5 Single Leg Exercises For A Stronger Lower Body

Single leg exercises are very beneficial as they prevent you from overusing or compensating with your dominant side. This will play a role in how your body performs, feels, and even looks (if you have aesthetic goals).

As you probably know due to your own training experience, it is very easy to compensate with your dominant side while doing double legged exercises.

I like to include a combination of unilateral and bilateral exercises in my training, in my clients’ training programs, and in the various programs I offer.

Here are 5 unilateral/single leg lower body exercises you should be doing!

#1) Staggered Stance RDL’s

This is an awesome hip hinging exercise for strengthening and building your posterior chain muscles. Also, if learning single leg deadlifts is a goal, this exercise can help bridge the gap between bilateral deadlifts (feet side by side) and single leg deadlifts.

Coaching Tips:

Adopt a staggered stance. Figure out what stride length works and feels best for you. Your head, torso, and hips should be in a stacked position.

On the foot of the front/working leg, form a tripod base by placing your weight on the back portion of your foot, and the base of your big and baby toes. These parts of your foot should remain in contact with the floor for the duration of the exercise. Pretend you are suctioning or screwing your foot to the floor.

Be on the forefoot of the back foot. This side should serve purely as a kickstand of support. Your front side should be doing 75%+ of the work.

Keep your arms rigid, lats engaged, and pretend you are crushing oranges in your armpits. For the duration of the exercise, your arms/weights should not travel ahead of your body. Your arm should slide down the side of your front/working leg, and the other arm should remain in line with this front leg. Pretend you are painting the side of your front leg with the weight. If you are using a single weight, the weight should slide down the front of your leg/shin.

Before each rep, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), and brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine).

Now hinge/push your hips backwards. Pretend a rope is pulling your hips backwards or that you are trying to press your hips back against a wall. When you are hinging, pretend you are “pulling” your body back/down with your posterior chain muscles. Don’t just mindlessly drop down.

Do not relax or lose tension when you are in the bottom position. Many people make this mistake.

When you reach your full range, engage your posterior chain muscles and press your body away from the floor and back to the top/starting position. Use a range where you can maintain proper form.

Perform the lockout by squeezing your glutes and hamstrings and extend your hips, and extend your knee. Use as little assistance from the supporting leg as possible.

For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your knee to fall inside or outside of your foot.

For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, or torso, spine, or hips to rotate.

In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.

Do 2-3 sets of 6-12 reps per side.

#2) Single Leg Box Squats

This exercise strengthens the glutes, quadriceps, and hamstrings, and the muscles in the foot and lower leg. In this variation, you will perform single leg squats down to a box/bench, will pause in the bottom position while seated, and will then return to the top/starting position. Aim to use the lowest surface possible that allows you to maintain proper form.

Also, if pistol squats are a goal, this exercise has a huge carryover!

Coaching Tips:

Stand on one foot, and have a slight bend in your knee. Your head, torso, and hips should be in a stacked position. You should be relatively close to a box/bench, or other stable elevated surface.

Fully extend the non-working leg, and plantarflex your foot (point it away from you). Contract your quadriceps and glutes on this side. Keep this leg close to the midline of your body.

On the planted side, form a tripod base by placing your weight on the back portion of your foot, and the base of your big and baby toes. These parts of your foot should remain in contact with the floor for the duration of the exercise. Pretend you are suctioning or screwing your foot to the floor.

Lift the non-working leg so it is in more of a horizontal position. This will be especially important as you approach the bottom position. Otherwise your foot will strike the floor.

Extend both of your arms so they are chest height, make fists, and generate tension in your upper body.

Before each rep, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), and brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine).

Now perform a single leg squat and slowly lower to the box/bench.

Once you reach the bench/box, sit down and pause for a count. Do not rock backwards/use momentum.

Then press away from the floor and return to the top/starting position.

When you are performing the squats, pretend you are “pulling” your body down with your leg. Don’t just mindlessly drop down.

Do not relax or lose tension when you are in the bottom position. Many people make this mistake.

For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your knee to fall inside or outside of your foot. For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, excessively round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, torso, spine or hips to rotate, or hip to drop on one side.

In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.

Do 2-3 sets of 6-12 reps per side.

#3) Band Resisted Multidirectional Taps From Single Leg Band Resisted Isometric Deadlift

There is a lot going on with this deceptively tough exercise! This exercise strengthens the posterior chain muscles, the muscles in the foot and lower leg, and improves lumbo-pelvic stability.

This exercise happens to be a favorite of many of my clients!

Coaching Tips:

Place a band around your ankles or just above your knees, and rest a long resistance band under the mid to back portion of your foot, and hold the band in both hands. There should be a significant amount of resistance in this long band. There should be resistance in the bands for 100% of the exercise.

Get into a RDL (deadlift) position by hinging/pushing your hips backwards. Pretend a rope is pulling your hips backwards or that you are trying to press your hips back against a wall. Maintain this position for the duration of the exercise. Your head, torso, and hips should be in a stacked position.

On the planted side, form a tripod base by placing your weight on the back portion of your foot, and the base of your big and baby toes. These parts of your foot should remain in contact with the floor for the duration of the exercise. Pretend you are suctioning or screwing your foot to the floor.

Keep your arms rigid, lats engaged, and pretend you are crushing oranges in your armpits.

With complete control, perform taps in multiple directions. Aside from this moving leg, the rest of your body should remain in a fixed position for the duration of the exercise.

For the duration of the exercise, on the planted side do not allow your knee to fall inside or outside of your foot.

For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, or torso, spine or hips to rotate.

For the duration of the exercise, keep your core braced (360 degree brace around your spine).

In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.

Do 2-3 sets of 8-12 reps per side.

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#4) Lateral Step-Ups

This exercise strengthens the glutes, quadriceps, hamstrings, and adductors, and the muscles in the foot and lower leg.

With this step-up variation, your body will travel in both a vertical and lateral path. Many find these more challenging than regular step-ups. Make sure you can do this exercise proficiently with bodyweight only before you add any resistance. Use a surface height that allows you to do the exercise using proper form.

Coaching Tips:

Stand on a box, bench, or other stable elevated surface. Unlike during regular step-ups, stand so your body is to the side of the surface, versus behind. Your non-working leg should be to your side.

Stand on one foot, and have a slight bend in your knee. Your head, torso, and hips should be in a stacked position.

As for the non-working leg, keep it extended, and contract your quadriceps and glutes on this side.

Form a tripod base by placing your weight on the back portion of your foot, and the base of your big and baby toes. These parts of your foot should remain in contact with the surface for the duration of the exercise. Pretend you are suctioning or screwing your foot to the surface.

If you are holding weights, keep your arms rigid and pretend you are crushing oranges in your armpits. If you aren’t holding weights, extend both of your arms so they are chest height, make fists, and generate tension in your upper body.

Before each rep, take a deep breath in (360 degrees of air around your spine), and brace your core (360 degree brace around your spine).

Now perform a lateral step-up and press your body away from the surface and to the top position. Aim to do most of the work (75%+) with the leg that is on the elevated surface.

Gain a moment of control in the top position, then perform the reverse movements and slowly lower to the floor.

Touch the floor as softly as possible. Imagine a raw shelled egg is on the floor directly below your foot. Touch the floor softly enough that the egg won’t break.

With this exercise, while your body will travel in both a vertical and lateral path, when you are approaching the top position and are locking out, your body should no longer be travelling laterally. The same applies when you are descending and have planted your foot on the floor.

For the duration of the exercise, limit any forward and backward movement.

When you are performing the lowering, pretend you are “pulling” your body down with your leg. Don’t just mindlessly drop down.

Do not relax or lose tension when you are in the bottom position. Many people make this mistake.

For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your knees to fall inside or outside of your feet.

For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso, and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, torso, spine, or hips to rotate, or hip to drop on one side.

In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.

Do 2-3 sets of 8-12 reps per side.

#5) Half Kneeling Band Resisted Isometric Hamstring Curl

This deceptively tough exercise strengthens the hamstrings.⁣

Coaching Tips:

Attach a band around a secure surface, and loop the band around the back of your ankle.

Get into a half kneeling position. Your head, torso, and hips should be in a stacked position.

Lightly rest your hands against a wall/surface.

On the front foot, maintain a tripod base by placing your weight on the back portion of your foot and the base of your big and baby toes. These parts of your foot should remain in contact with the floor for the duration of the exercise. Pretend you are suctioning or screwing your foot to the floor.

Perform a hamstring curl, and hold in the “curl” position for the target amount of time.

For the duration of the exercise, do not allow your knees to fall inside or outside of your feet.

For the duration of the exercise, your head, torso and hips should remain in a stacked position. Do not allow your lower back to hyperextend, round, or flex laterally, ribcage to flare, or torso, spine, hips to rotate, or hip to drop on one side.

For the duration of the exercise, keep your core muscles braced (360 degree brace around your spine).

In terms of breathing, do what works and feels best for you.

Do 2-3 sets of 2-5 reps per side of a 5-10 second hold.

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