Exercise apparatuses for leg strengthening

An exercise apparatus for leg strengthening, the exercise apparatus comprising:

• a frame longitudinally extending from a front to a rear, vertically extending from a top to a bottom, and laterally extending from a first side to a second side,
• a knee support configured to support a knee of a user relative to the frame,
• a leg brace configured to brace a lower leg of the user relative to the frame,
• a linkage assembly configured to facilitate performance of a hamstring curl exercise motion in which a chest of the user is lowered to a lowest position and then raised again relative to the frame, the linkage assembly configured such that a resulting force applied to the chest of the user in the lowest position corresponds to a ratio of a resistance load provided by the linkage assembly to the resulting force, the linkage assembly including:
• a driver arm pivotably coupled to the frame and configured to support the chest of the user, and
• a loaded arm pivotably coupled to the frame above the driver arm, the loaded arm providing or supporting a load and being coupled to the driver arm so that lowering of the chest during the hamstring curl exercise motion is resisted by the load and so that raising of the chest during the hamstring curl exercise motion is assisted by the load.