The 20-Minute Quick Leg Workout for Home or Gym

Legs are not everyone's favorite body part to train (looking at you gym bros), but they absolutely should not be skipped. It can feel tempting to skip them when you're short on time, but it's possible to hit all of your leg muscles in just twenty minutes if you're smart about training.

You'll have to put your phone down and save scrolling for another time, but you can get a quick leg workout done lickity split by using compound lifts and supersets. Let's go.

What Makes a Quick Leg Workout Work

Short sessions live or die on exercise selection. Multi-joint lifts that move the hip, knee, and ankle together recruit far more muscle per set than isolation work, which is why they tend to be used for any time strapped training plans. For example, a leg press grows your quads, glutes, and adductors at the same time, so one exercise hits what would otherwise take three different moves.

Cutting back on rest times and making good use of them is the other half of the equation. Supersetting two exercises that use different muscles lets one group recover while the other works, so your rest breaks are only ten seconds without your performance falling apart. For instance, instead of doing straight sets of walking lunges and then back squats which both fry your quads, try a leg curl and a goblet squat back-to-back because they barely overlap, so you can bounce straight from one to the other.

Who a 20-Minute Leg Day Is For

Even if you're a freak who loves leg day (guilty), there are days you might be pressed for time, especially if you lift two to four times a week and have a job, kids, a commute, or all three competing for your evening. It's also ideal for beginners because the rep ranges are forgiving and the movements are simple to learn, focusing on the basics that every newbie should learn.

Powerlifters chasing a max squat should train squats fresh with long rests instead. Same goes if you are deep into a high-volume hypertrophy block, since you will need more sets than you can get done in 20 minutes, even with some nifty tricks. For general strength and muscle, or to maintain your current results, this is plenty.

How to Build a Quick Leg Workout

Here's how best to lay out your speedy leg day so you still get results.

Lead With Your Hamstrings

Most people squat first and curl last, which leaves your hamstrings fighting through whatever scraps of energy you have left. It's best to flip these around and start with leg curls, which put almost no load on your spine and barely put a dent in your energy levels. Your hamstrings act as stabilizers during squats rather than prime movers, so curling first will not cost you anything on the squat. Hitting your hamstrings separately with a curl also recruits the hammies harder than any squat or hinge pattern, so they aren't being left out when you start with the compound moves. As a bonus, your knees will be warmer by the time you squat, cutting back on warm-up time.

Superset Moves That Don't Compete

Do a hamstring exercise followed immediately by a quad exercise, then take about ten seconds to walk over and start the next set. Single-leg movements are perfect here, such as a single-leg squat that lights up your glutes and quads, will get you a lot of stimuli from less load than you'd need for heavy barbell squats, so you can skip a lengthy warmup.

Stick to the 15 to 20 Rep Range

Pick a weight you can move 15 to 20 times on your first set of each exercise. Really, anywhere from 5 to 30 reps builds muscle when you take sets close to failure, and the higher end doubles as conditioning. Later sets dropping to 10 or 12 reps is normal and completely fine.

Add a Rep Before You Add a Plate

Progressive overload still runs the show, even in a short session. Try adding one rep per set each week for a month or two to keep progressing, then you bump the weight up and start adding reps again as you go. To eke out a couple more reps, take some Purist® Creatine Plus which is one of the few supplements that has tons of evidence to back it.

Read more: How to Build a Push-Pull-Legs Routine

Leg Day Warm Up

Your leg day warm up gets five minutes, no more. Two minutes of easy walking, cycling, or rowing to get warm, then ten bodyweight squats, ten leg swings per side, and ten hip bridges. Try a set of low plyo box step-ups to wake up your glutes and hips. Finish with a light set of your first exercise at about half the weight you plan to use.

If your 5 a.m. training slot has not yet been approved by your central nervous system, Purist® Pre-Workout helps you show up with something in the tank.

The 20-Minute Leg Workout

The best leg day exercises for a short session can hit several muscles at once, which is what these three supersets do. You'll do two to three rounds of each, ten seconds of rest between exercises and about sixty seconds between rounds. The muscles worked include your quads, glutes, hamstrings, adductors, and calves, so… your whole lower body.

Superset 1

• Lying leg curl or dumbbell leg curl: 3 x 15-20
• Goblet squat or front squat: 3 x 15-20

Superset 2

• Bulgarian split squat: 2-3 x 10-12 per leg
• Plyo box step-up: 2-3 x 12 per leg

Superset 3

• Barbell RDL: 2-3 x 10-15
• Standing calf raise: 2-3 x 15-20

You can do home leg workouts the same way with less equipment. Just use a set of adjustable dumbbells and an adjustable bench, or you can swap in some pure bodyweight versions.

If you'll do your leg day exercises at the gym, that opens up the leg press, hack squat, and heavier barbell weightlifting, which makes it easier to add load.

Stretches for Leg Day

You can cool down with some stretches for leg day which work best right after training while everything is warm and cooperative. You'll only need to add two or three minutes for a great stretch sesh. Try holding each one for 30 to 60 seconds per side and breathe instead of bouncing.

• Couch stretch opens up your quads and hip flexors after all that squatting
• 90/90 hip sit sorts out your glutes and rotators
• Standing hamstring reach with a soft knee to stretch out your hinge's muscles.

Get some protein in within a couple of hours of finishing your lifts. A scoop of Purist® Whey Protein gives you 25g from grass-fed whey isolate if you don't have time for a full meal either.

Takeaway

If you cut the time wasting and doom scrolling, you'll be surprised at how much you can get done in a tight amount of time. Adding supersets and keeping your rests short let you pack in a bunch of leg exercises in only 20 minutes.

FAQs

What are the benefits of doing a quick leg workout daily?

Daily leg training is more than most people need or can recover from, and hammering your quads and hamstrings seven days a week will definitely hinder your performance. Two to four leg sessions per week gives your muscles enough stimulus to grow and enough time to repair between sessions. If you want daily lower body movement, alternate hard training days with easy walking, cycling, or mobility work.

Are there any low-impact leg workouts suitable for beginners?

Low impact leg workouts for beginners can include goblet squats, box squats to a bench, glute bridges, and slow step-ups that keep your joints happy while still loading your legs, even at a shallow depth. Skip the jumping and start with bodyweight or light dumbbells for the first few weeks, then add load once the movements feel automatic.

How long should a leg day warm up be?

Five minutes is enough for most people. Two minutes of light cardio raises your body temperature, a handful of dynamic moves like leg swings and bodyweight squats prepares your hips and knees, and one light set of your first exercise dials in your technique. Longer warm-ups eat into a twenty-minute session and give you very little in return.

Can you build legs with only 20 minutes a week?

One 20-minute session per week will maintain your leg strength and build a little muscle if you are new to lifting, though progress will be slow. Two sessions per week is where things start moving properly, since you get enough weekly sets per muscle group to drive growth. Add a third session when your schedule allows and your legs will make steady gains for a long time.