Legs · Machine
Seated Leg Curl
How to do the seated leg curl, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Machine
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Logged as
- Weighted reps
- Movement
- Curl
- Mechanic
- Isolation
How to do it
Sit in a leg curl machine with your legs under the pad. Curl the pad towards your glutes, squeezing your hamstrings, then return to the starting position.
- 1Sit with the pad behind your lower legs and curl it toward your glutes; you should feel your hamstrings contracting
- 2Keep your hips pressed into the seat and your back against the pad
- 3Squeeze at the bottom and control the return to feel a full stretch
Common mistakes
- Don't jerk the weight or let the pad slam back down
- Avoid lifting your hips off the seat or leaning back excessively
- Don't use your calves or lower back to assist the movement
Muscles worked
The seated leg curl mainly works the hamstrings, with the calves and glutes assisting.
- HamstringsPrimary
- CalvesSupport
- GlutesSupport
- QuadsMinor
Seated Leg Curl strength standards
See how your seated leg curl ranks, from Bronze to Champion. These are the same standards the Kovo app uses to rank your lifts.
Bronzee1RM72.5 lb
Silvere1RM125 lb
Golde1RM190 lb
Platinume1RM262.5 lb
Diamonde1RM302.5 lb
Champione1RM337.5 lb
Find your rank
Enter your best set. We estimate your 1RM and match it to a tier.
Kovo tracks this rank automatically as you train, across every lift, and levels you up as you get stronger.
Kovo programs the seated leg curl for you and tracks it every session.
We build your whole program, drop the right lifts into each workout, and adjust your weights as you get stronger. Free on iOS and Android.
More hamstrings exercises
- How to do the deficit rdl
- How to do the leg curl
- How to do the dumbbell rdl
- How to do the glute ham raise
- How to do the jefferson curl
- How to do the leg swings
Last reviewed April 2026.