Key to a healthy lifestyle and better health is regular exercise along with healthy diet. A balance of both can do wonders for an overall healthier you. Leaving for the gym is still refrained from due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic restrictions, hence home workouts and a healthy diet are the best. For professional athletes & fitness enthusiasts, the only exercise they commonly focus on is the problem areas or cardio to burn calories. It's imperative to focus not only on magnifying upper body strength but also on lower body strength. Rather than just focusing on arms and shoulders, it is critical to focus on enhancing lower body muscles like the calves and the hamstrings as well. Improving your lower-half body includes exercises that focus on the legs, thighs, hips, and buttocks.
Exercises For A Strong Lower Body
Here are five lower body exercises that will strengthen your lower body muscles, as told by Fitness Enthusiast and Founder, Steadfast Nutrition, Aman Puri.
1# Squats
One of the quintessential lower body exercises that works the glutes (butt muscles), hamstrings (muscles present at the back of upper thighs) & strengthens the lower back muscles.
Also Read: Decoding 6 Expert Hacks For Family Pack to Six Pack Abs
2# Side Lunge
One of the great additions to lower body exercises is side lunges. It enables you to work in the frontal movement plane, where the body moves in a lateral position (side to side). It leads to stabilising the hip muscles.
3# Wall Sit
Doing the wall sit targets the different joints and muscles fills in as one. This workout is incredible to target the whole lower body. It will focus on the entire lower body that includes glutes, hamstrings and even quads.
4# Side Leg Lift with band
Make sure you are propping yourself up on your right forearm. The legs must be straight, stacked on top of each other with the toes pointed forward.
5# Glute Bridge
Glute bridge does not place any pressure on the lower back. It is a great exercise for people who are unable to squat due to knee, back, or hip pain.
Caution While Exercising
One should perform lower body exercises at least twice a week and a maximum of four times a week. It is advisable to avoid working on the same muscle group regularly. Here are few pointers to keep in mind-
- The butt muscles (gluteus maxiums) are the largest in the body. So, when you work on these muscles, you require energy. Hence, more power & energy equals more calories that you will burn. You Will end up burning more calories. With a strong lower body, you can manage to stay away from the most common bone ailments like Arthritis and other bone-related issues. Once you begin working on building stronger glutes, quadriceps, and hamstrings, you can pave the way to enhance your bone strength. You can even fix your posture issues which can help you to reduce back and neck pain that arises from having a bad posture. You Can Improve Your Bone Health
- As we work on the lower body with the largest muscle group in the body, testosterone released is more than what is released while working on the shoulders or biceps (smaller muscle groups). As per Science, with just our body weight, we can increase muscle mass and strength.
Also Read: 5 Exercises To Tone Your Chest Muscles
- Helps Builds Muscles. As most sports are performed primarily on the legs, it is crucial to train the lower body muscles to gain strength and enhance aerobic capacity. For professional athletes, lower body exercises are a crucial part of the workout sessions for their spectacular sports performance.
- If you begin incorporating lower body exercises in your workout regime, you're going to receive an abundance of health benefits. To start with; Good Cardiovascular Health and Improved Circulation. Moving the lower body muscles can contribute to improved blood circulation and promote better cardiovascular health & fitness.
What's stopping you now? Gear up in your comfortable gym activewear to indulge in some lower body workout exercises.
With inputs from Aman Puri, Fitness Enthusiast and Founder, Steadfast Nutrition
Read more articles on Exercise & Fitness
