Feel the Burn! 26 of the Very Best Leg Exercises, Straight from Trainers
Our legs carry us wherever we go, and it's tempting to pay them back by putting your feet up whenever possible. There's a time and a place for that, but personal trainers share that one of the best ways to show your legs some love is through lower-body leg workouts.
"From walking and running to climbing hills, our legs facilitate movement, bearing the brunt of our body weight and more," explains Stan Kravchenko, CPT, the founder and lead trainer at OneFit. "Strengthening the lower body enhances endurance, reduces the impact on joints such as the knees and hips, and supports lower back health."
Doing regular leg exercises is also an excellent tool for healthy aging. "Building muscle is much easier for our bodies before we reach 40," says Anna Kaiser, CPT, the founder of Anna Kaiser Studios, a global fitness method used by Shakira and Kelly Ripa. After that, it becomes significantly harder to build muscle, let alone maintain it. Building that muscle early gives us a runway for the decades to follow."
Regardless of age, it's never too late to start. Personal trainers shared their favorite ways to build strength using lower-body exercises. Many don't require gym memberships—or even anything but your body weight.
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What Leg Muscles Are You Working During Lower Body Exercises?
Mike Julom, ACE CPT, of This Is Why I'm Fit, explains that the main muscles in the legs include:
Quadriceps: Located at the front of the thigh, these muscles help you extend the knee and with hip flexion.
Hamstrings. Found at the back of the thigh, your hamstrings allow you to bend the knee and extend the hip.
Calves. The calves are located in the back of your lower leg and are tasked with helping you point your toes and with knee flexion.
Glutes. These muscles include the gluteus maximus, medius and minimus and are responsible for hip extension, abduction and rotation.
What's the Difference Between Cardio With Hills and Leg Day?
You can run, walk, and bike up hills (outside and indoors on treadmills and stationary bikes). Chances are, you feel the burn fast during these hill workouts. Do you need a leg day? TLDR: Yes. Here's why.
"Biking and running are great ways to work your legs, as well as your cardiorespiratory fitness levels," says Carrie Rose, CPT, and a certified life coach. "It's valuable to add specific resistance training movements to help prevent injury and strengthen underactive muscles. Repetitive movements or activities, such as running, typically work the same muscles over and over."
While those repetitive movements can be helpful, Rose says you neglect specific leg muscles during these cardio-centric workouts.
"For example, it's important to do lateral resistance training exercises, like lateral lunges...to strengthen your knees and ankles," Rose says. "You want to have a quick reaction time that won't tear a tendon if you quickly dart sideways to avoid a rock in the road."
Rose adds it's important to work the core and glutes too. Bonus: You'll likely find that taking time to do resistance training helps you get stronger and faster during cardio. "The most powerful way I improved my running was by working my legs, glutes and core," Rose says.
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Benefits of Leg Exercises
Lower-body workouts help you improve in other workouts, prevent injury and build functional strength. They also help you age gracefully (and with strength).
"Whether you have a specific weight you want to lift for squat or deadlift (or another exercise) or you want to be able to jump onto a 36-inch box or run faster, training lower body or leg will help you achieve that goal," says Natalie Kollars, SCCC, a certified strength coach and owner of Fortis with more than 188K Instagram followers.
In the process, you're reducing your risk of injury and building strength that'll help you off the mat and outside of the gym. "Adequate strength and muscle elasticity—achieved through performing plyometric exercises—are very important for injury prevention," Kollars says. "Our muscles support all of our movement, walking, jogging, jumping and all of our joints. Also, the squat looks a lot like sitting down on a chair. The deadlift looks a lot like bending over to pick something up off the floor. Functional strength is very important for health and daily movement tasks."
Strength training is especially important as you celebrate more and more birthdays. "As we age, maintaining strong leg muscles contributes to better bone density and muscle mass, crucial for overall health," Julom says. "Notably, a strong lower body can be a lifesaver, as studies show a significant mortality rate following hip fractures in adults over 50."
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How Often to Do Lower Body Workouts
It depends on your goals and the type of "leg day" you're having. Are you lifting heavy weights or doing bodyweight or lightweight exercises with higher repetition counts?
"If you are lifting heavy or adding power, no more than two or three days with at least one day of rest in between," Kaiser says. "If you are focused on high repetition and lower weight, you can add more workouts more often to work on building your muscular endurance."
Related: Bend and Snap! Here's an Easy Plan to Keep Your Joints Healthy and Fend Off Arthritis
26 Best Leg Exercises From the Pros
1. Jumping Jacks
Yep, jumping jacks are a strength workout, too. "Jumping jacks work your quadriceps, hip flexors, calves and glutes (along with some core and shoulder muscles," Rose says.
How to do them:
Stand tall with your arms pointing straight up to the sky. Keep your hands aligned with your shoulders.
Simultaneously, move your legs and arms away from your body.
Move them back toward your body.
Repeat.
2. Dumbbell Walking Lunge
According to Kollars, with a dumbbell walking lunge, you'll work all of the most important muscles: quads, glutes, hamstrings and abdominal muscles in this workout. It can be modified to bodyweight only if you don't have weights on hand (or want to use them).
How to do it:
Start standing tall with a dumbbell in each hand.
Take a step forward with one leg into a lunge.
Here's how you want it to look at the bottom of the position: The front thigh should be parallel with the ground and the knee should be slightly ahead of the ankle. Meanwhile, the back knee should be touching or slightly above the ground.
Push through the front foot to return to the starting position.
Repeat on the other leg.
3. Bodyweight squats
We'll get to plenty of fancier squats, but it's not necessary to reinvent the wheel. "Sometimes, basic movements are the best, and bodyweight squats are one of those," Rose says. "I have every client start with bodyweight squats, both as an assessment and then as a warm-up...Bodyweight squats work your quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, hips and core."
How to do them:
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and your arms at your side.
Lower your body by bending at the knees and hips, ideally until your quads are parallel to the ground.
Simultaneously, lift your arms toward the sky so that they are extended straight at roughly a 45-degree angle once you are at the lowest point in your squat.
Repeat.
4. Pulse lunge
Rose loves that this one can be done with or without weights, making it accessible to all fitness levels and situations (think an AirBnb sans equipment).
"This movement works your quadriceps, hamstrings, calves and glutes," Rose says.." It will also help improve balance."
How to do it:
Put one leg in front of you and bend at the knee so that your leg makes a 90-degree angle.
With your hands on your hip, at your side or holding dumbbells, pulse up and down. Bend your front and back legs—also roughly 90 degrees—while in the lunge position.
Stay low, and don't come up to a standing position until the reps are done. ("Hence, it's called a pulse lunge," Rose says.)
5. Rotating squat jumps
"I love this one because it recruits all your lower body muscles with a burst of power and adds a balance challenge with the rotation," Kaiser says.
How to do it:
Start in a squat position with your knees bent over your second toes and your weight in your heels (not your toes).
The torso should come down to a 45-degree angle as you hinge forward. Keep the abs engaged and the chest lifted.
Jump with both arms reaching high to the ceiling and land facing the other direction. Aim for a 45 to 90-degree rotation.
Repeat.
6. Lateral Lunge
Rose says people often overlook lateral movement.
"It's so important for knee strength, stability, reaction time and, of course, leg muscles," she says. "A lateral lunge works quadriceps, hamstrings, inner and outer thigh muscles, glutes, and general knee movement—think ACL and MCL."
How to do it:
Stand tall with legs shoulder width apart and knees slightly bent so your core is engaged.
Step to the side (laterally) about two feet ("This will depend on leg length," Rose says).
Bend the moving leg into a squat position, keeping the spine straight.
Push off the ground back to the original standing position with the spine still straight.
Repeat on the opposite side.
7. Step Up
"This movement can be done at the gym on a bench or plyometric box or at home using a chair or actual steps," Rose says. "Vitamin D bonus: do it outside at a park. It works your quadriceps, hamstrings and calves."
How to do it:
Stand in front of your elevated object.
With one leg, step up onto the object.
Lower your leg to step back down.
Repeat on the same or opposite side.
8. Step up with knee raise
Julom loves this dynamic progression of a step-up for its ability to improve balance.
How to do it:
Step onto a bench with one foot
Drive the opposite knee up
Step down and repeat.
9. Ice skaters
Ice skaters (AKA "skaters") are a total power move. "This plyometric move is great for leg muscle endurance and agility," Rose says. "They work your quadriceps, hamstrings, inner and outer thighs and glutes. Plus, they quickly become a cardio workout."
How to do them:
Stand with your hips shoulder width apart and knees slightly bent so your core is engaged.
Bring one leg behind the other, bending both knees so that you're in a reverse lateral lunge position.
Simultaneously, reach toward the ground with the arm opposite the rear leg. Touch the floor.
Switch sides so that the movement becomes a flow at a manageable cadence. "Be mindful to keep your spine straight even as you lower toward the ground, and your upper body remains at a 45-degree angle toward the ground with your core engaged," Rose says. "Keep your gaze down toward the front of you so that your head and neck are aligned with your spine (rather than looking up or forward."
10. Single-leg bridge raises
"Single leg movements can be extra challenging but are so valuable, especially if you have a predominant leg and want to strengthen the other," Rose says. "Single leg work can burn quickly, so get after it, and don't forget to stretch."
How to do them:
Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet on the ground about 6 to 12 inches from your glute.
Keep one foot on the ground and raise the other leg to the sky.
Using the grounded leg, push into the ground and up into a bridge pose so your knee, spine and shoulders create a straight line.
Then, lower back down.
Keep the opposite leg straight up the entire movement.
Repeat for your desired number of reps.
Switch sides.
11. Burning Man bridge
Kaiser calls this pulsing variation of a single-leg bridge a "total booty burnout" that works the glutes and hamstrings.
How to do it:
Start lying on the ground in a bridge with the right leg extended to the ceiling and hold it there.
Pulse the left booty toward the ceiling 40 times.
Repeat on the opposite side.
12. Nordic hamstring curl
You'll isolate the hamstrings in this intense bodyweight exercise. "It's excellent for preventing hamstring injuries and improving leg curl strength," Julom says. "Ensure you don’t drop down too quickly. Control is key."
Kneel on a pad with your feet secured.
Lower yourself forward slowly, using your hamstrings to control the descent.
Return to the starting position.
Repeat.
13. Reverse Nordic curl
You burned your hamstrings. Now, balance it with the reverse Nordic curl. It'll help you strengthen the quads, Julom says.
How to do it:
Kneel and slowly lean back, keeping your body straight.
Return to the starting position.
Repeat
14. Cossack squat
It looks like a lateral lunge, but you'll remain in a wide-stance position the entire time during the cossack squat. The variation boosts flexibility while working the hamstrings, glutes and adductors, according to Julom.
How to do it:
Stand with feet wide.
Shift weight to one side.
Squat down on one leg while keeping the other leg straight.
Repeat.
15. Single-leg deadlift
You'll build balance, coordination and unilateral strength, particularly in the hamstrings, glutes and core, Julom says.
How to do it:
Stand on one leg
Lean forward with a straight back, extending the free leg behind you.
Return to standing and repeat.
16. Sled push
People do this one at gyms, but you can do it with a literal sled at home or a park. Julom loves that sled pushes "build explosive power and endurance."
"They work the entire leg musculature, core, and cardiovascular system," he says.
How to do it:
Load a sled and push it forward using your legs.
Keep your back straight and drive through your heels as you push.
17. Lateral banded walk
As you can probably tell, Rose is a big fan of lateral movements. "In the lateral banded walk, you're moving laterally one foot at a time with a band around your thighs while in a modified chair pose or squat," Rose says. "This will work your hip abductors, as well as your quadriceps, hamstrings and glutes."
How to do it:
Grab a resistance band and place it around your thighs.
Hinge at the hips and knees so that you're in a partial chair pose/squat position with your hands on your hips.
Move laterally 10 paces in one direction.
Repeat for 10 paces in the other direction
18. Goblet squat with dumbbell
"This compound exercise targets the entire lower body and engages the core," Kravchenko says.
How to do it:
Begin with your feet shoulder-width apart, holding a weight in front of your chest for support.
Engage your core, lift your chest, and maintain an upright posture.
Lower your body until your thighs are parallel to the ground or slightly lower, ensuring you exhale as you rise and inhale as you lower.
Repeat.
19. Curtsy lunge with dumbbells
Ready to make like you're at Buckingham Palace? "In a curtsy lunge, you’ll on balance and stability as you work the glutes, quadriceps, and hamstrings," Kravchenko says.
How to do it:
Holding dumbbells, step diagonally behind one leg, ensuring the front knee stays aligned with the toes.
Repeat.
20. Reverse lunge in place with a dumbbell
"This reverse lunge variation is beneficial for targeting the hamstrings and glutes and improves balance," Kravchenko says.
How to do it:
Stand with feet shoulder-width apart and a dumbbell in each hand.
Step backward about two feet so both your knees are about a 90-degree angle.
Return to the starting position.
Repeat.
21. Two dumbbell single-leg deadlift
Kollars loves this weighted variation of the single-leg deadlift because it targets several lower body muscles, including the glutes, hamstrings, abs and erector spinae
Start standing tall with a dumbbell in each hand.
Slightly bend one hip and knee.
Reach the opposite leg back to the wall behind until your body is parallel to the ground and there is a straight line from head to heel.
Push through the ground with the planted leg and return to the starting position.
22. Two-dumbbell lateral lunge
Have free weights and ready to level up your lateral lunge? Peep this one, suggested by Kolla.
Start standing tall with a dumbbell in each hand.
Step directly out to the side with one leg.
Sit hips back toward the wall behind you.
Keep the opposite leg straight and feet pointed straight ahead.
Push through the ground with the loaded leg and return to the starting position
23. Dumbbell snatch
This full-body workout will burn out the quadriceps, hamstrings, calves, glutes and core (plus biceps and triceps). "Talk about a power move," Rose says.
Pro tip: "Be mindful to keep your back straight, and raise the dumbbell above the shoulder of the arm holding it when lifting it toward the sky," Rose says.
How to do it:
Grab a single dumbbell. Place it on the ground in front of you.
Using proper squat technique (No. 1), squat down.
Pick up the dumbbell.
Press your feet firmly into the ground.
Stand directly up from the squat position, raising the dumbbell overhead.
Squat with the dumbbell, lowering it to the ground to repeat.
24. Seated leg curl
Kravchenko recommends this one for hamstring development.
How to do it:
Adjust the machine for comfort, holding the handles and engaging your core throughout.
Curl the leg, focusing on using your hamstrings to move through the exercise's full range with control.
Repeat.
25. Seated leg extension
You'll want to balance hamstring and quad work—and this lower-body exercise does the trick, Kravchenko says.
How to do it:
Adjust the seat so your knee joints align with the seat edge, ensuring comfort during leg extensions.
Holding the handles, keep your core engaged and movements controlled as you extend the legs.
Repeat.
26. Seated single leg press on the machine
You'll target the quadriceps, hamstrings and glutes in this one, according to Kravchenko
Align your foot with your knee and hip on the plate. Avoid locking the knee.
Maintain a controlled pace for both downward and upward movements, focusing on the quadriceps, hamstrings and glutes.
Repeat.
Expert Sources
Stan Kravchenko, CPT, the founder and lead trainer at OneFit
Carrie Rose, CPT, and a certified life coach
Anna Kaiser, CPT, the founder of Anna Kaiser Studios, a global fitness method used by the likes of Shakira to Kelly Ripa
Mike Julom, ACE CPT, of This Is Why I'm Fit
Natalie Kollars, SCCC, a certified strength coach and owner of Fortis with more than 188K Instagram followers
