All About The Lunge

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Lunges   Lunges are a super effective way to strengthen and shape the hips, glutes and thighs. Lucky for us, there are a number of ways to incorporate lunges into a BeyondBarre workout.   A basic lunge is a position where one leg is placed forward with a knee bent and the foot flat on the floor while the other leg is placed behind. It’s important to perfect your form when doing a lunge so as not to place unwanted strain on your joints.   Front Lunge

  • Stand tall with your legs together.
  • Keep your upper body straight and step the right foot forward. The left foot remains in place. Lift the left the heel and lower the left knee towards the floor. Both knees should now be bent at about a 90 degree angles.
  • Lower the hips straight down rather than forward.
  • Keep your head up; chin level, and shoulders square. Focus your eyes on a non-moving spot to help maintain your balance and prevent looking down.
  • Keep the torso straight and abs strong as you push through the front foot and back to starting position.
  • Be sure not to lock the knees when standing tall.
  • Repeat using your opposite leg.
lunge1 lunge2 lunge3 lunge4 Once the basic lunge is mastered you can vary it to work different areas of the muscles. Here are few variations I often add to my BeyondBarre workouts.   Back Lunge
  • Stand tall with your legs together.
  • Keep your upper body straight and step the right foot back. The left foot remains in place. Lower the hips towards the floor. Both knees should now be bent at about a 90 degree angle.
  • Return to the starting position.
  • Repeat using your opposite leg.
lunge5 lunge6     High Lunge
  • Stand tall with your legs together.
  • Step the right foot back. The left foot remains in place.
  • Sink the hips straight down towards the floor.
  • Keep your head up; chin level, and shoulders square. Focus your eyes on a non-moving spot to help maintain your balance and prevent looking down.
  • Repeat using your opposite leg.
  Lunge Pulses
  • Stand tall with your legs together.
  • Keep your upper body straight and step the right foot forward. The left foot remains in place. Lift the left heel and lower the knee towards the floor. Both knees should now be bent at about a 90 degree angle.
  • Pulse up and down.
  Lunge Tap
  • Stand tall with your legs together.
  • Keep your upper body straight and step the right foot forward. The left foot remains in place. Lift the left the heel and lower the knee towards the floor.
  • Shift your weight to the right leg and bring the left foot to meet the right foot. Extend the left leg back.
  • Repeat using your opposite leg.
  Side Lunge
  • Stand tall with your legs together.
  • Keep your upper body straight and step the right foot directly to the side. The left foot remains in place. Lower the hips towards the floor. The right knee bends and the left remains straight.
  • Return to the starting position.
  • Repeat using your opposite leg.
    Lunge Curtsy
  • Stand tall with your legs hip-width apart.
  • Step the left foot back and cross the mid-line of the body in a curtsy position.
  • Lower the hips straight down so that the right thigh is parallel to the floor.
  • Keep your head up; chin level, and shoulders square. Focus your eyes on a non-moving spot to help maintain your balance and prevent looking down.
  • Keep the torso straight and abs strong as you push through the left foot and back to starting position.
  • Repeat using your opposite leg.
    Lunge with Lift
  • Perform a Back Lunge.
  • Stand tall with your legs together.
  • Keeping your upper body straight, step the right foot back. The left foot remains in place. Lower the hips towards the floor. Both knees should now be bent at about a 90 degree angle.
  • As the back leg pushes off to lift, reverse battement the leg.
  • Repeat using your opposite leg.
  Diagonal Lunge
  • Stand tall with your legs together.
  • Keeping your upper body straight, step the right foot diagonally to the right. The left foot remains in place. Lift the left the heel and lower the knee towards the floor. Both knees should now be bent at about a 90 degree angle.
  • Lower the hips straight down rather than forward.
  • Keep your head up; chin level, and shoulders square. Focus your eyes on a non-moving spot to help maintain your balance and prevent looking down.
  • Keep the torso straight and abs strong as you push through the front foot and back to starting position.
  • Repeat using your opposite leg.
    Around the World
  • Lunge to the Front, Side, Back, Side.
  • Repeat using your opposite leg.
    Lunge Battement
  • Stand tall with your legs together.
  • Keeping your upper body straight, step the right foot back. The left foot remains in place. Lower the hips towards the floor. Both knees should now be bent at about a 90 degree angle.
  • Push through the right foot and lift to standing as the right leg kicks forward in a battement.
  • Repeat using your opposite leg.
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