Lower Body Workout | Beginner Series
I’ve talked about the benefits of full body workouts in the last beginner series post. Today, let’s focus on when it’s appropriate to do upper and lower body days. I’m also taking you through a complete, beginner-friendly leg workout!
When should you do upper and lower body workouts?
When you start going to the gym 4 times a week then you will be able to have an upper/lower workout split, because your training frequency allows it.
As mentioned in the last blog post, you want to target every muscle group at least twice a week for optimal progress and results.
So if you can manage 4 weekly sessions, 2 upper and 2 lower body work perfectly fine.
Beginner friendly leg & glute workout
This workout is composed of 5 exercises that work all the muscles in your lower body, from you glutes to your calves. Most of these exercises are compound movements targeting several muscle groups at once, such as squats and lunges. This type of exercises is the most beneficial when it comes to shaping your silhouette, gaining muscle but also improving your posture.
Aim for 3 sets of 8 to 12 reps per exercise. Rest for up to 1 minute between sets. Take your time and focus on the movement rather than rushing through the reps. You got this!
Read more about the recommended sets, reps, rest and how to choose the right resistance here.
How about glute activation?
You’ve probably heard that we should “activate the glutes” before a lower body workout. Most of us tend to have “lazy glutes” which doesn’t mean that they can’t respond to exercise. It’s just that quads tend to take over and therefore the glutes and hamstrings become weaker.
This is why the vast majority of us need to check our posture (engaging the core and squeezing the glutes during the movement) and start with some activation exercises. You can read more about it and watch warm up exercises here.
Walking lunges
Lunges one of the best leg exercises out there and are often easier than squats for beginners. Learn how to perform lunges here. Perform 8 to 12 reps per leg, aka 16 to 24 steps per set.
Goblet Squats
Holding the weight in front of you gives you more stability, therefore you can focus on practicing the squat movement. Make sure to roll your shoulders back (avoid shrugging) and to shift your weight towards your heels. Here a complete video tutorial on how to do goblet squats.
Kettlebell Sumo Deadlift
The deadlift is considered a full body exercise (as it targets your back, core, legs…) but this sumo variation is really good at hitting your glutes. The wide stance and ankle placement (slightly turned out) help you squeeze your glutes on top of the rep. Beginners can start with a kettlebell before moving onto the barbell version. Watch the kettlebell sumo deadlift tutorial here.
Leg Press
This leg machine can seem intimidating but it’s actually very easy to use! Make sure to keep your feet flat on the platform and push through your heels. Here’s a leg press tutorial.
Glute Bridges
Let’s finish with an isolation exercise for your glutes.
You can perform bridges with your feet elevated (as shown in this tutorial) or flat on the floor as shown in this video. You can also have a band above your thighs to increase the challenge.
The most important is to engage your core. You want your whole back to be against the mat. For this, you need to brace your core as if you were going to get punched in the stomach. Squeeze your glutes on top of the rep.