Squat Lunge Variations
Hip strength is super important. Strong hips support your back, help keep your knees track properly, keeps you moving well, especially as we age and and key for getting you up if you fall.
I am a big fan of doing single leg work. Single leg work is great for developing balance, core strength and hip strength. When we walk or run at least 50% of the time we are on one leg. The stronger and more balanced we are doing single leg work the stronger our gait can become.
Squat lunges are a great way to start incorporating single leg work into your workout. I have shown you three ways to do this exercise and I consider them all intermediate to advanced. If you are new to this exercise I strongly recommend holding onto something sturdy until you feel balanced enough to try it with your arms behind your head as shown.
Some key points for this exercise.
- Take one step back and keep both feet positioned forward. A common mistake is to stand with the rear foot in a bit of external rotation.
- Keep the chest up and “brace (add tension) to your core.”
- Drop the back knee to the floor or to a comfortable range.
- Keep the weight in the front heal and arch of the foot as you push yourself up. Remember that this exercise is about pushing up and down not front and back. Think elevator. You also want to focus on keeping 80% of your weight on the front leg.
- Keep looking straight ahead and keeping your spine in its neutral position, be careful not to bend at your waist to aid in getting up. If you find yourself doing this, stand next to a stable object for balance and to give you support until you are strong enough to do it on your own.
- Start with one set and work to three sets of 12-15 repetitions.
How you carry an external load like a dumbbell can change the exercise.
The Goblet Carry loads evenly, and will feel more balanced.
The Suitcase Carry, creates an uneven load increasing the demand on your balance, and puts more stress on the hip and your low back muscles because you are fighting to stay balanced. This carry is extremely functional and is great for strengthening an important low back muscle called your quadratus lumborum, or “QL” for short. Your QL becomes active when dealing with uneven loads. This is important because when we carry stuff we are rarely evenly loaded. When we carry a suitcase or shopping bag , it is usually with one hand, or when we carry a small child we have them propped up on one hip.
Goblet Carry
