press machine, however, gives you the option of working both legs bilater-
ally, too, though each leg will have its own resistance to overcome.. A unilateral leg press machine applies asymmetrical and rotational stress to
your lower back because both legs are not pushing at the same time, unless
it is used bilaterally. is may or may not pose a problem for you because
technique and individual structural considerations are involved. To reduce
the impact of asymmetrical stress, keep the non-working leg extended and
braced against its resistance while the other leg works. But because the uni-
lateral model can be used bilaterally, if unilateral use poses a problem for
your lower back, then stick with using it in bilateral mode.. At least two potential advantages of using the unilateral leg press model will
still apply even if it is used exclusively in a bilateral manner:a. Each leg can work independently of the other, like pressing two dumb-
bells at the same time as against a barbell. While this may appear to be
a disadvantage as far as control goes, at least to begin with, it permits
limb strength differences to be allowed for. You could have your weaker
leg loaded with a little less weight than the other side. Or you could
load both sides with the same weight but control the set based on the
performance of your weaker leg. In this case you would always keep
your stronger leg working on a par with your weaker leg, and end the
set for both legs when your weakest side has had enough. In either case
this will help prevent the twisting (torsion) that can be a problem with
a bilateral machine when both legs are not of the same strength.
b. e second potential advantage of using a unilateral machine, even in
bilateral style, is if you have one leg shorter than the other. e unilat-
eral machine, even used bilaterally, will naturally offset your leg length
differences. is would help reduce the rotational stress that arises
from using a regular bilateral leg press machine (and even squatting)
with limbs of differing lengths.. e squat is used much more in the programs of this book than the leg
press. e reasoning is twofold. First, not all trainees have access to a good
leg press machine. Second, it is generally assumed that readers are not lim-
ited by injuries or excessively disadvantageous leverages for the squat. (And
remember that the squat is potentially a much more productive exercise
than the leg press.) But you do not have to have perfect leverages to get a lot
of benefit from the squat. Even trainees with relatively poor squatting struc-