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How do I lunge properly?
Dominik Rzadowski, master trainer at Anytime Fitness teaches lunges with his clients in training sessions. He said: “The way I always teach my clients to lunge is by asking them to step over an exercise mat with one leg (i.e. with the mat horizontal between your two legs).
“From there, stay in that position and then bend your knees - shifting the weight forward - ensuring a 90-degree angle of the front leg and back knee under the hip.”
That’s the lunge position. When you stand up, press the right heel into the ground to drive your body back up to standing. Then you swap legs to repeat the exercise on the other side.
What’s the correct position?
:: Knee positioned directly behind hip
:: 70 to 90 degrees of extension of the knees
:: Ensure your front shin is vertical
:: Make sure your knees are neutral (and aligned with the foot)
Common mistakes
Much like squats, Rzadowski said if you get the posture wrong with one body part, the others can follow suit. Often, he said he will tend to see someone’s rear foot collapse and turn out (to the right), which is a result of missing hip internal rotation.
Other common faults include:
:: Missing hip extension i.e. an inability to extend your hip as fully as you need to, which will lead to compensatory movements at other joints
:: Knee too far forward (should be aligned with the foot).
Lunge variations
If you’ve nailed the perfect lunge and want to make it a bit harder, you could:
:: Add a weight such as a barbell, dumbbell, kettlebell
:: Try walking lunges
:: Progress from a lunge into a superset, by performing a lunge followed by an overhead weight press in one movement
Move celebrates exercise in all its forms, with accessible features encouraging you to add movement into your day – because it’s not just good for the body, but the mind, too. We get it: workouts can be a bit of a slog, but there are ways you can move more without dreading it. Whether you love hikes, bike rides, YouTube workouts or hula hoop routines, exercise should be something to enjoy.
