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Analysis v1
Strong Support

Squats make the outer part of your thigh near the knee grow more than leg extensions do.

53
Pro
0
Against

Evidence from Studies

Supporting (3)

53

Community contributions welcome

48

Comparison of Muscle Hypertrophy and Strength Adaptations Induced by Back Squat and Leg Extension Resistance Exercises.

Randomized Controlled Trial
Human
2025 Dec 12

Squats made the lower part of the big thigh muscle grow more than leg extensions did, which is exactly what the claim said would happen because squats stretch the muscle more.

33

Exercise speed and workload effects on muscle hypoxia in vastus lateralis muscle during squatting exercises

Cross-Sectional Study
Human

This study found that doing squats all the way down (full range of motion) makes the thigh muscle work harder and get more oxygen-deprived, which helps muscles grow — supporting the idea that deep squats are better for building muscle than shallow ones.

28

Which ROMs Lead to Rome? A Systematic Review of the Effects of Range of Motion on Muscle Hypertrophy

Systematic Review With Meta-Analysis
Human
2023 May 1

Full squats (full range of motion) make the lower part of your thigh muscles grow more than partial squats, because stretching the muscle more during the exercise helps it grow better in that area.

Contradicting (0)

0

Community contributions welcome

No contradicting evidence found

Similar Assertions

Squats make the lower part of the outer thigh muscle grow more than leg extensions do, probably because squats involve more hip and knee movement together.

48
0
80%

If you want to grow the outer part of your thigh (vastus lateralis), leg presses might be more effective than leg extensions.

61
0
78%

Compound lower-body exercises performed through a full range of motion induce greater hypertrophy in the vastus lateralis near the distal tendon insertion due to increased mechanical tension at longer muscle lengths.

61
0
77%

If you're a young adult who hasn't trained much before, doing squats slowly on the way down (4 seconds) for 7 weeks will make your front thigh muscle grow more than doing it quickly (1 second).

54
0
76%

Different leg exercises make different parts of your thigh muscles bigger — leg extensions grow the front part, squats grow the lower outer part.

48
0
75%

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