Best Leg Toning Exercise? (Video)

Today I want to show you how to complete one of the best leg exercises in the world – pain free.

In my opinion if you’re looking to develop strong toned legs that actually function as well as they look you need to be doing some type of lunging movement in your program.

However, just like the squat most people don’t believe they should be doing lunges because of their knees…

And just like the squat the reason why your knees most likely hurt while completing a lunge is strictly because of improper alignment and form.

I don’t know if it’s the weather or just a strange coincidence, but I’ve gotten quite a few new emails and clients asking me how they can do lunges to get the most benefit without their knees hurting.

The truth is that unless you have a degenerative joint issue then your knee pain is almost certainly caused by improper alignment or poor form.

Let’s tackle the alignment issue first.

Your knee is a simple hinge joint that bends forward and back. That’s it.

Problems arise when you ask it to do more than that – like twist or move side to side. This is when you will feel joint pain.

The trick is that you need to stretch and massage out the muscle from the knee to the hip and from the knee to the ankle so that they no longer place torque on the knee joint.

It sounds like a simple fix and it really is…

The issue is that you actually have to take the time on a daily basis to foam roll those muscles and stretch them so that they move back into their proper position. (After you put in the initial work you won’t have to do as much in order to maintain that proper alignment.)

In addition to that you will want to do exercises like lunges.

Why lunges?

I’m glad you asked…

The reason that I recommend lunges for toning and realigning your legs is due to the fact that the lunging movement is actually fantastic at stretching your legs back into proper alignment.

This is how it works:

When the front leg is forward that hip, glute, and upper leg is taking the weight of your body and supporting you while the back leg (quads and hip flexors) are being stretched.

So not only are you strengthening the front leg, but you are actually get a nice full range of motion stretch on the back leg at the same time!

All this leads to a complete leg workout safely targeting every muscle from your big toe all the way up to your hips.

I shot a video with Sarah demonstrating proper form and it shows you how to progress up to get maximum results from doing lunges (click the play button below).

Keep in mind that one thing I teach new clients and other personal trainers is that you should always start at the 1st level which are split squats or split lunges. This way you can hold onto something if need be and learn how to sit back into your front hip without allowing your front knee to flex over your toes.

That improper form is what causes the knee pain most of the time…

So my recommendation is to watch the short video below and then practice using this new form so that you can reincorporate lunges back into your workout regardless of what fitness level you are at.

Plus, lunging is one of those movements that can always be made more challenging as you progress through each new program.

Enjoy the video and I have no doubt you’ll immediately feel every muscle fiber in your glutes, hamstrings, and quads working once you make a few small tweaks to your form!

Also, if you’d like to receive 6 new online personal training videos each month complete with 30-days of exercise demonstrations, fat burning intervals, sample meal plans, and much much more check out my complete online training package where you get me as your online personal trainer each and every month!

>>> Check out my Trim, Tone & Tighten Online Personal Training Now!

Committed to your Success,

Stephen Cabral, CSCS, CPT, NS
Author of Fatlossity – Lose5in7 Weight Loss System
Health Consultant for MTV, Men’s Health, SELF, Nutritiondata, Diet.com, Gather, EDGE