The Best Leg Workouts You Can Do Without Weights
Powerful and carved lower body is synonymous to loaded barbell squats and inhumane leg press regime. Most of the cases support the above statement, and generalization can be done. However, this might get you thinking about the athletes and many body builders as well as fit individuals who are devoid of such equipment and modern gyms to possess such a powerful lower body. The secret to this is bodyweight exercises, and you might have heard of the term recently, but bodyweight exercises have been there since the dawn of time.
For the masses who have the facility and proper training guide, this might come in as refreshing and intriguing piece of information. Bodyweight exercises that focus on the lower body helps you to build power packed quads and reduces the stress of strenuous leg days where you feel tired and exhausted after a gruelling session. The list below elaborates such exercises and the benefits from it.
Typical Squat
It is impossible to get rid of squats from your leg day routine, but the routine squat exercise will not knock the air out of you, but will help build a powerful lower body and focus on the butt and lower back area as well. Typical Squat is all about posture, so keep your feet parallel to each other pointing in front. You can stretch your hands or form an X over your shoulders. Bend your knee in line with your toes and your feet at shoulder width apart. Do not arch back or forth and remain straight but relax as you bend your knees. To increase the difficulty levels, you can perform a hop jump or a normal jump after the completion of each squat.
Lunges (Reverse as well)
The evergreen lunges have always paired well with squats, and your no equipment workout routine cannot miss out on it. Stand straight with a neutral spine; now step out any of your legs in front and perform a stretch while bending your knees facing in front. The supporting leg should bend as well with the knee facing downwards. Now perform it on both legs and try to stretch out so that your hamstrings and quads experience the pressure.
The Reverse lunges work on the same philosophy, although here you need to push one of your legs behind and follow the above steps. The side lunges are another form of lunges and is an effective warm-up exercises for your legs.
Pistol Squats
Relax you don’t need to shoot or threaten anyone here. Instead of it, you can shape yourself up like a pistol. This is one of the toughest and most constructive leg exercises that needs mobility and agility of the whole body. You need to take your position for squats with your hands stretched in front. Now slowly get down and simultaneously stretch any one of your legs out parallel to the corresponding hand few inches above the ground while bending the other leg. Now hold onto the posture and count till 10 seconds before performing the same with your next leg. This will sound easy enough, but your mobility and quad strength will be in question. Try to reach your calves and keep your balance with your back stretching accordingly.
Long Jumps
To achieve rock solid quads and chiselled lower body, long jumps is a must have in your no-equipment workout list. You are familiar to the long jump concept, and might have seen Athletes performing their drills at times. Over here, no one would disqualify you if you breach the starting line or anything. Albeit, it would not be a bad idea to keep a starting mark and keep track of the jumps you made to check the progression. The ninety-degree squat posture should be taken before leaping the maximum distance. To make this more effective, perform 10-15 long jumps in a span of one minute. This might knock the bejesus out of you, but help you gain stamina and lower body endurance. You can add it up your HIIT list as well.
Single Leg Hip Raise
A more relaxed and effectual exercise on the list, the single leg hip raise is a time-consuming yet efficient exercise in terms of building strong calves and hamstrings. Take a Yoga Mat or any other mat and lie down and face upwards. With your hands at your side, and mind you do not use your hands as a leverage on your hips. Slowly lift any one of your legs and make a 120-degree angle with your body. Keep your leg straight so that you feel the pressure on your calves. The supporting leg should be bent with the foot parallel to the ground. Now, slowly lift your hips with your body power and hold the posture for 10-15 seconds.
Do not raise your leg to a ninety-degree angle as it violates the single leg hip raise concept. Perform the same drill on the other leg and take a short time off before continuing with the next step. However, if you are losing balance then you can take the support of your hands and lift yourself up.
Equipment and weighted leg exercises are not at all harmful and it certainly does not make you look like a Hulk as stereotyped. You will gain muscles according to your regime, so people who are looking for alternatives can work on the equipment free leg exercises to spice up their workout schedule. Games like football, basketball, hockey, and sprints can also power your lower body although that would be a slower process and needs to be paired with workouts.
