There’s lot of great exercise advice available for building strong legs and powerful glutes. Some of the best are part of a solid bodyweight strength training workout routine.
I’ve probably tried all different kinds over the years. The greatest types of exercise routines I’ve enjoyed for my legs are the ones that are easiest to perform, meaning not much complexity, and results oriented.
The best results I’ve experienced come from some very straight forward movements that I started out with and built upon over the years.
Additionally, I was never crazy about working out my legs. That seems to be pretty common. Not sure if it’s laziness or just not as much fun as other exercises.
Wait, did I say fun?
It would seem lots of people feel the same way as is evidenced by the multitude of articles written over the years with titles like “Don’t skip your leg day” or “Why you should never forget about your legs”.
Whatever the reason for the aversion to working out legs, I’ve used some great, easy to perform leg exercises to get results for strong, agile legs.
So if you’re a beginner, looking for easy to do leg exercises that will build strength and get you in shape, you’ll enjoy this workout routine.
The first thing you’ll need to do is find a step. You can do it with an aerobic step that you have lying around the house, you can grab one for cheap or simply use a step at the bottom of the stairs somewhere in your home.
What you’re shooting for is the ability to step up approximately 6 to 8 inches off the floor. This is going to provide you with the needed resistance.
The Step Up
For this exercise start by standing in front of the step. Step forward up and on to the step with your left foot followed by your right.
When both feet are on the step, step down, again first with the left foot and then with the right.
Repeat the exercise ten times, switching which foot you step up with first. This way you get an equal workout for each leg from the standing position.
After you’ve done it ten times, congratulations, you just completed the step up. Not too bad right?
Here’s a simple demonstration of the step up from the good people at Wahoo Fitness.
As simple as it seems, this is a great exercise for your glutes (that’s your butt if you’re wondering), which help with a variety of leg movements and hip rotations.
It’s also great for strength training with your quadriceps. Those are the large muscles on the front of your thighs. These are critical for enabling you to stand, walk and providing overall stability.
Related Article : 5 Of The Best Exercises For A Beginner’s At Home Workout
You may have noticed, especially if you’re a beginner, you’re getting a bit of a cardio workout from this movement. More on this later.
This simple exercise is also a great bodyweight strength training exercise for improving your balance, agility and lower body strength.
The Lunge
This next movement is probably one of my favorites for building and toning the legs and butt.
It’s a classic that’s been around for a long time because it really works the lower body and sticking with it will get you great results in the long run.
You don’t need the step for this one.
From a standing position, simply step forward with one leg. With the front leg, as you step, bend at the knee so that you’re making a 45 degree angle so your thigh is parallel with the floor.
Then simply step back into a standing position. Repeat the movement with the other leg. When you’ve done it once with each leg consider that one completed repetition.
Way to go! You just completed a lunge. Try completing 10 repetitions. That’s ten times with each leg.
Here’s a great demonstration of the lunge from trainer Holly Rilinger. She suggests going for 15 reps but for the sake of this routine, shoot for 10. Trust me it’s a great workout.
This is another exercise that targets those glutes and quadriceps. Also great for building strength, coordination and balance.
How you feeling so far? You’ve successfully completed two thirds of this amazing workout routine for beginners.
Related Article: Plank Workout For Beginners-The Challenge
For this last part we’re going to return to the step. Still focusing on the lower body but we’re going to add a little something to make it a full body movement.
We’re taking it up a notch but not too crazy.
Burpee Step Ups
This is one of my favorites as well.
Simply put, we are incorporating a burpee into the step up exercise we started this workout routine with. (I don’t care if that isn’t proper grammar. Life is too short.)
Here’s how you do it:
Start off by standing in front of the step with your feet approximately shoulder width apart.
Then squat down so you can place your hands flat on the step. Then shoot your legs out together behind you so that you finish in the push up position.
Your arms should be straight and your back should make a straight line with your legs, while you are supporting your weight with your hands and toes. That’s a solid push up position.
From that position, shoot your feet back forward so that you return to the squat stance and then stand up straight.
Then from standing straight up, simply step up on the step, one foot at a time, just like you did with the first exercise.
Finish up by stepping back down onto the floor.
Here’s a really good demo of the burpee step up from Joanna Soh.
Got it? Fantastic! You just completed a single repetition of the burpee step up. Try and do 10 repetitions.
You already know how great this movement is for your glutes and quadriceps.
But by introducing the burpee into the movement, you’ve now included your deltoids (your shoulders), your pecs (that’s your chest) and your core, which is great if you’re interested in toning your belly.
This is another movement that is great for building strength, balance and stamina.
Not to mention, it will get you on track to toning your whole body. This exercise is a really good one.
I’ve included a link so you can see how to perfect the burpee. It’s definitely an exercise that I think should be a part of every workout routine for beginners because it’s got it all and is a great compliment to a lower body regimen.
Related Article: How To Do A Burpee
Put It All Together
Lets see what these exercises look like put together for a great workout routine for beginners:
- 10 Step Ups
- 10 Lunges
- 10 Burpee Step Ups
Looks pretty straightforward to me. Complete the whole routine 3-4 times giving yourself a couple minutes break in between each exercise.
If you’re an absolute beginner to working out I’m pretty sure you’re going to feel this one.
There is a chance that even if you’re a beginner, you’re looking at this workout and thinking you need a little more.
Maybe you try it out and think, “Hey, I’m not breathing heavy or breaking a sweat yet. What else you got?”
In that case you’re going to want to take this routine and…
Make It Metabolic!
Whoa! Wait! What?
This routine can be turned into a great metabolic workout for beginners.
If you haven’t heard of a metabolic workout before and want to know what it is, here’s a general breakdown for you.
A metabolic workout tends to involve compound exercises. Compound exercises utilize multiple joints and multiple muscle groups at the same time.
So for example the burpee step up in this routine is a great compound exercise incorporating the quadriceps, glutes, pectoral muscles and core. As you can imagine, it works multiple joints for these muscle groups to work together.
A good metabolic workout will have you boost your metabolism with a good calorie burn. Your metabolism is generally measured by how many calories you burn while at rest.
The faster your metabolism the more calories you burn. The more calories you burn the better your chances of burning fat and losing some weight.
Metabolic training tends to incorporate large muscle groups in the body. Though it can be done with smaller muscle groups as well. It utilizes high intensity and because off that you’ll definitely feel the burn in the muscles you are working.
The high intensity also means you’re able to workout for a shorter period of time to achieve the same results.
The benefits of a solid metabolic workout routine for beginners include improved cardiovascular performance and strength training. There also tends to be a boost in fat loss because of the increased calorie burns.
Some studies indicated that following a good metabolic workout routine, a percentage of the increased levels of calorie burns continue while at rest. This has been referred to as the “afterburn effect”.
Also known as the excess post exercise oxygen consumption or EPOC. It’s really just a fancy way of describing the increased number of calories burned after exercise.
Related Article: Beginner’s Bodyweight Exercise Routine – Isometrics
So How Do We Make This Workout Routine Metabolic?
No problem.
If you’re looking to turn this into a metabolic workout routine for beginners the best place to start is with your rest period in between exercises.
This is one way to boost the intensity. So instead of resting for a couple of minutes between each movement, cut your rest down to 30 seconds.
If that still doesn’t do it for you, take the rest out completely from in between exercises and go straight through from one movement to the next.
Save the rest for when you’ve completed an entire circuit of all three movements.
Also, you don’t want to be just slowly going through each movement. Make sure you maintain a reasonable pace because you’ll get your heart rate up and really feel the benefit of the resistance in your muscles.
By boosting the intensity in this fashion you’ll reap the benefits of this bodyweight strength training routine in less time and effectively turned it into a great metabolic workout.
The Wrap Up To An Amazing Workout Routine
So there you have it. A great bodyweight strength training workout for beginners to build strong legs and glutes.
If you’re able to jump right to the metabolic workout, I’d imagine you’re not quite a beginner and may be ready soon to take this workout to the next level by adding weight and additional sets.
If you are a beginner, this routine should get you on track to building your strength and toning your body. Try and do it at least a couple times a week until it gets considerably easier.
At that point you won’t be such a beginner anymore. You’ll be on your way to the next level. Way to go!
