pointed out how brutal and physically challenging that are, bcuz i used to think i am not strong enough whenever i perform them.
Found it super interesting that he said people feel that the quad extension MCH its bad for your knees! Coming from a person with a knee injury, I could only use MCH for leg days till I rebuilt my leg strength and knee strength after injury. You can only strengthen your knees so much by doing squats with no weight but for me at the time ding ANY kind of free weights caused too much instability for my knees without causing too much pain. . . These are extreme methods though of course due to my situation. 1 year later now I'm able to do free weights again. However, He may mean more of a heavy load which I did find that this video was very interesting! Thanks for sharing this!
Amazing video Jeff, please keep on with these tier lists. How you explain every exercise is very helpful to understand what I have to correct on my gym routine
I found it interesting to see that the more functional movements like the step up and the bosu ball squat, which are great for sporters, score lower. It makes sense when you think about it though. The more balancing you have to do, the less weight you can safely put on and the more muscles work to stabilise, reducing the load on the quads.
The horizontal leg press is 'S' tier for sure when done with a machine that allows you to lie down completely on your back mimicking a squat. The seated version is quite limiting but when you lie down you get all the benefits of the squat without the shearing forces on the knees. Also you get way better control of the muscles when contracting them. Perfect for older lifters or anyone worried about wear and tear on the joints.
I think its important to mention that a lot of the time that weak knees cause knee pain. Unless you have arthritis. Increase recovery time and decrease the weight until the tendonitis in the knees is over and slowly ramp up the wieght to strengthen the tendons
Hi Jeff! You did a Video on Time Under Tension 5yrs ago and I'm sure people would love to see an updated opinion on this! Long Length Partials + Time under tension for optimal hypertrophy!
I'm curious about goblet squats with a cable machine. Balance isn't an issue, it's not hard to hold, and you don't have to worry about dropping anything. Plus, you can set the cable low to make sure you go down far enough.
I’ve been reorganizing my workouts to include the exercises you put in S, A, and B teir for all 4 of the muscle groups you’ve done these videos for. I hope you do one of these videos for shoulders, biceps, core, and hamstrings too! A video for calves and forearms is probably too much to ask for.
I work out at home and have come up with an easy way to do leg extensions whit a home cable machine I place my bench in front of the cable machine and lay on my stomach. placing a strap on each ankle I straighten down and away from the machine. This is really a 1 leg at a time exercise and I feel like it is something that I can totally go HAM on and push my quads harder than any other exercise. The last few reps I can use my off leg to help extend and then do some slow negatives. Being able to be your own spotter and squeak out a few negatives at the end is amazing.
This video highlights the importance of mode, as it can relate to client motivation. Technically, all these exercises work the quads. However, the poorer exercises may leave a client frustrated at the progress of training and decreasing the motivation of the client to continue. Finding the optimal mode of exercise for the client's goals can make the difference in whether the client continues exercise or not.
Jeff, quality info. Thank you so much. Added some slightly reclined leg extensions after seeing the data you presented related to RF growth advantage in one of your prior videos.
Really late to this but I think pistols squats are genuinely so underrated. I wrap a towel around a pole and hold onto that. It makes the movement super stable ofc but u can’t cheat at all bc u can only pull urself forward rather than up, unlike if u were to hold onto a bar/rack/etc. So it eliminates cheating, is super stable, and ofc provides the other benefits of single leg training. If u can get at least 4-5 reps with ur bw, ur in the perfect position to start using them for hypertrophy. I personally have started adding weight with my adjustable weighted vest, which will provide me with progression for as long as I need. U can use a backpack with weights in it as well, or bands, or a db. Stable, single leg, allows full knee flexion, minimal spinal loading, doesn’t take much weight so it’s not overly taxing at all compared to something like a bb squat, and a great scope for progressive overload for pretty much anyone who can already do a few reps with bodyweight. I think with the correct setup and basic knowledge, pistol squats can be an incredible squat variation for anyone, but ofc it’s especially appealing to home gym owners bc of how minimal the equipment requirement is. If u don’t have access to some sort of machine for squatting like a hack or pendulum or smith, I think this version of pistol squats might be my first choice for a hypertrophy focused squat pattern. So much more stable than split squats or back squats. Plus all the aforementioned benefits like the minimized fatigue and convenient loadability. Sorry for yapping but I really think pistols are the most underrated exercise there is for hypertrophy simply because people don’t know how to go about doing them for that purpose.
solid list. I do however consider front/walking lunges a good quad builder at least for me because that's where I feel them the most and I got great results. Reverse lunges are the ones i'd consider for glutes as I feel them mostly in glutes even more so with front leg elevated.
@JeffNipppard You forgot the Belt Squat machine Nice raking btw, the single leg squat is one of my favorites i normally do it after leg extensions, also using heel lifter platform makes it more quad focus ,in my case im a bit tall. In general i have to agree it is a good raking you made. Keep it up with the good content 👍👍
To tier up those Pistol squats grab some gym rings or TRX and find your angle. (I call these "kiting"). A small but enough loading can done by vest or putting or heavy chains around the neck. Thanks for putting out all these great info. I hope my small comments will contribute a tiny bit. Much love.
To all srs folks finding this acrobatic ridiculous and clownish looking. I feel you😂 Getting older, no longer being able chasing big numbers on squats, one starts to care less about looking cool. This is when I started to seek for proper mods on all sorts of stuff. Pro tip. Take your girl for a challange. She being almost half your bw make it fair game😫
I understand that pistol sq are not for everyone, but for the ones that can do it is a great excersice. I personally like doing one body weight exercise per muscle. Great guide greetimgs from colombia
Love/hate front squats. They hit my quads like nothing else but the bar is irritating on the shoulders..,, I’m going to try the strap version today. Excellent review!!!! Thank you!!
![Noob To Max With DRAGON REWORK In Blox Fruits [FULL MOVIE]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/LnBMOinoOvA/mqdefault.jpg)
How to interpret my tier list:
All exercises are ranked based on muscle building potential.
S tier - My favorite. Do them if you can.
A tier - Strongly recommend.
B tier - I still do these in certain contexts. There may be better options.
C tier - There are better options for most people. Can still have value in some contexts.
D tier - Probably not a great option for most people.
F tier - Generally not recommended.
thanks for another useful video man
What, no belt squat? For shame.
Awesome! Can't wait for your hamstring and glute vids as well! Keep it up!
@@CynicalWarlock Belt Squat is easy S tier, maybe even S+
How do research studies measure volume. If longer time under tention decreases the amount of reps/sets/weight. How do we scientifically measure what concentric and essentric time is best for hypertrophy? Is a single rep of a 1s Concentric and 3s Eccentric the same as 3 reps of a 1s Consentric and 1s Essentric? Or maybe a single rep with a 3s Concentric and 3s Eccentric being 1:1 to 3 reps with a 1s Concentric and 1s Essentric.
The best leg day exercise is bench press.
Curls in the squat rack. Bonus points for loading up the barbell so people can’t even deadlift with it.
I can attest. I was the bench.
-dom mazzetti
Its the leg drive that counts
fk beat me to it
Tier list with timestamps (ur welcome)
S+ tier:
4:36 - Hack Squat
S tier:
2:01 - Barbell Back Squat
5:07 - Pendulum Squat
5:25 - Smith Machine Squat
9:34 - Bulgarian Split Squat
A tier:
3:04 - Barbell Front Squat
4:08 - Low-Bar Squat
5:50 - 45 Degree Leg Press
7:05 - Leg Extension
8:14 - Reverse Nordic
B tier:
6:39 - Lunge
8:50 - Goblet Squat
10:56 - Sissy Squat
C tier:
6:17 - Horizontal Leg Press
10:03 - Deadlift
10:24 - Step Ups
10:40 - Pistol Squat
D tier:
F tier:
1:28 - Combo Squat Exercises
9:21 - Jump Squat
F- tier:
1:43 - Bosu Ball Squat
Bonus (image with all of the exercices):
12:00
Thanks! I like the final image with all of the exercises but wish there was a version with the exercise names overlaid. This works!
Champion
I love you marry me
A hero here
I've recently been able to do hack squats without absolutely blowing out my front knee tendons and I'm very happy to see this.
I always feel like I didn't do my leg days hard enough until I have to walk down the stairs of my gym and then I'm like "oh yeah, I did good"😂
This is the best in-depth, science based, straight to the point workout channel on RUclips. Love it.
Holy shit no way you're here. Dude, I watched you way back when you were called Destiny. W content bro, keep it up
As somone who is new to working out, thank you for this series Jeff. Simply being able to pick a few exercises from your lists is a god send!
Same. Simplifies this intimidating nature of all this for noobs
Since you are new. I hope it's clear that this list is for quads and not your general leg. Some c and b tier are s tier for other muscles
buy his beginner program. makes it a lot easier.
id recommend you try to follow a program, theres plenty of free versions out there so id say go for 3-4day a week and do either full body workouts or split upper/lower body on different days, helped me a lot in the beginning both to learn and get a routine going.
I’m also a beginner, but I have been seeing a lot that it’s important to build a strong core early on with the compound movements like barbel squats and Bulgarian split squats, because you don’t want to build super strong legs on things that take your back out of the equation with pendulum squats, and hack squats and then later try to support these heavy weights with your weak back if you learn the barbell squats after the ones that don’t require a stable core as much. Hope that makes sense
@jeffNippard you just compiled my years of gym experience, my trial & errors, watching countless youtube videos & possibly my injury experience in one video. I couldn't agree more to what you said. Even i got the hack squat right as you said it being the best exercise. Man you're making a contribution to the gym community & guys I totally endorse what he says…. just follow it.
Fr
Beauty seeing this video right before a leg workout 😍
literally just about to hit legs. What a perfect timing
exactly
Samee lmao
Me watching this after my leg day 😔
I'm literally taking my after workout poop watching this
Can't wait for The Bugez 2.5 hour response to the introduction
With Tater and Mr Beefy fighting over the wubby
lmfao
I get the feeling De La Stick may agree more with this one than the past few
@@BrendorTheEndor Yeah can't really see anything he would disagree about.
@@BrendorTheEndor Yeah this list was fairly reasonable and didnt include hippie shit.
I'm sure these videos take so much work to make, but I find them the single most useful piece of bodybuilding content on RUclips. I really hope you cover every other major muscle group in this way. Appreciate the effort, sir!
I appreciate the subtle sound effects. Absolutely genius.
Bro stop simping just for sound fx
@@theempire00 why
It’s-a me, Super Mario
ayo Jeff is caked up. Please do a glute tier list. gotta get like you, mah boii
No diddy
Yes please
Pause 😕
up
@@JOHNNYSGOTYOUCOVERED no 💯
As someone recently started working out at home with nothing but dumbells, I'm happy to see Bulgarian squats ranked high. In fact I did them for the first time a few hours ago, and will keep doing them till I build myself some space to put a power rack with a barbell.
You gotta check out belt squats, the stimulus you get from them is unreal, especially cause you get no axial loading
Fkn love belt squats
Love them but sadly not many gyms have one. I've only used one once.
Facts
thoughts on belt squat vs trap bar squat (not TBDL)
belt squats are S tier!
Belt squats are a game changer. Been doing barbel squats for years, but my lower back, cardio, and anatomy were limiting factors, not my quads.
I got a belt squat machine a year ago, and my legs blew up. I use a raised wedge platform so I get max knee flexion, and I can actually go until my quads fail, not my lower back or breathing. It’s my S+ tier quad movement.
You're living the dream, wish I had access to a belt squat. I use wedges under my heels as well, been a game changer!
Unreal piece of equipment. Especially to save your lower back. Can’t believe Jeff hasn’t included them!
Same here. Couldn’t squat heavy anymore cause of my back but squats were the only thing that really grew my legs. Discovered belt squats and they are incredible. For me I like them better than regular squats. I get way more depth and can go much slower
You're awesome thank you.! I love his videos but I was super short on time and wanted the cliff notes like this.
@@ruvamsiyou can make a makeshift belt squat with a dip belt, and a squat rack.
Idk if people give you the credit you deserve I don't really read comments, but you are actually so helpful. Thank you bro🙏🏼
pretty sure he does get the credit
ive seen memes about "first time in gym" and there is the shorts of him teaching technique, which is funny as many people, including me have been there for stuff like deadlifts and squats
also have had a fellow gym bro and i who live close and just started working out with and discuss stuff like steroids, technique and exercises, and also who teaches them best and he brought up jeff before i could.
great videos, good production value with good info that are not drawn out, and also conclusive and with meaning
thats why he is the goat
@@JackCritical cool
Not sure why I’m not seeing bicep curls? Those are done in the squat rack which are for squats (a leg exercise) so therefore are also a leg exercise
what a gentleman
That's more of a hamstring and glute exercise if you have proper cheating form
bench press w/ leg drive = a slight leg workout
I genuinely saw someone doing DUMBELL curls in a squat rack the other day. 🤦♂️
@@pass-123Their quads must be huge to support the balls they're carrying around all day.
I swear so far we’ve gotten more videos from Jeff than all of last year. Love the work you’re doing brother it is much appreciated 💪
Still waiting on the hamstring video 😅
Tier list with timestamps
S+ tier
04:35 Hack Squat
S tier
01:57 Barbell Back Squat
05:07 Pendulum Squat
05:24 Smith Machine Squat
09:34 Bulgarian Split Squat
A tier
03:03 Barbell Front Squat
04:08 Low Bar Squat
05:50 45 Degree Leg Press
07:04 Leg Extension
08:13 Reverse Nordic
B tier
06:37 Lunge
08:44 Goblet Squat
10:55 Sissy Squat
C tier
06:18 Horizontal Leg Press
10:03 Deadlift
10:24 Step Up
10:39 Pistol Squat
F tier
01:26 Combo Squat Exercises
09:21 Jump Squat
F- tier
01:40 Bosu Ball Squat
Thanks
THANKYOU for talking about front squats the way you did, no bs. I'm a long leg built squatter who loves the front squat because it forces me to use only quads and a upright back to get the weight up as i cant turn it into a hip hinging squat by raising my hips up first at the bottom of the squat. I've made great quad gains with them.
They are awesome. Don't listen to Dr Mike's BS. My legs are long too and I love hitting depth in front squat without rounding / leaning over like crazy. I have great ankle mobility and squat shoes but for the back squat it's not enough to combat how I'm built.
Love the content!
This is the best series on RUclips I love you Jeff
My poor belted squad didn't even get a ranking 😭. For me belted Squats are the best. I have a REALLY bad back since my mom got in a car crash when she was 7 months pregnant with me, so the weight sitting on my shoulder in a hack squats vs my hips on a belted squat makes a huge difference. I feel I can breathe, brace and go deeper on the belted squat.
It's hard to find a belt squat at most gyms
Totally agree. Have a rhino and it’s my favorite piece of equipment
@@robbyc8926 I think it's harder to find a pendulum squat :D
You can also redneck engineer a belt squat by strapping weight to a belt and climbing on some boxes if you really like the movement :)
I am very surprised it was not on the list
Wtf is belt squat ?
@@nihalbhamrah4726 a squat variation that loads the hips instead of the back, making your legs and hips the limiting factor instead of your back and core.
For me, who is someone who has disproportionately long femurs for my body, any squat exercise has been a constant struggle. It just doesn’t click like other movements. With that being said, leg extensions is my best exorcise for quads. You feel it immediately and aside from low rep high weight set ups, it’s amazing to feel your quads work.
Squats are still imperative. Just widen your stance.
If you ever get access to a pendulum squat, it’s a godsend. Problem with long femurs for me is I could never hit depth with barbell squats. Whenever I tried to make them work I’d use a really wide stance and end up working my glutes a lot more than my quads. Pendulum squat basically gives us long femured people the experience a short femured person gets when squatting. You can use a narrow stance, get lots of knee-over-toe and full ROM with your glutes coming down to your calves, as long as you start on a low enough weight.
Also don’t need as much ankle mobility or specific lifting shoes as you would with a regular squat.
It’s allowed my to target my quads, which became a weak point over the years from the inability to emphasise the quads with barbell squats. To the point that they’re almost strong enough for me to be able to go back to barbell squats with better form for the quads.
So yeah, they’re rare, but if you can find a pendulum squat it’s the best thing ever for anyone with long femurs. That and leg extensions is such a good combo.
@@Anon97123 yeah I know what those are and wish my gym had one. Best I’ve found were belt squats. I kind of just gave up squatting because who cares? I spent hundreds of hours in college stretching, researching, exercising, all around improving my squat due to super narrow hips and trash ankle mobility that legitimately never got better no matter how much I worked. I had to widen my squat and while I did produce a decent 405 squat at around 200 bodyweight, my deadlift and bench were 555 and 385 respectively.
People just can’t admit that weight lifting is hugely based on genetics that you most likely can’t improve. Obviously you can still improve but my workout partner back in the day had super long arms for his frame and never got the bench I did but squatted more than me and was close with deadlifts.
@@Anon97123 wide stance doesn't reduce quad activity at all, it just recruits more glutes and hamstrings which is why people can typically lift heavier with a wider stance.
Sounds like you were using the wrong rep ranges for quad development.
@@darrell9294 it’s not that my quads didn’t grow when I squatted, it’s just that proportionally it caused my glutes to grow a lot more than I wanted. Bodybuilding to me at least is all about proportions. I didn’t like the way my body looked because of the way wide stance squats were making my quads grow relative to my glutes.
I’m not an expert on squatting because I haven’t done barbell squats in years, but I feel like what you said also assumes the person is squatting with correct technique. If you have long femurs and therefore struggle to squat with proper form consistently, you can end up compensating for weakness in the quads with other muscles. In my case, my squat stance wasnt just wide, it was abnormally wide. Again, not an expert with squat mechanics but I definitely think I was using other muscle groups to compensate for a lack of quad strength, which resulted in not enough quad growth relative to those compensating muscles.
A Jeff Nippard video is always overdue. The GOAT of fitness videos that are educational and enjoyable. This should be awesome. Plus he doesn't endlessly plug his products in every video before he even gets to the end.
Athlean X is the best
Jeff Nippard - no bulshit nerdy, info packed, high quality animation filled educational, videos on hypertrophy. Also natty.
Mike Israetel - jokes and jackassing in between throwing some science based info-bombs. When your brain is slow and tired and bored go to Mr. Mike, he'll entertain the shit out you while giving HQ advice on hypertrophy. Enhanced and honest about it. Great personality and charisma too.
Jeff from Athlean-X, excellent to strengthen your little muscles, check for muscle imballances, when safety and longevity of athletism is the priority. Although, some say he used fake weights. A little boring, but when you are injured, or limited in mobility, you don't care to be entertained. You go for what works, and his small hacks definitely work.
Once you get cured off of your injuries, you will forget Jeff Cavalier, and go for hypertrophy prioritizing bloggers, only to remember him when you get injured again
😅
Me personally, love them all. And don't think a natty bodybuilder should go any farther than these three. 🎉
RP Strength. Dr Mike.
I've been waiting for this one. Keep up the good work, man!
man these video's are soooo so helpful when PT aren't available. I am so so grateful thankyou so much!! God bless you 🙏🙏🙏
Generally if I want a really good leg day, I opt for plenty of bicep curls and tricep extensions. Maybe a set of leg extensions if I have time at the end
how's your sticks for legs edit: this is a joke lol
😂😂
Great content for Rick De La Stick ❤
Pencil necks panicking rn.
The guy who tried to bully Alex Leonidas...roid head
You just earned a subscriber, Jeff. I do competitive rowing for school, meaning I have a great back, although rowing primarily involves leg strength. Unfortunately for me, I am 15 years old, and I weigh 53 kilograms. I go to the gym 5 times a day during my lunch break at school, training legs 3 times a week. During that time, I do leg presses, squats, deadlifts, and leg extensions. (I don't have enough time for hamstrings/calves). And I have noticed that my strength has increased dramatically. (Squatting 90kg at 53kg, deadlifting 125kg at 53kg). However, I still face the problem of skinny legs.
This problem is not something that you personally could help me with, but to anyone in youtube.
The fact that almost all of my leg exercises are in Aand S tier is really cool, shoutout to the random dudes in discord that helped me build a good PPL program
Hell yeah , keep at it!
Thanks man today is my yearly leg day this will really help💪
you hit legs every year? I need to do that I hit legs once a decade
@@Petermurphy123I might need to change my program too
I think i speak for everyone Jeff when I say: make a series of this and cover all the big muscle groups! Weve got triceps, quads, chest, and back - im looking forward to some biceps and abs on that list, too! Youve made my workouts better and now, whenever i leave the gym, i just long to go back!
These videos are so helpful, thank you 😊
2 forgotten exercises :
1) V squat - A or S. Might be A because there might be a range of mission issue.
2) belt squat - never did but if I understand the exercise correctly, I think it should be A or S.
Also the Split squat (aka Static lunge) with a short step-length. They don't work the glutes when done like that, and they're perhaps the closest thing to doing a single-leg squat if you want some unilateral work (other than Bulgarians, but they're just way too tricky an exercise all-round). I would like to have heard Jeff's opinion on it, mainly because you can load the Split squat fairly decently given that you're really emphasising one leg at a time.
@@soots-stayingoutofthespotl5495 It's pretty much the same as a lunge or short step lunge as he showed.
Yeah, I would like to have heard Jeff's opinion on it though, given that it can be loaded more than the others mentioned. But he may have just recommended just doing Back or Front squats for your heavier work, and doing the other exercises mentioned for unilateral work. Of course, they'll all work.
That's actually weird that he never mentioned belt squat. It's not an obscure one.
@@soots-stayingoutofthespotl5495 Belt squats have the added bonus of not compressing the spine. So it should rank higher than a standard squat because it would be more "feels good." As long as you're going to depth, of course.
I plan on getting a belt squat attachment for my power rack next and look forward to having some more variety. I'm pretty pretty much limited to Squats when it comes to the most effective exercises on Jeff's list.
Thank you for dropping this video on my leg day were I’m looking for other leg exercises!
we need another tier list video for glutes/hamstrings, shoulders, biceps, and abs
Came back to this video multiple times, just want to thank you Jeff for the knowledge I’ve gained from your videos. I think it’s more than ideal for new starters, people joining back like myself or intermediate lifters to watch these ranking videos too see which works best for each person. I’m more than grateful for your useful information thanks again!
If and when you do this tier list on the glutes, I would love to see you talk about the glute pushdown (on the assisted pull-up machine). IMO it is a good excersise as it gets a deep stretch, is easy to set up, and good for beginners. However, I am curious about how to feel about the actual movement in how it relates to glute activation.
You are definitely the GOAT of science based bodybuilding! Love your training programs and videos. Keep going!
Looking forward to the shoulder exercise tier list! Extremely helpful and concise videos
Just saw a bunch of kids in the gym talking about your videos, good job keeping the new generation on track
i think one reason people hate smith machines is using smith machines that have been poorly maintained
Jeff this an amazing video as usual, so much value in all your videos. The only thing I think you missed on the back squat is how difficult back squat can be for individuals that have an incredibly long femur bones. This forces the torso into a forward leaning position which makes progressive overload more difficult and less comfortable for some. I have a friend with very long femur's and they hate doing squats...when they do, it looks like they are doing an RDL and a back squat mixed together with this excessive significant torso tilt and cantilever. Obviously some solutions can be a heel lift or more ankle mobility to get the torso more upright. All that said, this is something I think many people with average femur lengths (who LOVE squats) fail to recognize: long femurs and back squats often don't go well together.
2:29 Good god!! 😳😳😱🤯
2:56 "Thank you for being my friendddd!" ~ Eric Bugenhagen probably right now
god. i'm so thankful you did this vid. i might be the only one who actually likes leg day. and having a creator i trust regarding knowledge giving detailed account of the exercises is honestly what i needed.
thanks. you're awesome.
which is your favourite leg workout
I noticed something odd in your presentation. At 5:00, you are saying that smiths and free weights build muscle roughly equally, yet the graph shows free-weight squats win heavily over hack squat, AND the section itself is about hack squats. The x-axis doesn't show any metrics, so I have no idea what it's supposed to mean, but the graph makes it look like squat wins heavily over hack squat, yet you are saying both are the same.
The graph depicts the results of a meta-analysis of multiple studies. The x-axis shows whether each study favoured machines or free weights, with the distance from the centre being effect size.
While the section is on hack squats, the conclusion drawn from the meta-analysis is on machines vs free weights in general. You can see that different studies keep getting different results for the same comparisons.
This series is great 🔥
Please continue
Для воркаутеров:
1) выпрыгивания
2) пистолетик
3) приседания с чем-нибудь отягощающим в руках
4) подъëм по ступенькам
5) бег (для эсс и бицепса, а если ещë и на короткие дистанции с остановками, то и для квадр)
здесь таких не любят, уходи
i can't wait for sticky Ricky to review this.
going to save watching this so I don't spoil it for when de la stick reviews it.
me too, we in for a 4 hour anabolic myostatin deficient dog snoring supersetted with ''thank you fo bein mah freeeeeand'' supersetted with guitar riffs supersetted with horsecockology (pause) supersetted with ads
Basement bodybuilding too
@@nightfighter7452 yup, then NH
The guy who tried to bully Alex Leonodas after Alex interviewed him
Just got to work, ig im not working for the next 12:20 mins
About leg extensions. I have patelar lateralization on both knees and this exercise is one of the few if not the only one that never gave me knee pain. Now I did a lot of cycling and really low weighted leg exercises to build up muscle so I can actually lift heavier in other exercises without pain but as far as it goes I never had pain while doing leg extensions :)
Been waiting for this one!
Love ur advice Jeff, keep it up ❤💪
Jeff please post a B&W hamstring or Glute exercise soon.. BTW ur always my number 1 fitness influencer, your the only who post these vids basing on science. We need to know this stuff!
Jeff you’re literally my father
If he is your daddy then your getting 5’6 height genetics lol
@@adamsi7005leave the short kings alone
And intelligence beyond your comprehension. @@adamsi7005
You wish
Ya, but he has a better physique than you tho😢 @@adamsi7005
Waiting for Bugenhagen's response
Waiting for 🐴🐔's and ✏️👔's to be thrown all over this video
That’s all I thought of when I clicked this
Feel like this one will be 🐴 🐓 approved too
@@ratharyn1834 🐴🐔>✏️👔
Pencilneck😢
"but because they're so fatiguing and psychologically challenging" - it's nice to hear jeff stating this about bulgarian's, and the fact he programmes 2 sets makes me feel a lot better 😅🙏
Needed this. Time to grow them quads
No belt squat 😢
Although Bulgarian split squats is definitely one of my favorite leg exercises, i love the fact that you pointed out how brutal and physically challenging that are, bcuz i used to think i am not strong enough whenever i perform them.
Next a hamstring edition?
crazy seeing a Jeff Nippard video with 20 views 😂
noone trains legs (me included) (i should)
09:22 i'm just here to show love for the best part of the video, the mario sound effect.
RIP to belt squat
For real! No love for the belt squat 😞
11:34 Full tier list
You’re the man Jeff, keep up the great content.
use this as the zercher button
Found it super interesting that he said people feel that the quad extension MCH its bad for your knees! Coming from a person with a knee injury, I could only use MCH for leg days till I rebuilt my leg strength and knee strength after injury. You can only strengthen your knees so much by doing squats with no weight but for me at the time ding ANY kind of free weights caused too much instability for my knees without causing too much pain. . . These are extreme methods though of course due to my situation. 1 year later now I'm able to do free weights again. However, He may mean more of a heavy load which I did find that this video was very interesting! Thanks for sharing this!
When are you doing glutes? What about hams? When are you doing calves? Excited to see that list! ❤ great video
My leg session is in next 25 minutes and got your video on screen. Perfect time to watch
Bulgarian Split Squat!
Im So Glad you put it on "S" Tier !
since i started doin it i saw the most progress in legs! i Very very recommend it !
Amazing video Jeff, please keep on with these tier lists. How you explain every exercise is very helpful to understand what I have to correct on my gym routine
I found it interesting to see that the more functional movements like the step up and the bosu ball squat, which are great for sporters, score lower. It makes sense when you think about it though. The more balancing you have to do, the less weight you can safely put on and the more muscles work to stabilise, reducing the load on the quads.
Jeff, these videos have been really helpful in chiseling away junk exercises out of my routine. Thank you.
The horizontal leg press is 'S' tier for sure when done with a machine that allows you to lie down completely on your back mimicking a squat. The seated version is quite limiting but when you lie down you get all the benefits of the squat without the shearing forces on the knees. Also you get way better control of the muscles when contracting them. Perfect for older lifters or anyone worried about wear and tear on the joints.
I am writing to express my appreciation for your videos, which have been consistently helpful to me in India.
Keep them coming I'm restructuring my exercises since either they've gotten dull or even too easy. Bulgarian squats are def coming back my routine
I think its important to mention that a lot of the time that weak knees cause knee pain. Unless you have arthritis. Increase recovery time and decrease the weight until the tendonitis in the knees is over and slowly ramp up the wieght to strengthen the tendons
Love this series! Can't wait to see every muscle group covered.
Hi Jeff! You did a Video on Time Under Tension 5yrs ago and I'm sure people would love to see an updated opinion on this! Long Length Partials + Time under tension for optimal hypertrophy!
I'm curious about goblet squats with a cable machine. Balance isn't an issue, it's not hard to hold, and you don't have to worry about dropping anything. Plus, you can set the cable low to make sure you go down far enough.
I’ve been reorganizing my workouts to include the exercises you put in S, A, and B teir for all 4 of the muscle groups you’ve done these videos for. I hope you do one of these videos for shoulders, biceps, core, and hamstrings too! A video for calves and forearms is probably too much to ask for.
I work out at home and have come up with an easy way to do leg extensions whit a home cable machine
I place my bench in front of the cable machine and lay on my stomach. placing a strap on each ankle I straighten down and away from the machine.
This is really a 1 leg at a time exercise and I feel like it is something that I can totally go HAM on and push my quads harder than any other exercise.
The last few reps I can use my off leg to help extend and then do some slow negatives.
Being able to be your own spotter and squeak out a few negatives at the end is amazing.
Bro these are the best videos to watch and learn from please do every body part 🔥
This video highlights the importance of mode, as it can relate to client motivation. Technically, all these exercises work the quads. However, the poorer exercises may leave a client frustrated at the progress of training and decreasing the motivation of the client to continue. Finding the optimal mode of exercise for the client's goals can make the difference in whether the client continues exercise or not.
The amount of info you give us is outstanding.
Jeff, quality info. Thank you so much. Added some slightly reclined leg extensions after seeing the data you presented related to RF growth advantage in one of your prior videos.
These vis are so gooddd. Im a beginner gym dude. Thanks for thisss!!!!!!
Really late to this but I think pistols squats are genuinely so underrated. I wrap a towel around a pole and hold onto that. It makes the movement super stable ofc but u can’t cheat at all bc u can only pull urself forward rather than up, unlike if u were to hold onto a bar/rack/etc. So it eliminates cheating, is super stable, and ofc provides the other benefits of single leg training. If u can get at least 4-5 reps with ur bw, ur in the perfect position to start using them for hypertrophy. I personally have started adding weight with my adjustable weighted vest, which will provide me with progression for as long as I need. U can use a backpack with weights in it as well, or bands, or a db.
Stable, single leg, allows full knee flexion, minimal spinal loading, doesn’t take much weight so it’s not overly taxing at all compared to something like a bb squat, and a great scope for progressive overload for pretty much anyone who can already do a few reps with bodyweight. I think with the correct setup and basic knowledge, pistol squats can be an incredible squat variation for anyone, but ofc it’s especially appealing to home gym owners bc of how minimal the equipment requirement is. If u don’t have access to some sort of machine for squatting like a hack or pendulum or smith, I think this version of pistol squats might be my first choice for a hypertrophy focused squat pattern. So much more stable than split squats or back squats. Plus all the aforementioned benefits like the minimized fatigue and convenient loadability. Sorry for yapping but I really think pistols are the most underrated exercise there is for hypertrophy simply because people don’t know how to go about doing them for that purpose.
is 4 days a week at the gym enough?
1)Chest, triceps
2)Backs, biceps
3)Legs, shoulders And
4) Wrist, Press.
Wrist 😂
wrist??
solid list. I do however consider front/walking lunges a good quad builder at least for me because that's where I feel them the most and I got great results. Reverse lunges are the ones i'd consider for glutes as I feel them mostly in glutes even more so with front leg elevated.
@JeffNipppard
You forgot the Belt Squat machine
Nice raking btw, the single leg squat is one of my favorites i normally do it after leg extensions, also using heel lifter platform makes it more quad focus ,in my case im a bit tall. In general i have to agree it is a good raking you made. Keep it up with the good content 👍👍
To tier up those Pistol squats grab some gym rings or TRX and find your angle. (I call these "kiting").
A small but enough loading can done by vest or putting or heavy chains around the neck.
Thanks for putting out all these great info. I hope my small comments will contribute a tiny bit. Much love.
To all srs folks finding this acrobatic ridiculous and clownish looking. I feel you😂
Getting older, no longer being able chasing big numbers on squats, one starts to care less about looking cool.
This is when I started to seek for proper mods on all sorts of stuff.
Pro tip. Take your girl for a challange. She being almost half your bw make it fair game😫
Top Class as always mate, let’s see an Abdominal version of this series!
JEFF I NEED MORE OF THESE BROTHER ❤!
I’m totally agree with you, this is usually my choice every week. Thanks for so value information mate!!
I understand that pistol sq are not for everyone, but for the ones that can do it is a great excersice.
I personally like doing one body weight exercise per muscle.
Great guide greetimgs from colombia
Love/hate front squats. They hit my quads like nothing else but the bar is irritating on the shoulders..,, I’m going to try the strap version today. Excellent review!!!! Thank you!!