Fysiqal

Isolation · Beginner

Lying Leg Curl

Isolation isolation exercise using machine.
Lying Leg Curl demonstration (no audio).
Movement pattern
Isolation
Difficulty
Beginner
Equipment
Machine
Mechanics
Isolation
Sides
Bilateral
Main plane
Sagittal

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How to do the Lying Leg Curl

Cues reviewed by Kwabena Osei on

Setup

Lie face-down on the machine with the pad resting just above your heels, your knees just off the edge of the bench (not directly on the pad).

  1. Curl your heels up toward your glutes by flexing your knees, keeping your hips pressed into the bench throughout.

  2. Point your toes (plantar flex your ankles) as you curl -- this takes the calf muscle out of the movement and keeps the emphasis on your hamstrings.

  3. Lower under control back to a full stretch.

Common mistakes

  • Lifting your hips/glutes off the bench to help move the weight, which brings other muscles into the movement and reduces hamstring isolation.

  • Using near-maximal loads for low-rep sets -- this exercise carries real elevated injury risk at heavy near-failure loads, so build load gradually rather than testing a true max here.

Muscles worked

Primary

Secondary

How the knowledge graph models this movement

Each joint action, with the role and emphasis the graph assigns each muscle. These are qualitative anatomical labels, not measured muscle activation.

  • Knee flexionprimary action

    Biceps femoris long head (prime mover, high emphasis); Biceps femoris short head (prime mover, high emphasis); Semitendinosus (prime mover, high emphasis); Semimembranosus (prime mover, high emphasis); Gastrocnemius (synergist, moderate emphasis); Gracilis (synergist, low emphasis); Sartorius (synergist, low emphasis)

  • Knee internal rotationsecondary action

    Semitendinosus (synergist, low emphasis); Semimembranosus (synergist, low emphasis)

  • Knee external rotationsecondary action

    Biceps femoris long head (synergist, low emphasis); Biceps femoris short head (synergist, low emphasis)

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Educational content only — not medical advice. Consult a qualified professional for individual guidance, especially around injury, pregnancy or medical conditions.