11 Best Bodyweight Exercises for Legs

Need to get an efficient leg exercise at dwelling, however don’t have any gear? No sweat — if you happen to’re able to work out, you have already got every part you’ll want to carry out these body weight workout routines for legs.

“Body weight workout routines are an effective way to construct energy,” says Morgan Ford, RYT, and ACE-certified CPT. If you happen to’re skeptical, she says, simply have a look at the nearly-superhuman energy of gymnasts, who primarily practice by transferring their very own physique weight by way of totally different workout routines.

Even higher, body weight workout routines for legs could be tailored to any health stage. If a specific train begins to really feel simpler as you get stronger, you’ll be able to all the time make it tougher by “making an attempt totally different variations of actions, altering the tempo of your workout routines, reducing relaxation time, or growing reps,” Ford says. Or enhance your reps to “failure,” the purpose at which your legs scream for mercy and might do no extra.

Listed below are 11 body weight leg workout routines that may assist strengthen each muscle in your decrease physique.

Muscle groups labored: Quads, hamstrings, glutes, and calves

• Stand together with your toes shoulder-width aside.
• Maintaining your again flat and core braced, bend your knees, push your hips again, and decrease your physique till your thighs are parallel to the ground, as if you happen to’re decreasing your self right into a chair. Ensure that to not hinge ahead on the waist.
• Pause, after which push your self again as much as the beginning place.

Make it simpler: Start by standing about one foot in entrance of a chair, going through away from the chair, with toes shoulder-width aside. In a managed motion, push your butt out behind you and decrease it till your glutes are touching the chair. Briefly relaxation your weight on the chair, then interact your glutes to return to a standing place. “As you progressively enhance your energy, step away from the chair for a full squat,” Ford says.

Make it tougher: Upon getting a correct squat down, Ford suggests slowing down the motion, so that you decrease your self for 3 counts to problem your legs.

Muscle groups labored: Quads, glutes, and internal thighs

• Stand together with your toes wider than shoulder-width aside.
• Level your toes outward at a 45-degree angle.
• In a managed motion, push your butt out behind you and decrease it as if you happen to had been going to take a seat in a chair till your higher thighs are parallel with the ground. Hold your higher physique straight as you decrease into the squat, and don’t let your knees drift previous your toes.
• Pause for a second earlier than straightening your legs and returning to your beginning stance.

Muscle groups labored: Quads and glutes

• From a standing place, take an extended step ahead as if you happen to’re going to do a lunge. The heel of your again foot needs to be off the bottom.
• Maintaining your torso upright, decrease your physique so your entrance leg is at or near a 90-degree angle with the knee monitoring immediately above the ankle, and your again knee is sort of touching the ground. If wanted, you’ll be able to relaxation your fingers on the highest of your ahead leg for stability as you decrease into the squat.
• Press again up till your legs are straight.
• Full all squats on one leg earlier than switching to the opposite aspect.

Muscle groups labored: Hip flexors, adductors, and abductors

• Lie flat in your again on a mat together with your arms by your sides, palms on the ground.
• Interact your core and produce your left leg straight up in order that it varieties a 90-degree angle together with your physique.
• Maintaining your core engaged, draw a half-circle together with your left leg, swinging it up towards your proper shoulder then down over your proper leg.
• Full the circle by sweeping your left leg out to the left and again as much as the beginning place, prolonged up away out of your physique. Deal with maintaining your pelvis and shoulders planted to the mat all through this train.
• Full all circles together with your left leg earlier than switching to your proper.

Muscle groups labored: Calves

• Begin by standing together with your toes shoulder-width aside.
• Take into consideration grabbing the ground together with your toes as you elevate your heels off the bottom. Frivolously relaxation your fingers on a floor (like a counter or the again of a chair) to assist with stability if wanted.
• Maintain this place for 3 to five seconds earlier than slowly decreasing your heels again to the bottom.

Muscle groups labored: Quads and glutes

• Stand together with your toes shoulder-width aside.
• Hold your core engaged and your torso upright as you shift your weight onto your left foot and step your proper foot barely behind and to the left of your left foot.
• Decrease your self in a managed motion till your left thigh is parallel with the ground, your left knee is immediately above the ankle, and your proper knee is sort of touching the bottom.
• Push by way of the middle of your left foot and the ball of your proper foot to straighten your legs, then return your proper foot to its beginning place.
• Change legs and repeat with the left leg.

Make it tougher: As you push up out of your squat, add a aspect kick to the top of the motion earlier than returning your again leg to beginning place.

7. Entrance Kick

Muscle groups labored: Quads and glutes

• Stand together with your toes shoulder-width aside.
• Squatting barely, shift your weight onto your left leg and lift your proper knee till your thigh is parallel with the ground.
• Maintaining your knee up and toe flexed, push together with your foot straight and down in entrance of you till your proper leg is straight.
• Enable your proper knee to bend and return your proper foot to the ground, ending in a slight squat.
• Repeat all reps together with your proper leg earlier than switching to your left leg.

Make it tougher: As you get stronger, straighten your leg larger off the bottom as you kick.

Muscle groups labored: Hamstrings and glutes

• Stand together with your toes hip-width aside, your proper arm prolonged down your aspect, and your left hand in your left hip (or up and out to the aspect for counterbalance).
• Shift your weight into your left foot.
• Increase your proper leg straight behind you as your proper hand travels down towards the bottom. As your proper leg comes up, take into consideration pushing your behind out on the left aspect to activate that glute.
• Attempt to stay as straight as attainable out of your head to the toes of your proper foot.
• In a managed motion, return to your beginning place.
• Repeat all reps on one aspect earlier than switching to the opposite.

9. Backside Squat Slide

Muscle groups labored: Quads, hamstrings, glutes, and calves

• Stand together with your toes just a little wider than shoulder-width aside.
• Bend your knees, push your hips again, and decrease your self right into a deep squat place.
• Shift your weight onto your proper leg and slide your left leg out to the aspect till it’s straight with the toes going through ahead.
• Shift your weight onto your left foot by swinging your hips over to your left. It is best to now be in the identical place as you had been earlier than, simply together with your proper leg prolonged.
• Slide your proper foot nearer to your physique till it’s barely wider than your hips. You need to be again in your deep squat.
• Interact your glutes and legs to return to a standing place.
• Reverse this motion by squatting and sliding your proper foot first as an alternative of your left.

Make it simpler: The deeper the squat, the tougher this motion will probably be. If you happen to’re beginning out, decrease right into a squat the place your thighs are parallel to the ground. As you get stronger, you’ll be able to squat deeper.

Muscle groups labored: Quads, hamstrings, glutes, and calves

• Stand together with your toes shoulder-width aside, and preserve your knees unfastened.
• In a fluid movement, squat down and place each fingers on the bottom in entrance of you, then hop each of your toes again so your physique is in a push-up place with wrists immediately beneath the shoulders. Hold your core engaged and your physique in a straight line from head to heels.
• Maintaining your fingers on the ground, hop your toes again to a crouching stance.
• Utilizing the facility from this squat place, leap as excessive as you’ll be able to as you swing your fingers above your head.
• Hold your knees smooth as you land and return to the beginning place.
• Repeat for reps, and do not forget that controlling your actions by way of every rep is extra vital than velocity for constructing energy.

11. Pistol Squat

Muscle groups labored: Quads, hamstrings, glutes, and calves

• Stand tall together with your arms prolonged straight in entrance of your chest and your proper heel raised a number of inches off the ground in entrance of you. That is the beginning place.
• Maintaining your again flat, core engaged, and left foot elevated, push your hips again, bend your proper knee, and slowly decrease your physique so far as attainable.
• Reverse the transfer to push your self again as much as the beginning place. Carry out equal reps on either side.