4 Little Known Ways to Get a Leg Workout at Home
Do you actually need to get to a gym to get a leg workout? Get-Fit Guy says you don’t.
Ben Greenfield
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4 Little Known Ways to Get a Leg Workout at Home
When it comes to squeezing in a good leg workout, we’ve all struggled at some point: snow blocking the roads, sick kid at home that needs pampering, car in the shop, or perhaps the most common, no time to get to the gym. But do you actually need to get to a gym to get a leg workout? Not really..
While less than ideal, you can use days when you can’t get to the gym and you’re relegated to your home fitness equipment as an opportunity to work not only major muscle groups, but also minor muscles that are often neglected during traditional exercises. As the old saying goes, “a chain is only as strong as its weakest link,” and this holds true for the body, which is only as strong as its weakest muscle.
So here are 4 at-home exercises that can work both your major and minor leg muscle groups. Each of these moves require little-to-no equipment.
The Windmill Lunge
Typically, when you do lunges, you are doing front lunges, which give the quads a fantastic workout, but do not work many of the other major muscles of the legs. The windmill lunge will work all parts of your leg, including the inner thigh muscles and hip adductors.
To do a windmill lunge, begin with a normal forward lunge, with your right foot forward. In your next lunge, step forward at a 45 degree angle. Continue to rotate 45 degrees each lunge, and after five lunges you will have just completed a reverse lunge. Repeat until fatigued, and then switch legs. Think of it as going “around the world” in a giant half circle with a series of lunges.
Jump Lunge
One of the worst things about at-home workouts is that without equipment, it can be difficult to do explosive movements that activate a type of muscle fiber called “type 2” muscle fibers, which are the muscle fibers responsible for strength, power, tone, aesthetic muscular looks, and curves. But doing a jump lunge will activate those type 2 muscle fibers!
To do a jump lunge, simply drop down into a lunge position, then jump up in the air and switch your foot position for the next lunge, then land. The faster you move, the better the burn!
One-Legged Squat
This exercise, also known as the pistol squat, requires quite a bit of balance to execute properly, so to keep you from falling over your first few times, be sure you have something to grab onto.
Plant yourself on a step or on the ground with one foot, and raise your other foot off the ground. Lower yourself with your planted leg until your butt and knee are parallel, then stand back up. Eventually, if you can, try not to hold onto anything while doing these. The added balancing act will engage all your minor leg muscles, as well as your core.
Swiss Ball Hamstring Curl
The Swiss Ball Hamstring Curl is likely the easiest exercise of the bunch, since it involves lying down on the job. Simply find an inflatable exercise ball and lie down on your back. With straight legs, place both your heels on the ball and lift your body off the ground. Now bring the ball in closer to your body by bending your knees and curling your legs. Repeat until you get a distinct burn in the back of your legs and your butt.
For a more challenging exercise, use a smaller exercise ball, which will throw your body even more off balance and engage more (and different) muscle fibers.
Bonus At-Home Exercises
Whether your home is your ideal workout spot or you’re crunched for time and can’t leave the house, these leg exercises can get you the workout your lower body needs. And just in case you want to throw a curveball at the rest of your body, too, I’d recommend the following resources:
- The “Spartan” WOD’s I mentioned in the last newsletter, which actually are quite Spartanesque in their requirements for minimal equipment.
- At-home playing cards with pictures of exercises on them. Check out my article on Common Household Items That Can Help You Lose Weight for more on that.
- A set of stairs and a heavy object. No kidding! I just moved into a new home with three flights of stairs, and one of my new workouts is grabbing a dumbbell or donning a weighted vest and going up and down the stairs 20-25 times, while I listen to music or a podcast.
- “Greasing The Groove.’ Every hour, stop and do 25 burpees. Or 50 push-ups. Or 15 body weight squats. You get the idea. I personally follow this rule every day of the week, and talk about it more in the article 12 Unconventional Ways To Burn More Fat.
If you have more questions about these little known ways to get a leg workout at home, or any of these other body weight home workout tips, then join the conversation over at Facebook.com/GetFitGuy!
Photo of stretching legs courtesy of Shutterstock.
About the Author
Ben Greenfield received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from University of Idaho in sports science and exercise physiology; personal training and strength and conditioning certifications from the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA); a sports nutrition certification from the International Society of Sports Nutrition (ISSN), an advanced bicycle fitting certification from Serotta. He has over 11 years’ experience in coaching professional, collegiate, and recreational athletes from all sports, and as helped hundreds of clients achieve weight loss and fitness success.