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12 best exercises for thighs and buttocks with body weight
Author: Alla Samodurova - fitness trainer. 1. Sumo Squats
Step 1 Stand up straight, feet much wider than shoulders, toes pointed outwards. Keep your back straight, core muscles engaged, gaze forward, chest up. Step 2 Begin to squat: try to keep your back as straight as possible, chin and chest up, and lower your pelvis down. The back should only tilt to maintain balance, no more. Try not to let your knees fall inward. Step 3 Lower yourself as much as possible - pelvis below the knees, pressing your heels into the ground rather than your toes (to do this, try to keep your back as vertical as possible). Step 4 At the bottom position, mentally concentrate on your glutes, squeeze them, and push yourself up using your glutes, pressing your heels into the ground. At the top position, do not fully straighten your knees; keep them slightly bent. Do 3 sets of 20-30 repetitions. To make the exercise more challenging, hold a weight in your hands: this can be a dumbbell or, for example, a 5-liter bottle of water. 2. Bulgarian Lunges
Step 1 Find a support that is slightly lower than your knee. Step one leg forward and place the other leg back on the support. The angle in the knee of the supporting leg should be about 90 degrees or slightly more. Keep your back straight, do not hunch, and squeeze your shoulder blades together. Step 2 Lower yourself down as much as possible. While keeping your back straight, you can lean it forward - the more you lean, the less load on the front surface of the supporting leg and more on the back surface of that same leg. Step 3 Pushing through the heel of the supporting leg into the ground, push yourself up. Do not fully straighten the knee of the supporting leg; keep it slightly bent. Do 3 sets of 10-15 repetitions on each leg. To make the exercise more challenging, hold dumbbells in your hands. 3. Hip Raises from the Floor
Step 1 Lie on the floor, arms along your body, bend your knees. Step 2 Supporting on your shoulders, raise your pelvis as high as possible so that there is an angle of 90 degrees or slightly more at your knees. Step 3 At the top position, squeeze your glutes as much as possible, count to two, and carefully return to the starting position. Do 3 sets of 25-30 repetitions. To make the exercise more challenging, place a weight on your thighs. 4. Single-Leg Hip Raise
Step 1 Sit on the floor, placing your hands behind you under your shoulders, with your legs bent at the knees. Step 2 Push yourself up with your pelvis so that your chest, abdomen, and thighs are parallel to the floor, and the angle at your knees is about 90 degrees or slightly more. Lift your thighs as high as possible. Step 3 At the top position, squeeze your glutes, count to 2, and calmly lower your pelvis down. Do 3 sets of 15-20 repetitions on each leg. 5. Static Hip Raise
Step 1 Lie on the floor, legs extended, arms along your body. Step 2 Place one foot on the other so that the toes are in the position where the heel of the extended leg was. Place the second leg on the foot as well. Step 3 Push yourself up with your pelvis so that your chest, abdomen, and thighs are in a straight line. The angle at the knees is quite large. Lift your thighs as high as possible. Step 4 At the top position, squeeze your glutes, engage the back of your thighs, and hold this position for at least 30 seconds, longer if possible. Do 3 sets of 30 seconds or more. 6. Pulsing Squats with Side Kicks
Step 1 Stand in a classic squat position: feet slightly wider than shoulders, toes slightly turned out, knees slightly bent, arms relaxed, back straight, core muscles engaged, gaze forward. Step 2 Perform a squat: first, push your pelvis back, then, continuing to push your pelvis back, start bending your knees. Do not let your knees fall inward; they should be approximately in line with your second toe. Keep your back straight, aiming for a natural lean necessary for balance, and press your heels into the ground. Step 3 Lower your pelvis as much as you can. From this position, pressing your heels into the ground, exhale and push yourself up, but do not fully straighten; remain in the half-squat. Step 4 Lower into the squat again. Perform 3 of these pulsing squats, then straighten your legs while keeping your knees slightly bent and perform a powerful side kick with one leg as high as possible. This counts as 1 repetition. Do 3 sets of 20-25 repetitions. 7. Sliding Side Lunges
Step 1 It is preferable to perform this exercise on a sliding surface - laminate or tile - with a towel or other sliding material. Place one foot (bare or in non-slippery shoes) on the floor. Place the other foot on the towel. Step 2 With the foot on the towel, gently slide to the side into a lateral lunge. Push your pelvis back while doing this. Keep your back straight with a natural incline for balance. Extend your leg as far back as possible and lower into a squat. Step 3 Also, slowly return back, pulling the foot with the towel towards you. The inner thigh of the sliding leg should be engaged. If you cannot perform sliding lunges, do regular side lunges: step out to the side as far as possible, squat, and return. Do 3 sets of 15-20 repetitions on each leg. 8. Leg Swings in Elbow Plank
Step 1 Get into an "elbow plank" position: your body should be in a straight line, looking forward, head aligned without dropping into shoulders, shoulder blades squeezed together, pelvis neither sagging nor arched upwards, and pull your abdomen towards your spine, heels back. Step 2 Lift one leg off the floor and bend it at the knee so that your thigh is parallel to the floor, and your lower leg is perpendicular, heel upwards. Keep your pelvis level, parallel to the floor, without allowing it to rotate. Step 3 Swing your leg up as high as possible without rotating your pelvis or engaging the lower back. Step 4 At the top position, count to two, focusing on your glutes. Lower back to the starting position (when your thigh is parallel to the floor). Perform this exercise until you feel a burning sensation - remember this number of repetitions - and then do an additional 10-15 repetitions. Perform the same number of repetitions on the other leg. 9. Pistol Squats
Step 1 Stand straight, back straight, core engaged, one leg raised. Step 2 Begin to squat on one leg, pushing your pelvis back and down. Keep a slight lean in your torso, making your back roughly parallel to the shin of the supporting leg. Extend your arms forward for balance. Press the heel of the supporting leg into the ground. Step 3 Lower yourself as low as you can. Step 4 Pushing with the heel into the ground, explosively push yourself up with the supporting leg. Keep your back straight, balancing with your arms. Do 3 sets of 10-15 repetitions on each leg. If you find this exercise difficult, hold onto a support with one hand and/or perform the squat on an elevated surface until lightly touching it. 10. Reverse Lunges
Step 1 Stand straight, feet shoulder-width apart, core engaged to support the spine, chest lifted, chin up. Step 2 Step back and lower your pelvis down, almost touching your knee to the floor, but keep the leg engaged without slamming your knee into the floor. Keep your back straight with a slight lean necessary for balance. In the "lunge" position, your back should be approximately parallel to the shin of the supporting (front) leg, creating an angle of slightly less than 90 degrees with the floor. The rear (back) leg should not be too far back; the angle at its knee should be about 90 degrees or slightly more. Step 3 Pushing through the heel of the supporting leg into the ground, exert a powerful force on the exhale to push yourself up and return the leg to the starting position. Do 3 sets of 15-20 repetitions on each leg. To make the exercise more challenging, hold dumbbells in your hands. 11. Frog
Step 1 Get into a "plank" position on straight arms: your body should be aligned, head, glutes, and heels in one line. Look forward, heels back. Hands under your shoulders. Step 2 Jump both feet forward to your hands so that the feet are at the level of your palms on their outer sides. Step 3 Jump back into the plank position. Do 3 sets of 10-15 jumps. 12. Alternating Frog
Step 1 Get into a "plank" position on straight arms: your body should be aligned, head, glutes, and heels in one line. Look forward, heels back. Hands under your shoulders. Step 2 Jump one leg towards your hand so that the foot is at the level of your palm on its outer side. The other leg stays in place. Step 3 Make the next jump by switching legs. Do 3 sets of 20 jumps. SIMILAR ARTICLES
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