If you take out squats and lunges, can you still get achieve and effective lower body workout at home?
A lower body workout that tones the tush, lifts the bottom and enhances your leg strength for your best quality of life?
The answer is yes!
That’s exactly what you’ll do in today.
Whether you’ve got arthritis, a knee injury or knee discomfort that just won’t let you squat or lunge, or you want to work the legs but you don’t have time to get sweaty then ready for the day.
This workouts perfect for you.
What is so powerful about this workout is that while you tone and firm the thighs and lift and firm the bottom, you also awaken muscles you didn’t even know you had.
The body is amazing at compensating (using certain muscles to do more work while other muscles “turn off” or “sleep”.
This leads to muscle imbalances and improper movement patterns which leads inevitably to more body pain.
During this lower body workout you’ll simultaneously wake up those sleeping muscles that have gotten a bit lazy and have forgotten to work.
We’re specifically talking about:
- Tight hamstrings (the back of your legs)
- Gluteus muscles (the bottom)
- Piriformis (more bottom)
- Low back muscles
This enhances your mobility, reduces pain and inflammation in the body.
You don’t need heavy weights or gym equipment, which makes this the perfect lower body workout at home.
It’s a win win!
For this workout you’ll need a set of weights that feel heavy at around 12 repetitions (we’re going to 15 repetitions) and That’s it.
Lower Body Workout at Home: The Moves
Note: If you’re just starting out and you’re feeling out of shape, or you find it difficult to get from standing to on the floor, each of these lower body workout moves can be done standing up as well.
Stiff-Legged-Deadlifts/Straight Leg Deadlifts:
- Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart holding your weights with your palms facing toward thighs.
- Bend your knees slightly to protect your knee joint.
- Bow forward and keep your back straight.
- The upper back will want to round, so make sure to roll your shoulders back and down.
- Lower until you feel a stretch in the back of your legs and your bottom (in the hamstrings and glute muscles)
- Then place the weight in your heels as you slowly rise back up.
- Slide the weights gently along your thighs as you rise in order to protect your low back and keep proper form.
Bridges:
- Lie on your back with your knees and feet shoulder width apart
- Bend your knees so your feet are flat on the floor
- Press your back flat into the ground, then relax. This creates a neutral spine position.
- Then, press your feet into the mat and squeeze your bottom as you slowly lift your hips up off the mat.
- Squeeze your bottom and rise up high enough that your body makes a straight line from your shoulders to your knees.
- Gently lower back down to start position
Swimmers kicks
- Lie on your stomach with your head gently resting on your forearms or your hands (depending your your flexibility)
- Engage your core, and drive your your right hip into the ground
- Squeeze your bottom and lift your right leg off the ground to hip height. This motion is both a simultaneous drive of the hip towards the mat as you lift the bottom.
- Keep your right knee straight. Focus on lifting the leg with the bottom
- Return leg back to start position
- Repeat on left side
Side Lying Leg Raises
- Lie down on your side,
- Bottom leg is bent and your top leg straight
- Slowly raise your top leg as you squeeze your bottom
- Keep your foot flexed and make sure your top leg is extended slightly behind your torso. You’ll do this by squeezing your bottom which gently pulls the leg back
If there are certain exercises that you hurt to do, or you’re struggling to get started, then book a Free Strategy call with me. Together we’ll determine the fabulous transformation you want to make and we’ll look at the programs that can get there.
