Trouble Zones IV

And finally part four of the four part series...sorry for the delay!

Thighs

Get killer thighs for those leggings this winter with these moves:

Lookout Lunge (Targets shoulders, back, butt, quads and hamstrings)

• Stand with feet hip width apart and extend arms over your head, palms facing each other.
• Lunge forward with left leg, bending your knee 90 degrees, with your right leg behind you
• Hinge forward from hips about 45 degrees, keeping your back flat, so that your torso and arms point diagonally up
• Rotate palms out and lower your arms to the side, then raise arms again, turning your palms in
• Maintaining lunge, lower and raise arms 8 times.  Switch legs and repeat. 
• Do 2 sets of 10

Honing Hinge (Targets shoulders, back, butt, quads and inner thighs)

• Stand with feet wider than shoulder width apart, toes turned out slightly arms by side
• Lower into plie, knees bent 90 degrees and extend arms overhead, palms forward (make it easier by keeping hands on hips)
• Slowly hinge forward from hips until torso is nearly parallel to the ground, keeping back flat and stretching arms forward
• Slowly raise torso back to plie position, then return to start
• Do 2 sets of 10 reps

Why the lunges work?  When you shift most of your weight onto your front leg while folding your torso over it, the inner and outer thigh muscles in that leg take on a bigger load for a longer duration than a traditional lunge.  The honing hinge works because when you turn your toes out into a plie stance, you are shifting the focus to the inner thighs and the forward bend challenges your legs to work that much hard to stabilize you!

Fitness Magazine July/August 2011