Seated Leg Curl

Muscles worked by the Seated Leg Curl

Primary

HamstringsHamstring Muscles

Secondary

CalvesGastrocnemius

Also called: hamstring, hamstrings, posterior thigh, biceps femoris.

Equipment

Leg Curl

Also called: leg curl machine, hamstring curl, seated leg curl, lying leg curl, prone leg curl, hamstring machine.

How to do the Seated Leg Curl

1. Adjust the seat back and ankle pad so your knees align with the machine's pivot point.
2. Sit upright, place the backs of your ankles on top of the pad, and grip the handles.
3. Curl your lower legs down and back under the seat as far as the machine allows.
4. Pause at peak contraction, then return the weight slowly to the starting position.
5. Repeat for the desired reps.

Form tips

• Keep your back firmly against the backrest throughout the movement.
• Point toes slightly toward your shins at peak contraction to increase hamstring activation.
• Control the eccentric phase — do not let the weight pull your legs back quickly.

At a glance

Seated Leg Curl in German & Spanish

Descriptions, instructions and tips ship in all three languages in the JSON.

Related exercises

• Lying Leg Curl
• Nordic Hamstring Curl
• Single Leg Lying Leg Curl
• Stability Ball Leg Curl
• TRX Hamstring Curl
• Banded Good Morning
• Banded Hamstring Stretch
• Banded Romanian Deadlift

Exercise data (JSON)

The record below is exactly what exercises.json ships for this exercise — names, descriptions, instructions and tips in English, German and Spanish.

{
  "id": "seated-leg-curl",
  "name_en": "Seated Leg Curl",
  "name_de": "Sitzende Beinbeuge",
  "name_es": "Curl de Piernas Sentado",
  "description_en": "A machine isolation exercise for the hamstrings performed in a seated position, providing consistent tension and reduced hip flexor involvement compared to the lying variant.",
  "description_de": "Eine Maschinenübung zur Ischiocruralmuskel-Isolation im Sitzen mit gleichmäßiger Spannung und weniger Hüftbeuger-Beteiligung als die liegende Variante.",
  "description_es": "Un ejercicio de aislamiento de isquiotibiales en máquina en posición sentada, con tensión constante y menor implicación de los flexores de cadera respecto a la variante tumbada.",
  "category": "strength",
  "force_type": "pull",
  "mechanic": "isolation",
  "difficulty": "beginner",
  "equipment": "leg_curl",
  "body_part": "upper_legs",
  "primary_muscles": [
    "hamstrings"
  ],
  "secondary_muscles": [
    "gastrocnemius"
  ],
  "goals": [
    "hypertrophy"
  ],
  "tags": [
    "leg_day"
  ],
  "variation_group": "leg-curl",
  "is_unilateral": false,
  "is_bodyweight": false,
  "instructions_en": [
    "Adjust the seat back and ankle pad so your knees align with the machine's pivot point.",
    "Sit upright, place the backs of your ankles on top of the pad, and grip the handles.",
    "Curl your lower legs down and back under the seat as far as the machine allows.",
    "Pause at peak contraction, then return the weight slowly to the starting position.",
    "Repeat for the desired reps."
  ],
  "instructions_de": [
    "Rückenlehne und Knöchelpolster so einstellen, dass die Knie mit dem Drehpunkt der Maschine ausgerichtet sind.",
    "Aufrecht sitzen, Knöchel auf das Polster legen und die Griffe halten.",
    "Unterschenkel so weit wie möglich nach unten und hinten unter den Sitz einrollen.",
    "In der maximalen Kontraktion kurz halten, dann das Gewicht langsam zurückführen.",
    "Gewünschte Wiederholungsanzahl ausführen."
  ],
  "instructions_es": [
    "Ajusta el respaldo y el cojín de tobillo para que las rodillas queden alineadas con el pivote de la máquina.",
    "Siéntate erguido, coloca la parte posterior de los tobillos sobre el cojín y sujeta las asas.",
    "Flexiona las piernas hacia abajo y atrás bajo el asiento hasta donde la máquina lo permita.",
    "Pausa en la contracción máxima, luego vuelve lentamente a la posición inicial.",
    "Repite el número de repeticiones deseado."
  ],
  "tips_en": [
    "Keep your back firmly against the backrest throughout the movement.",
    "Point toes slightly toward your shins at peak contraction to increase hamstring activation.",
    "Control the eccentric phase — do not let the weight pull your legs back quickly."
  ],
  "tips_de": [
    "Rücken während der gesamten Bewegung fest an der Lehne halten.",
    "Zehen in der maximalen Kontraktion leicht zur Schienbein-Seite ziehen, um die Hamstrings stärker zu aktivieren.",
    "Exzentrische Phase kontrollieren — Gewicht nicht unkontrolliert zurückschwingen lassen."
  ],
  "tips_es": [
    "Mantén la espalda firmemente apoyada en el respaldo durante todo el movimiento.",
    "Flexiona ligeramente los pies hacia las espinillas en la contracción máxima para mayor activación de los isquios.",
    "Controla la fase excéntrica — no dejes que el peso jale las piernas de vuelta rápidamente."
  ],
  "met": 5.0,
  "images": {
    "flat": {
      "start": "images/flat/seated-leg-curl-start.webp",
      "peak": "images/flat/seated-leg-curl-peak.webp"
    }
  }
}

Fetch just this exercise

const { exercises } = await fetch(
  "https://exercise-dataset.com/exercises.json"
).then(r => r.json());
const ex = exercises.find(e => e.id === "seated-leg-curl");

Free for personal and commercial in-app use with attribution (“Exercise data by RepDB”) — see the license and ready-made attribution snippets. Redistributing the data as a dataset or API is not permitted.