Lateral lunge
Muscles worked : Quadriceps, glutes · Adductors
How to do it
- Stand with your feet together.
- Take a long step out to one side.
- Bend the knee of that leg while pushing the hips back, the other leg staying straight.
- Drive through the bent leg’s heel to return to the start.
- Repeat on the other side.
Common mistakes
- The bent knee drifting inwards instead of staying in line with the foot.
- The heel of the bent leg lifting off the floor.
- The chest collapsing forward instead of staying upright.
Where you should feel it
Quadriceps and glute of the bent leg, plus a distinct stretch on the inside of the straight thigh. That last sensation is often the most striking at first: the adductors are rarely worked through this range.
Range of motion
Lower as far as the inside of the opposite thigh allows without the bent leg’s heel lifting. Adductor flexibility is the limit at first, not strength — the range will open on its own.
Tempo and breathing
Two to three seconds down, one to two seconds up. Keep the chest upright and the toes pointing forward on both sides.
What works, precisely
The quadriceps and gluteus maximus of the bent leg produce the movement. The adductors of the straight leg work under stretch, and the gluteus medius stabilises the pelvis. The movement runs in a plane that almost all conventional exercises ignore.
Movement mechanics
Hip and knee flexion-extension in the frontal plane, unlike the squat and the lunge which stay in the sagittal plane. That orientation is exactly what makes it complementary: it recruits muscles and ranges the others leave out.
Benefits
- Works the frontal plane, the great absentee from equipment-free programmes — hence its real value despite apparent overlap with the squat.
- Strengthens the adductors and lateral hip mobility, useful for avoiding stumbles and sideways loss of balance.
- Improves the ability to move sideways, a common daily action never otherwise trained.
Adapt and progress
- Easier : Narrow the step and reduce the depth, or keep one hand on a support.
- Harder : Widen the step, go lower, or slow the return.
- Move on when : When ten repetitions per side go by with the heel down and the chest upright.
Precautions
With any discomfort on the inside of the thigh, narrow the stance sharply: adductors strain easily when maximum range is chased too soon.