{Day 14} My Favorite Leg Exercises

{Day 14}

New here? Make sure to check out day 1  and my introduction to my 

31 day of Health and Exercise series for the month of October

Thank you for reading and coming along with journey with me

I hope to inspire and motivate you through this series 

Today I am going to talk about working out your LEGS
I really like to workout my legs

 There is just something about it that makes me feel STRONG

I think I like to workout my legs because I feel like they need the most work

You see I was a gymnast and even though I had buff legs 

I had the thunder thigh type buff legs which was great then

since they were pure muscle BUT

I am not diggin the thunder thighs anymore

I want more toned and skinny thighs 

I want to have the gap between them

So I have been trying to get those thighs in better shape 

Say NO to Thunder Thighs 

I do a lot of different leg workouts I like to mix it up 

so I don't get bored with just one

This is one of the leg workouts 

that I felt like worked really good for me

I was fillin the burn

 30 squats

 I love the good ol regular squat 

it gives my legs such a good burn

I also sometimes have a weight bar behind my head to add some resistance

Start standing up 

and squat down keeping your back in a good line

and your knees behind your toes

making sure to sit back a little 

Do them slow and squeeze your legs and tummy

 

20 lunges (on each leg)

 start standing up 

and put one leg out in front

with your body straight up and down

and your front knee staying behind your toe

lunge down and go back up straightening your legs 

continue until you get to 20

then switch legs 

You want to make sure you are going up and down

not so much forward

30 tuck jumps

 These are one of my favorite leg exercises

I got it from the workout DVDs Insanity

Thank you Shaun T

start with your legs apart in a squat 

and jump up front your squat tucking your knees 

so they meet up with your hand

like shown in the picture above

Make sure to jump from the squat position

and to land back in the squat position to be ready for the next one

20 (double count) jump lunges

 This is just a twist on the lunges

start in the lunge position we talked about above

jump up with your feet together at the top and

switch legs into the opposite lunge 

This will keep your lunge in the up and down motion 

Keep your back straight 

and push yourself

get as high as you can

20 (double count) low mountain climbers

 start in the high plank position 

then you are going to bend one knee bringing it your your chest 

and your foot on the floor

switch feet until you have done 20 on each leg 

Keep your back straight

and your bum tight

No bums in the air girl

30 jump squats 

 it pretty much describes itself

you are going to do your squat jump up

as high as you can pushing off your toes and land

back into the squat position lightly 

50 abduction machine

 These next two machines are my very favorite

if you don't already do them you have got to try them out

The hip abduction is the one that your legs 

go inside the pads and you push your legs out

against the weight 

50 adduction machine

 This one you sit with your legs on the outside of the pads

and you push your legs inward toward each other 

against the weight

These are amazing 

and will hopefully get my inner thighs the way I want them eventually

20  (each leg) Step ups

Go to the weight benches

or to a step stool and you are going to put one foot

on the bench and step up

using your leg muscles to get all the way up 

then step down and continue 

until you get 20 on each leg

1 minute Wall sits X2

 These bad boys work wonders I tell you

This will give you that burn you are looking for

go against any wall and sit like you are sitting a chair

with your back against the wall

and your legs bent to at least a 90 degree angle 

hold for one minute without putting your hands on your legs

the best way to do this is to put them to your sits

touching the wall 

or hold a weight out in front of you 

 10 Straight Leg Dead Lift
These will work the back of your legs

 Keep your legs pretty straight (shoulder width apart) 

the whole time but don't lock your knees

 Bend until you feel the back of your leg being stretched

Then stand up with a straight back the whole time

15 Frog Squats

place feet a little more than shoulder width apart

 point feet and knees slightly outward

 squat like picture 1 

 lift hips up like picture 2 

then lower back to starting position (picture1)

100 calf raises 

20 regular

20 toes in 

20 regular

20 toes out

20 regular 

make sure to do them slow 

and to do them all the way down and

up as high as you can go

feel the burn and work through it

 Running
Last but not least
running is an amazing leg workout
Running is so amazing for the whole body
Just do it!

So this week I CHALLENGE you to try some of these leg workouts 
You could be hooked   

Come back tomorrow for another Health and Exercise Tip

And make sure to check out the previous posts of this series HERE

You don't want to miss anything :)