Many lower-leg exercises strengthen the lower body. Because lower-body exercises engage more than one muscle group, they are more challenging than upper-body workouts. But focusing only on the upper body will lead to an imbalance in your strength and frame.

Here are some lower-leg exercises to include in your regular routine:

Halfway Squats

Coaching Points:

• Position your legs shoulder-width apart and keep your chest up
• Squat down all the way but come back up only halfway
• Perform 40 reps
• To increase the intensity of this exercise, perform with a barbell across your back

Lunge Jumps

Coaching Points:

• Stand in a stationary lunge position and jump up and down, alternating legs forward and back
• Perform for 20 seconds
• To increase the intensity of this exercise, perform with dumbbells

Squat/Forward Lunge/Squat/Backward Lunge

Coaching Points:

• Place your legs shoulder-width apart
• Squat down, keeping your chest up
• As you come up from the squat, lunge forward with your right leg
• Return to a Squat, and as you come up go into a backward lunge with your right leg
• That’s one rep
• Perform 15 reps on each side
• To increase the intensity of this exercise, wear a weight vest

Single-Leg Hip Bridges

Coaching Points:

• Lie on your back with your knees bent
• Keep your feet shoulder-width apart and flat on the ground
• Lift your hips as high as you can, then extend and lift your right leg and hold
• Move your hips down and then up
• Perform 20 reps on each side.
• To increase the intensity of this exercise, elevate your legs onto a 6- to 12-inch box or step

A good training routine includes two or three days of lower-leg exercises. Watch the video below for demonstrations of the exercises described in this article.

[youtube video=”qr8a_ucsv80″ /]

Read more:

• Get Stronger: Lower-Body Strength
• 8 Exercises to Improve Lower-Body Strength
• Elite Performance With Mike Boyle: Hidden Benefits of Lower-Body Plyos

Photo: Bodybuilding.com