FOOD & FITNESS Friday: Walking Lunges

If you want great legs this is one exercise that is a must.

While walking lunges aren't the most glamorous exercise to perform, they're excellent for strengthening and shaping the legs. Not only will you improve the look of your legs with walking lunges, you'll also firm your lower body muscles, which in turn can improve your speed and athletic performance. Walking lunges can be performed in your local gym or in the comfort of your own home. Adding weights can increase the intensity of the exercise, but this isn't absolutely necessary to see results.

Muscles Used

Walking lunges engage several muscles in the lower body and, when done properly, they can also tighten and strengthen your core muscles. In the first movement of the walking lunge, you target the muscles of the glutes, hamstrings and quadriceps when you move your leg forward. The leg that trails doesn't engage as many muscles, but it is used for stability and balance. The trailing leg becomes the forward moving leg during the second movement of the walking lunge. This engages the quads, hamstrings and glutes of that leg as well. Each leg is alternately engaged, making the walking lunge a more intense workout for maximum hip and thigh development compared to a standard lunge.