Five Lunge Variations To Spice Up Your Leg Day | Myprotein Masterclass

Content Executive3 years ago

Myprotein Masterclass, the series where our PTs breakdown key exercises to help you work on your technique. This week, lunges.

Personal trainers Kay Johnson and Chris Broomhead walk through the five best lunge variations to add to your next leg day. Chris performs the exercises with no additional weight, but when you’ve mastered your form adding a barbell or some dumbbells make these the perfect exercises for building muscle.

Front lunge

Place your feet shoulder width apart
Bring right leg forward putting your heel down first
Plunge your back leg to the floor with a bend at the knee
Your back knee should be touching the floor gently, all tension should remain in the front leg
Bring your right leg back up by pushing through your hamstring and quads
Complete the process on the opposite legs.

Tip: keep your back straight and ensure your back knee touches the floor to get a full range of motion.

Curtsy Lunge

Point both feet forwards
Take your right leg backwards in a diagonal motion
Your right leg will bend at the knee and touch the floor gently.
Bring your right leg back up
Complete the rep on the other leg

Tip: put your hands on your hips to increase stability and keep your toes pointed forwards throughout the exercise.

Lateral Lunge

Start on your right leg, placing your left leg and foot facing forwards
Your right leg is going to come completely out to the side
The toes on your right side will be following the line of your knee
As you lunge onto your right knee, bend you knee fully so it goes over your toes
Then push back up through your right leg until your in the standing position

Tip: keep your torse up and straight. When performed correctly this mostly targets the inner thigh and the glutes

Elevated back lunge

Put one foot onto the elevated platform (a box or a chair if you’re working out from home)
Your shoelace should be flat against the box
Take a big leap forward with your other foot
Put your hands on your hips for stability
Drive your back knee all the way down (doesn’t have to touch the ground)
Your front knee can go slightly over your toe

Tip: if your front leg is closer to your back leg, the focus will be on your quads.

Jump Lunges

Sink into the lunge position
Jump up and as you do, switch your legs over
Land on the middle part of your foot
To make the exercise more difficult, you can jump higher
To make the exercise easier, complete reverse lunges at a faster pace

Tip: lean forward to help with stability

Take Home Message

Lunges will be all the rage for your next lower body workout, perfect for targeting your quads, hamstrings, glutes and calves.

Remember to subscribe to the Myprotein YouTube channel so you don’t miss an episode of the Myprotein Masterclass.

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Emily Wilcock

Content Executive

After completing an internship with Myprotein, Emily returned to university to finish her Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management and Marketing. With experience in lifestyle writing, Emily aims to entertain and educate through her work. Her focuses include recipes, real and inspiring stories, and working with writers to help provide easy-to-digest evidence-based research. Her work on recipes has been previously featured in The Supplement magazine, with a particular focus on high-protein, nutritious meals, plus advice on how to properly fuel your body. Outside of work, Emily’s top priority is food. She’s a self-professed star baker and a connoisseur of all things baked. In her spare time, she’s either cooking up a storm, our looking out for the opportunity to try out Manchester’s newest restaurants. But as a huge fan of carbs, if it’s not pasta or pasta-adjacent, she’s not interested. If she’s not in the kitchen, she’s tucked up with a book for an early night, or you’ll find her in the gym working up a sweat. Afterall, all those carbs require quite the appetite.