Small trial found no clear growth difference between lunges and machine leg presses
Women trained each leg with a different exercise. Ultrasound detected no clear difference in thigh muscle thickness changes between the approaches.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
This small trial did not detect a difference in thigh muscle growth between free-weight lunges and inclined machine leg presses. Thickness measurements rose with both approaches. The result applies to these exercises in previously untrained young women; it does not establish that all free-weight and machine exercises produce equivalent growth.
The study included only 8 women and compared different exercises as well as equipment. This abstract-based summary cannot establish equivalence or extend the findings to other populations and training programs.
What researchers found
Change in ultrasound-measured muscle thickness
After 9 weeks, changes at the sampled thigh sites did not differ significantly between free-weight lunges and inclined machine leg presses.
How growth was measured
Each woman contributed a leg to each training condition. Researchers used ultrasound before and after training to measure thickness at different sites in the rectus femoris and vastus lateralis muscles.
What the comparison means
The main analysis compared changes between training conditions and found no statistically significant differences at the sampled sites. A measured increase within a condition does not by itself show that the exercise is superior.
The original publication
Comparable regional hypertrophy of the knee extensor muscles in response to resistance training with machines versus free weights: a randomized within-subject approach.
Amanuma MT, Ikeda PLT, Sakamoto MT et al.
J Bodyw Mov Ther · 2025
- PubMed ID
- 41316621
- Record checked
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