Leg Day Workout: Complete Routine Plus Split Squats

A complete leg day workout trains quads, hamstrings, glutes, and calves, with split squats as one of the most effective single exercises for building strength and size across all three major lower body muscle groups. The routine below covers each muscle group’s role, a full breakdown of split squat variations, and ready-to-run leg day workouts.

The Four Muscle Groups Leg Day Must Cover

Skipping any of these leaves a real gap in lower body development, since each does a job the others can’t fully replace:

• Quads: the primary knee extensors, trained by squats, leg press, and lunges. If balance, knee tolerance, or floor space rules out the stepping lunge, see lunge alternatives for substitutes.
• Hamstrings: hip extension and knee flexion, trained by deadlifts, Romanian deadlifts, and leg curls.[1][2][3]
• Glutes: the biggest hip extensor, trained by hip thrusts, squats, and split squats.[1][2][3]
• Calves: ankle plantarflexion, trained by standing and seated calf raises.[1][2][3]

Calf training is easy to under-plan since it responds to knee position and rep range differently than the other three groups above; see calf exercises for the gastrocnemius-versus-soleus selection guide and the higher rep range calf training tends to need.

A leg day built only around squats and leg press under-trains the hamstrings specifically, since squats are quad-dominant. Pair a squat pattern with a hip-hinge pattern every session. For a full quad selection guide organized by knee-flexion depth, see quad exercises; for the hip-extension versus knee-flexion split that hamstring training needs, see hamstring exercises; and to select glute work by resistance profile, see glute exercises.

For supported lower-body options, compare the leg press form guide with the hack squat versus back squat guide. For direct hamstring knee-flexion work, use the seated versus lying leg curl comparison when choosing the machine that fits your setup. If you want targeted inner-thigh work after the main lifts, use the hip adduction machine as a controlled accessory rather than a replacement for your squat pattern; see adductor exercises for the full direct-adduction selection, including closed-chain and no-machine options. For a frontal-plane leg option, add the lateral lunge form guide after your main lift and progress its step width before adding a goblet load.

Split Squats: The Complete Breakdown

Split squats deserve their own section because they hit quads, glutes, and hip stabilizers in one movement, and they’re easier on the lower back than back squats since the load per leg is lower even at the same total weight.

Bulgarian Split Squat

The rear foot rests on a bench behind you. This increases range of motion and shifts more load onto the front leg’s glute, making it the most demanding variation. Best for lifters with good single-leg balance and knee stability. See our Bulgarian split squat form guide for step-by-step setup.

Dumbbell Split Squat

Holding dumbbells at your sides with both feet on the floor. This is the standard entry point: easier to balance than the Bulgarian version, and load is simple to increase as you get stronger. See our split squat form guide for the full setup and common mistakes.

Elevated Split Squat

Both the front and rear foot are elevated slightly (front foot on a low platform, rear foot on a bench), extending range of motion further than either version alone. Reserve this for lifters who’ve mastered the Bulgarian split squat with a full range of motion and want an even harder progression.

The Five Best Leg Exercises

If you only have time to pick a handful of movements, these five cover quads, hamstrings, and glutes with the least redundancy between them.[1][2][3]

1. Barbell back squat: the single best quad-dominant compound, since it trains more total lower-body muscle mass per rep than any other exercise on this list.[1][2][3]
2. Romanian deadlift: the best hamstring and glute hip-hinge movement, filling the gap a squat-only session leaves in the posterior chain.[1][2][3]
3. Bulgarian split squat: the best single-leg option, correcting side-to-side imbalances that bilateral lifts like the squat can hide.[1][2][3]
4. Leg extension: the best low-fatigue quad finisher, isolating the muscle after compound lifts have already done the heavy lifting.[1][2][3]
5. Hip thrust: the best direct glute builder, since the bench-supported horizontal bar path keeps tension on the glutes through the full range in a way squats cannot match at the top.[1][2][3]

Rotate in a leg curl or calf raise around these five for a complete session, but these are the five exercises that give the most lower-body development for the least total time in the gym. Run them in roughly this order too, since compound quad and hip-hinge work fatigues fastest and belongs earlier in the session.

Leg Day Exercise Order

1. Back squat (front squat, goblet squat, dumbbell squat, or leg press also work) - quad-dominant compound, done first[1][2][3]
2. Romanian deadlift - hamstring and glute hip-hinge[1][2][3]
3. Bulgarian split squat - unilateral quad and glute work[1][2][3]
4. Leg curl - hamstring isolation[1][2][3]
5. Hip thrust - direct glute isolation[1][2][3]
6. Leg extension - quad finisher, optional if the squat already covered enough quad volume[1][2][3]
7. Standing calf raise - calf work, done last since it doesn’t fatigue balance or coordination

Full Leg Day Workout

This session pairs naturally with a push day workout and pull day workout in a full push pull legs rotation, or fits as one of the two lower body days in a 4-day upper/lower workout plan. If you’re building a minimalist schedule instead, see our best workout routine guide for how the 3-3-3 rule condenses leg day down to a single squat, push, and pull movement.

Let the Plan Balance Your Lower Body

Making sure quads, hamstrings, glutes, and calves all get their fair share of volume, and knowing when to progress from a dumbbell split squat to the Bulgarian version, is easier with a plan that adapts to you. Your PT’s AI plan generator builds a leg day workout around your equipment and experience, and adjusts split squat difficulty as you get stronger.