Is a hundred kilos on a leg press really a hundred kilos?

Direct answer

The number on the plates or on the stack is rarely the force you push. On a plate-loaded sled, the empty sled already resists before the first plate, and only part of the plate weight acts along the rails. On a selectorized leg press, the pin picks a stack weight, but cables and pulleys sit between the stack and the footplate.

So the honest reply to "is a hundred kilos on a leg press really a hundred kilos?" is: that depends which number you mean, and for most machines we do not yet have a force curve that would convert that number into the push at your feet. Where we have no curve, the comparator answers "No data yet" rather than invent a conversion.

Leg press weight: is what you load what you push?How to convert machine weight between gyms and brands

MethodologyOpen the comparator

What "a hundred kilos" can mean

• Plates on a sled: the total of the plates you hung on the carriage. That is a mass on the sled, not the force along the rails. The sled's own weight is separate, and the rail angle decides how much of both acts against your push.
• Selectorized pin: the label next to the hole you pinned. That is the stated stack weight (or a portion of it), not necessarily the load at the footplate after the cable route.
• Force along the rails: what a force gauge at the footplate would read mid-movement. That is the figure you need to compare two leg presses honestly. It needs a measured or estimated force curve for that machine. Without one, we say no data yet.

We never turn "a hundred kilos of plates" into a force figure by guesswork. The walkthrough below stays with manufacturer starting weights and with curves that already exist in the catalog.

What the empty sled weighs (manufacturer starting resistance)

Before any plate is added, the empty sled already pushes back. Manufacturers call it starting resistance, starting weight or carriage weight. Below is every plate-loaded leg press in our catalog whose manufacturer publishes that figure, quoted with badge, source and date. It is already there before your first plate, so "plates only" understates the load.

Plate-loaded machine starting weight by brand: what the empty machine weighsLeg press weight: is what you load what you push?

No data yet Plate-loaded leg presses whose manufacturer does not publish a starting resistance (no data yet):

Cybex Plate Loaded Leg PressExigo Dual 45 Degree Leg PressExigo Plate Loaded 2.0 45 Degree Leg PressExigo Plate Loaded 2.0 Lever Leg PressExigo Vertical Leg Pressgym80 Pure Kraft 45 Degrees Linear Leg Pressgym80 Pure Kraft Seated Leg Press DualHoist Fitness Dual Action Leg PressNautilus (commercial) Angled Leg Press ProPrime Fitness Leg PressWatson Gym Equipment Plate Loaded Animal Leg Press

Selectorized leg presses: the pin is not the push

On a stacked leg press the pin picks a plate stack. Stack weight and increment, when the manufacturer states them, are listed on each machine page and in the leg press weight guide. They are not a conversion of "a hundred kilos on the pin" into force at the feet.

Leg press weight: is what you load what you push?

Leg press machines in the catalog

Cybex Eagle NX Leg PressCybex Prestige Strength VRS Leg PressExigo Recumbent Leg PressExigo Seated Leg Pressgym80 Dual Leg Pressgym80 Seated Leg PressHammer Strength Select Seated Leg PressHoist Fitness Leg PressLife Fitness Axiom Series Leg PressLife Fitness Insignia Series Arc Leg PressMatrix Fitness Aura Leg PressNautilus (commercial) Impact Seated Leg PressNautilus (commercial) Inspiration Leg PressPrecor Leg PressTechnogym Artis Leg PressTechnogym Selection 700 Leg PressTechnogym Selection 900 Leg PressWatson Gym Equipment Single Stack Leg Press

Force along the rails: when we have a curve

At least one leg press in the catalog has a mid-movement force curve (measured or estimated). Open it below, or use the comparator only between machines that both have a curve. Every other pair still answers "No data yet".

The longer leg press guide shows how rail angle, sled weight, pulleys, cams and friction change the push, with an illustrative sled diagram and any available model rows.

Hammer Strength Plate Loaded Linear Leg Press

Leg press weight: is what you load what you push?How to convert machine weight between gyms and brands

Open the comparatorMechanical models

How every figure is labelled

MachineConvert never invents a number. Each figure carries one of three levels, with its source link and the date it was read:

Measured

Read on the machine itself with a force gauge, following the measurement protocol, with a proof (continuous video or photos) and the date.

Manufacturer

Quoted word for word from the manufacturer's official page or document, in the units printed there, with the link and the date it was read. A stack weight says what the plates weigh, not what you feel at the handle.

Estimated

Computed from a mechanical model of the machine (lever, cam or pulley) built from sourced inputs. Each estimate shows its method, its error band and a derivation page, and is marked as not verified by measurement.

MethodologyData rules

What to do next

Pick your machine below to see its sourced specs. Compare two leg presses only when both have a force curve. If you can measure the force at the footplate with a gauge and a photo or video, send it: every submission is reviewed before it is published.

Share a measurementOpen the comparatorAll brandsCoverage by machine group

Leg press machines in the catalog

Arsenal Strength Reloaded Bilateral Leg PressArsenal Strength Reloaded Linear Leg PressArsenal Strength Reloaded Vertical Leg PressCybex Eagle NX Leg PressCybex Plate Loaded Leg PressCybex Prestige Strength VRS Leg PressExigo Dual 45 Degree Leg PressExigo Plate Loaded 2.0 45 Degree Leg PressExigo Plate Loaded 2.0 Lever Leg PressExigo Recumbent Leg PressExigo Seated Leg PressExigo Vertical Leg Pressgym80 Dual Leg Pressgym80 Pure Kraft 45 Degrees Linear Leg Pressgym80 Pure Kraft Seated Leg Press Dualgym80 Seated Leg PressHammer Strength Plate Loaded Linear Leg PressHammer Strength Select Seated Leg PressHoist Fitness Dual Action Leg PressHoist Fitness Leg PressLife Fitness Axiom Series Leg PressLife Fitness Insignia Series Arc Leg PressLife Fitness Plate Loaded Linear Leg PressMatrix Fitness Aura Leg PressMatrix Fitness Magnum 45-degree Leg PressNautilus (commercial) Angled Leg PressNautilus (commercial) Angled Leg Press ProNautilus (commercial) Impact Seated Leg PressNautilus (commercial) Inspiration Leg PressPanatta Leg Press 45°Precor Angled Leg PressPrecor Leg PressPrime Fitness Leg PressTechnogym Artis Leg PressTechnogym Biostrength Leg PressTechnogym Pure Strength Linear Leg PressTechnogym Selection 700 Leg PressTechnogym Selection 900 Leg PressWatson Gym Equipment Plate Loaded Animal Leg PressWatson Gym Equipment Single Stack Leg Press

Related guides

Hammer Strength starting weight and weight stacks: every catalogued machineLeg press weight: is what you load what you push?Plate-loaded machine starting weight by brand: what the empty machine weighsHow to convert machine weight between gyms and brandsPlate-loaded vs selectorized machines: why the numbers differArsenal Strength starting weight: what every Reloaded machine weighs empty