Frankly you’re not doing anything other than being a dick when you take 10+ plates a side and do multiple reasonable rep range sets with it.
(At least use effort aside from loading the plates if your going that heavy.)
I laugh whenever I see something prescribe low reps and a high percentage of 1rm on the leg press.
How are they loading the damn thing? Is there a fucking space shuttle welded on top of the sled? Maybe something bigger?
Leg press machines have stupid high loading potential.
The zillion plate drop set can be useful, even fun once in a while, but really there are better ways.
As a kid I saw video of this 15 or 16 year old high school swimmer max out a leg press (oddly outdoors near the Olympic pool, Arizona for ya), and I’m talking ZERO space on the thing for anymore plates, and added his little brother to the thing only to wedge himself in and heave for somewhere around 5 or 6 reps.
At 10 years old seeing this was crazy, but now after being in a weight room it’s not that impressive.
I remember a kid back at the old commercial gym (he was short and heavy) who’d do like the aforementioned swimmer and take just about every damn 45 in the building only to do fucking singles, with knee wraps, long rest periods, and while wearing a god damn belt.
(During the kid’s 5 singles leg press hour everyone else loaded up with 35s and change. You’d get to see some strange ass plate loading combinations. Math and a dearth of plates will do that.)
Completely unnecessary…
Just like the small weak dudes trying similar pushing hands on knees looking like an eminent seizure of doom will strike their barely wedged in there asses.
(It’s a machine, not a powerlift, so bodybuild with it damnit!)
I saw a guy suggest as a rough standard being able to leg press your squat 1rm for 50 reps.
This is stupid easy.
However this is closer to the manner I suggest you generally leg press with.
Take around your squat max (look at that you’re now only needing ballpark 5 plates a side) and slow your rep speed down. Let yourself feel the muscles work and squeeze…and now shoot for 5 or so high quality high rep sets.
I generally hit around 4×35 like this and on the last set (the 5th) will loosen form and start repping normally for a lot of reps after hitting the 25th-30th rep. The last set could go to 100 reps, though around 75 is most common.
TLDR: More than 10 plates a side on the leg press is an ego and dick move. There are better and more courteous ways.
-J