THE PULSE

You’ve probably heard someone say you should never skip leg day—and there’s a good reason! Training your lower body builds a strong foundation that will help you crush future workouts and make your everyday life easier. Stronger thighs can increase your overall sense of balance and improve your jumping and running movements. To build stronger thighs, you should add these three exercises to your routine.

The secret to seeing results from these exercises is progressively overloading your muscles by increasing the weight you use over time. If you’re just getting started, you can use light dumbbells or just your bodyweight.

1. Goblet Reverse Lunge

Works your: hip flexors, hamstrings, glutes and calves

You can perform this move with a dumbbell or kettlebell, but if you’ve never tried it before, make sure to practice without a weight first. Brace your core and hold the weight at chest height. Drive one leg back and touch your foot to the ground first, then lower your knee so it barely touches the floor. Return to standing position and repeat on your other foot.

2. Deadlift

Works your: hamstrings, glutes, back, hips, core

The deadlift is the gold standard of exercises for a reason. Adding deadlifts to your routine will help you develop total-body strength. Make sure to keep a neutral spine and keep your hips back. Pull your shoulder blades back and hinge at the hips. Keep the dumbbells near your legs as you lower the weights down towards your ankles, then bring them back up. For more tips on how to deadlift correctly, click here.

3. Goblet Squat

Works your: quads, glutes, hamstrings and core

Ready to progress past a bodyweight squat, or just want to try something new? Use a dumbbell or kettlebell to add resistance. As an added bonus, the weight will help you improve your squat form. Holding the weight in front of you helps you keep your core engaged and back straight as you move through your squat. Stand hip-width apart. Tighten your core and hold the weight at chest height, close to your body. Sit your hips back and bend your knees to lower into a squat. Make sure to keep your back straight—if your back starts to round, that’s too low. Push through your feet as you stand and squeeze your glutes at the top of the motion.

Looking for a more specific workout plan? Try our 20-Minute Cardio & Strength Workout or our 20-Minute Medicine Ball Workout.