The Claim

Even if you only do squats, you still get almost as strong at leg extensions as someone who only does leg extensions—so squats aren’t useless for that movement.

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

What the research says

Supports is higher

Support is ahead, but a single strong opposing study can change this.

Supports
48score
Challenges
0score

These are independent scores, not a percentage. Higher-grade studies count more, so a single strong opposing study can outweigh several weaker ones.

Cause and effect
1 study reviewed
In plain English

Even if you only do squats, you still get almost as strong at leg extensions as someone who only does leg extensions—so squats aren’t useless for that movement.

See the scientific wording

Leg extension and back squat exercises produce similar increases in leg extension 3RM strength (+23.4% vs. +19.8%) in untrained young women after 8 weeks, indicating that compound movements may transfer strength benefits to isolation tasks when trained with sufficient volume and intensity.

What the research says

1 study

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

    Both exercises made the women stronger at leg extensions, even though one was a squat and the other was just extending the leg — so doing squats can help you get stronger at leg extensions too.

Score breakdown, mechanism chain, raw evidence, ideal studies needed & 1 supporting studies

Fit Body Science verdict — we translate health claims into clear verdicts backed by peer-reviewed research.

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