Strong legs are an opportunity for an active lifestyle. Our body is so arranged that the main load falls on the legs. Therefore, they need to be constantly trained.
The muscles of the legs: function and purpose
It is not always possible to attend the gym. Skillfully designed home workouts can be a good alternative. Exercises for legs at home can be performed independently, if you correctly determine which muscle group you need to train.
Many muscles extend to large areas of our body. The leg muscles are no exception. Their contraction or relaxation sets the bones in motion. Small muscles help the joints, support posture. In the lower body are 4 large muscle groups:
- the back of the thighs;
- front thighs;
- gluteal;
- muscles of the lower leg.
Muscle function
Each muscle group has a specific function and purpose. Consider the main ones.
- The muscles of the back of the thighs contribute to flexion of the knees and extension of the body.
- The muscles of the front part extend the leg at the knee, participate in the flexion of the thigh and in the inclination of the body forward.
- The lower leg muscles flex in the ankle joint.
- The gluteal muscles help lift the legs to the sides.
What will it give?
- Exercising your leg muscles helps you get rid of a lot of calories.
- Develops the general endurance of the body and increase its strength and power characteristics.
- Strengthen the muscles of the spine, pelvis, hips.
- Strong legs can avoid sprains and injuries.
- Leg training has a good effect on the work of the heart and blood vessels.
Exercises for the muscles of the back of the thigh
Deciding to perform leg exercises at home, it should be remembered that this muscle group has the least load. A sedentary lifestyle and sedentary work do their job - usually these muscles are the weakest. Nevertheless, it is this particular part of the body that needs to be paid great attention to - combine basic training and exercises for slender legs at home. The photo shows the basic principle of exercises for the back of the thigh. You can perform them in a prone position or standing on your knees.
Technique of execution:
- lie down on the floor with your stomach (or kneel down);
- bend your elbows, rest them on the chin (on the floor);
- strongly tensing the muscles of the buttocks, raise the leg up;
- slowly lower your leg, trying not to touch the floor.
Perform alternately with one and the other leg. You can complicate the exercise by attaching a weighting compound to the working leg. Performing these exercises for slender legs at home, for girls, weights can be completely replaced with sandbags.
Lateral Lifts
One of the most effective leg exercises is lateral leg raises in a prone position. The weight in this exercise is weight.
Technique of execution:
- starting position - lie on your right side, from below the arm is located at chest level in front of you, the left is behind your head;
- exhale - lift the body and legs at the same time;
- inhale - drop to the floor.
The exercise is quite difficult, but effective. To reduce the load, only legs can be raised at the beginning of training. With the help of this leg exercise at home for girls, the waist area is also perfectly worked out. Regular training will help you lose weight effectively.
Leg raises
Such exercises work out the lower press, strengthen the muscles. At the same time, they make the belly flatter and tighter. This is a good load for the main muscles of the legs. Exercises are performed on the back, hands are pressed tightly to the floor. You can press your hands to support your sides. Raise your legs at the same time or in turn. For beginners or for those who have not practiced for a long time, it is allowed to bend the knees. This reduces the load on the lower press and back.
Exercises for slender legs and hips
The inner thighs are the most problem area on the body of women. This area is prone to fat accumulation if the weight exceeds the norm. The inner thighs become weak and friable. But this deficiency can be taken under control and strengthen muscles with the help of effective exercises. The muscles of the inner thighs belong to the adductor muscle group. These exercises are based on mixing the legs. With weights for legs, the effectiveness of exercises is increased significantly.
Squats
These leg exercises at home can be performed with or without support.
Technique of execution:
- starting position - get up as wide as possible;
- maximize toe socks;
- squat as low as possible, linger for a couple of seconds at the bottom;
- to rise, not fully straightening the legs at the top point. Thus, the inner thigh is under intense tension throughout the exercise;
- performing the exercise, do not bend your back.
Lunges
Such workouts work well on the muscles of the hips, buttocks, hamstrings. These exercises train the left and right parts of the body. The wider the step when performing the exercise, the more muscles of the buttocks are involved in it. For the greatest effect you need to slowly lower and smoothly, but quickly rise. Taking a breath, step forward, go down. Exhale at the same time as pushing the supporting foot off the floor. Performing such leg exercises at home for men is recommended using dumbbells or a barbell.
Technique of execution:
- stand upright, legs - the width of the pelvis, feet are parallel;
- hands on the belt, but you can cross them on the chest or spread them apart;
- put your foot forward;
- bending the leg set forward, go down until it is bent at the right angle at the knee. The back leg rests on the toe, lift the heel up;
- pushing with the front foot, then you should return to its original position.
How to start leg exercises at home?
First of all, you need to determine what the result is expected from training. Then you need to think through and draw up a program for the development of individual muscle groups, pick up 2-3 exercises for each. For greater effect, muscles should be “warmed up” before training . During one lesson, you can perform exercises aimed at the development of any one muscle group. The next is to thoroughly work out another. Thus, alternating training, in a week you will work out all muscle groups without overloading the body. The training regime should be calculated so that a two-hour break is provided between playing sports and eating.
Training mode
Given the daily routine, you should make a training regimen. In the morning, the best time is from 11.00 to 13.00. For those who prefer to train in the evening, the optimal time is from 17.00 to 19.00 hours. For beginners, training is best done 3 times a week for 30-40 minutes a day. The duration of training should be gradually increased.
During the lesson, you need to monitor your well-being, as excessive load can lead to injuries. For those who are not new to sports, the initial duration of classes should be 40 minutes a day. The regularity of training depends on well-being and goals.
The need for warm-up
When performing exercises for slender legs and hips (the photo above represents one of them), it is important to perform a good workout. This is a prerequisite for any workout. The warm-up “warms up”, that is, it will increase the blood flow to the muscles, increase the efficiency of the session and significantly reduce the risk of injury. Warmed muscles can develop more effort.
The warm-up lasts about 10 minutes. What should she be like? It can be jogging, cardio exercises. It is good to make rotational movements to warm up the joints. This is very important so that during training they are better lubricated. The more fluid there is in the joints, the less they wear out.
You should perform 2-3 stretching exercises as a warm-up. They make joints elastic. These exercises must be performed without sudden jerks. Thus, you can not only prepare yourself for a safe workout, but also increase its effectiveness several times by performing exercises for the legs at home. For girls (the photo in the article also shows an element of warm-up), as well as for men, the implementation of these simple exercises is very important.
What success can be achieved?
Exercises for legs at home for girls will help not only strengthen the muscles of the legs and buttocks, but also get rid of extra pounds. If desired, you can get slender legs and elastic buttocks in a short time. It is necessary to do every day, supplement the workout with cardio exercises, and exclude high-calorie foods from the diet.
Regular exercises will help get rid of extra pounds, and most importantly, increase muscle tone, develop endurance. Beginners should be patient and gradually increase the load. It is not recommended to rush and force their intensity.
If you experience pain or discomfort during training, you should reduce the load or stop the exercise. It’s better to relax and start training with a lower load in a day or reduce the time of classes.