27/08/2026
Leg Press: Why Your Back Rounds at the Bottom
Full ROM is great — if you can actually control it.
If your lower back rolls off the pad at the bottom of a leg press, you’re going beyond the range your hips and pelvis can currently control.
This is posterior pelvic tilt, often called a “butt wink”.
As your femur travels deeper towards your torso, your pelvis can tuck underneath you, causing your lower back to round.
That can shift tension away from the quads and onto structures you probably didn’t intend to load.
So how do you fix it?
1. Control your depth
Stop just before your pelvis starts to tuck. You don’t get extra points for getting your knees to your chest.
2. Try a slightly higher foot position
This can reduce the amount of hip flexion required at the bottom.
3. Experiment with stance width
A slightly narrower stance, with your toes turned out naturally, may help you maintain pelvic control.
4. Adjust the seat angle
A little more recline can reduce how compressed the hips feel at the bottom.
5. Brace properly
Think about locking your ribs down and keeping your lower back firmly against the pad throughout the rep.
6. Control the eccentric
Don’t dive-bomb the bottom. A controlled descent gives you far more control over where the movement ends.
You don’t need the deepest range of motion possible.
You need the deepest range you can control.
If your pelvis is tucking and your lower back is rounding, that’s your current limit.
Find it. Own it. Then, over time, work on earning more range.
Train smart. Keep the tension where it belongs.
