3 Leg Exercises to Never Skip

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Welcome to The Ripped Report! Here’s what we’ve got for you today:

  • Dana Linn Bailey’s three leg exercises you should never skip

  • Five squat mistakes you might be making

  • Preacher curls vs. incline curls — which is better?

EXERCISE SELECTION

Leg Day Staples

Credit: Dana Linn Bailey / YouTube

Movement efficiency is an often-overlooked aspect of weight training. Exercise selection can make or break progress unless workouts are well-planned and consistent. Muscles can grow beyond 40 weekly exercise sets, but intensity, technique, and other factors also drive growth.

What if you have limited time or ways to stimulate large muscles like the glutes, hamstrings, quads, calves, and core? Former Women’s Physique Olympia champion Dana Linn Bailey shared the three leg exercises she suggests should never be skipped.

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FORM CHECK

Squat Better

Credit: Calgary Barbell / YouTube

The back squat is a cornerstone barbell exercise that builds lower-body strength and muscle mass, benefits the skeletal system, enhances the strength of muscles, tendons, ligaments, and bones, increases resistance to mechanical strain, and improves force transmission across the lower body.

Unfortunately, improper back squat technique is all too common. Bryce Krawczyk, powerlifter and founder of Calgary Barbell, highlighted five mistakes and how to fix them for safer, more effective squats.

LATEST RESEARCH

Curl Science

The biceps flex the elbow, supinate the forearm, and assist shoulder flexion and abduction. (Plus, they look really good in short sleeves.) Elbow flexor muscle size (i.e., biceps) was the focus of a 2025 Journal of Sports Medicine study that compared preacher and incline biceps curls for strength and hypertrophy and suggested that including both in a training program is best for overall biceps size and strength. Discover the study’s findings below to understand why.

THE DROP SET

  • The 2025 Mr. Big Evolution Pro was held in Estoril, Portugal, over the weekend and featured athletes from nine IFBB pro divisions competing for a spot at this year’s Olympia. Here are the winners.

  • Top Classic physique bodybuilder Wesley Vissers is skipping the 2025 competitive season to improve his legs so that they balance his champion-caliber upper body. Here’s the upgraded workout he’s using to make gains.

  • Keeping on today’s leg exercise theme: What the heck is a stiletto squat? Learn how and why you should be doing this underrated squat variation.

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