Side Lunge
Strengthen your quads, glutes, and inner/outer thighs with the Side Lunge. This dynamic lower body exercise also enhances hip mobility, flexibility, and
Description
A Side Lunge is a lower body exercise that strengthens your quads, glutes and hamstrings. The side lunge also targets the inner and outer thighs, improving flexibility and balance.
How to Do Side Lunge
- 1Setup
Stand tall with your feet hip-width apart, toes pointing forward. Engage your core and keep your chest lifted.
- 2Setup
Take a wide step directly to one side, keeping your other leg completely straight and its foot flat on the floor, pointing forward.
- 3
As you step, hinge at your hips and bend the knee of the stepping leg, lowering your hips towards the ground as if sitting back.
- 4
Keep your torso upright and your chest proud, ensuring the bent knee tracks in line with your toes and does not collapse inward.
- 5
Drive powerfully through the heel of your bent leg to push yourself back to the starting upright position.
- 6
Alternate sides with each repetition, or complete all repetitions on one side before switching to the other.
Tips
- Maintain a slight forward lean from your hips, not your back, to better engage the glutes and protect your spine throughout the movement.
- Focus on driving through the heel of your lunging foot to return to the start, ensuring optimal glute and quad activation.
- Control the movement both on the way down and up; avoid simply dropping into the lunge or bouncing out of it.
- Keep your non-lunging leg completely straight with the foot flat on the floor to maximize the stretch in the inner thigh of that leg.
Common Mistakes
- ×Knee collapsing inward: Avoid letting your bent knee collapse inward; actively push your knee out so it tracks directly over your toes.
- ×Rounding the back: Do not round your back during the lunge; maintain a tall chest and a neutral spine by engaging your core.
- ×Not stepping wide enough: Ensure you take a sufficiently wide step to the side to properly engage the inner thigh and glutes, rather than just performing a partial squat.
Variations
Plyo Side Lunge Stretch
Enhance lower body flexibility and strength with the Plyo Side Lunge Stretch. This dynamic move targets glutes, quads, and adductors, improving mobility
Elevated Side Lunge
Elevated Side Lunges build powerful glutes, quads, and inner thighs. This dynamic exercise enhances lower body strength and stability effectively.
Related Exercises
Alternate Sprinter Lunge
Master the Alternate Sprinter Lunge to build powerful glutes and quads. This dynamic bodyweight exercise improves lower body strength, balance, and
Bodyweight Forward Lunge (Hinge at Hips)
Perform a bodyweight forward lunge, emphasizing a hip hinge to engage glutes and quads effectively.
Rear Lunge from Deficit
Deepen your lower body strength with the Rear Lunge from Deficit. This variation increases range of motion, intensely targeting glutes and quads for
Curtsey Squat
Master the Curtsey Squat to sculpt your glutes and thighs. This dynamic bodyweight exercise targets gluteus medius for improved hip stability and leg
Lying Leg Hip Side Raise on Floor
Tone your hip abductors and obliques with this simple side-lying leg raise that improves hip stability.
Kettlebell Single Leg Glute Bridge Pullover
Target glutes and lats simultaneously with this advanced combo that challenges stability and coordination.
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