I am sure that people have told you innumerable times how exercise is the best thing you could do for your body, mind and even the spirit. But do you know exactly why exercise is good? Why does it make you feel great about yourself? Is it because your energy levels are revved up; or is it because you feel more flexible and stronger; or is it both? Let us find out in the following section.
Suggested read: A Step-By-Step Guide On The Most Effective Full Body Bodyweight Workout
Why exercise is a good idea
According to experts, if a teenager gets an hour of exercise on a regular basis, the following things happen:
1. You will feel good about yourself
Exercise helps produce natural chemicals in the body that help a person feel great about themselves. Exercise also improves your sleep cycle, and if you have slept well through the night, then your next day is ought to be good.
When you exercise, you keep a few targets for yourself; it is a challenge for both your body and your will power. So when you achieve a test, there is an immediate sense of accomplishment which is great for your mind.
2. Your stamina is enhanced greatly
When we work out, our body needs energy. Aerobic movements are constituted of constant, but rhythmic physical motion that restore the heart beat rate to normal. This, in turn, enhances your stamina as it trains your body to use less energy and yet be more efficient in undertaking the same amount of load. Gradually, your conditioning level improves, and so does your heart rate, breathing etc. Also, you will need lesser resting time while carrying out strenuous and rigorous activities.
3. Training your body strengthens and tones your muscles
Using weights and performing resistance training by using your bodyweight can help you develop your bones, muscles as well as strengthen your ligaments. Not just do they help you become stronger, but also increase your endurance. Your posture is amended and you can expect your body to be firm and toned. And when you look better, you feel better, right?
4. Exercise helps you against diseases that one incurs as they age
By exercising regularly, you lower your risks of developing several age-related disorders like osteoporosis (this happens due to the weakening of bones). You also prevent diseases related to obesity. The chances of developing hypertension or type 2 diabetes is also reduced by workouts.
5. Circulation of blood improves
Exercise improves the circulation of blood through our system. The exercises which aim at relaxing our body, helps increase the flood of blood to our hands and feet. This, in turn, ensures more oxygen reaches our cells. As a result, our cells function better.
The twisting exercises of bodyweight work outs squeeze out the toxic poison from our cells and internal organs. Consequently, more oxygenated blood reaches our organs. The level of hemoglobin in our blood is also enhanced by exercise. It makes the platelets less sticky, and lowers the amount of clot-causing proteins present in our blood. Blood clots can cause strokes, and so, training your body prevents such strokes and decreases risks of a cardiac arrest.
6. De-stress by exercising
All of us are pretty stressed nowadays, but we love talking about it and not doing anything to solve it, right? Well, if you do belong to the special few (let us call them the limited edition, shall we?), then you need to work out and delete the stress from your life.
7. Gives you good posture
Now I’m sure I don’t need to explain why you having a good posture is good. Are you kidding me?! Okay then. Good posture makes you look confident, which in turn, makes you look good. Also bad posture can cause a number of problems like neck pain shoulder ache, and back pain. These could get worse with age and develop into serious disorders. How to avoid all that? By exercising!
These were some of the benefits that one can get from exercising regularly. Now that we are clear on the advantages, let us have a look at the best body weight leg exercises that can give you legs worth flaunting!
Our legs are made of the largest muscle groups. Therefore, one needs to burn more calories and fats from this region which comprises half of your body. The following bodyweight workouts will work your legs rigorously, and give you the stride of a stallion.
Suggested read: These Powerful Body Weight Chest Exercises Are Going To Give You The Body Of Your Dreams
Best body weight leg exercises
1. Squat
To build strong legs, squats is definitely one of the best exercises. Not just legs, the exercise also focuses on the glutes, making them tighter and stronger. While performing a squat, the muscles that are most affected are quads, glutes, and core.
2. Jump Squat
If you want to take squats to the next level, then you got to upgrade to jump squats. These plyometric exercises effectively increase the intensity of the workout. They hit the fast-twitch muscle fibers in our legs. They also spike the heart rate, which in turn, helps you burn your fats as well as calories.
3. Lunge
When you take the lunge position, your hips are split in half, and this requires amazing stability. The muscles that are affected most are your glutes, your quads, and your hamstrings. These exercise are also good for the stabilizers in the hips.
4. Jump Lunge
How a jump squat improves a squat, similarly, a jump lunge increases the effectiveness of a lunge by several notches. A jump lunge is one of the advanced bodyweight leg exercises, and therefore, it is necessary that you master a lunge before diving into this. The jump lunge focusses on the same muscle groups as a lunge, but it is more efficient on the fast-twitch muscle fibers (aka the fat burners). Also, these help spike the heart rate like no other leg exercise.
5. Sumo Squat
The sumo squat works on the hips far better than the other exercises on this list. It helps in groin activation and on muscle groups like the adductors. The squats also enhance the strength and firmness of the quads as well as the glutes.
6. Glute Bridge
The glute bridge is an exclusively posterior chain exercise that helps people who cannot perform a squat or lunge because of injuries. The muscles that are targeted include glutes, hamstrings, and the lower back.
7. Supine Leg Curl
The supine leg curl affects all the muscle groups, like the glute bridge. It mainly hits the hamstrings due to the extra flexing and knee extensions.
Take the position of a glute bridge. Now using a slippery something, like a sock or a towel, under your feet, try to lift your hips off the ground. You need to extend your legs and then try to pull your heels back to your body.
8. Fire Hydrant
When you perform a fire hydrant, the chief muscles that are worked out are the abductors and your glutes. This is usually done as a warm-up exercise, but you can also do them between exercises to improve mobility.
To perform this exercise, you need to get into a table-top position (on your hands and your knees). Now slowly raise one leg to the side. Make sure your knee forms and 90-degree with the floor. Slowly lower the leg back to the starting position. Perform the same exercise with the other leg.
9. Step-up
This is a low-risk workout, but extremely effective on the lower body. It involves just one leg in a unilateral movement to improve your balance and sense of coordination. This is an anti-gravity workout, and so helps in enhancing your stability and strengthen the legs and glutes, while burning calories.
For this exercise, all you have to do is to place your feet on an elevated platform, say a bench or chair, and push the leading foot and stand up straight. Do not lean forward. Also do not hinge at the hip.
Suggested read: Here’s How You Can Use Body Weight Exercises To Get Your Dream Body
That is all we have on today’s post that discussed best body weight leg exercises for you. Did you find this useful? Do you have some specific query that the article didn’t address? You can ask that in the comment section below, and our experts will get back to you immediately.
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Featured image source: Google, copyright-free image under Creative Commons License
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