WANT KILLER legs like supermodel Naomi Campbell? Try these moves for a leg up.
STEP-UPS
What you will need: A stepping device (check sporting equipment stores), a phone book, or any surface that will allow you to step up.
The exercise:
Place your right foot flat on the step and your left foot flat on the floor. Exhale and push off as little as possible with the left foot as you bring both feet up to step level (you'll now have two feet on the step).
Inhale and lower your left foot back down to the floor. Work with body weight only, and repeat to muscle fatigue regardless of the number of reps.
Reverse legs and repeat to muscle fatigue.
Note: While step-ups are a great toning exercise, they also serve as a warm up for squats and lunges, and should therefore be done in a higher rep range with no added resistance (weights).
LUNGES
What you will need: Dumbbells (not recommended for beginners) -- in a manageable weight.
The exercise:
Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, arms at your sides. Inhale and take a large step backward with the left foot to a point where your left knee is a few inches above the floor (or as close as you can comfortably go) and your right knee does not extend past the toes of your right foot. Your hands, with or without dumbbells, remain at your sides; your gaze is forward.
Exhale and step forward with the left leg returning to the starting position. Finish all reps with the left leg before repeating with the right.
Note: To make the movement less difficult, alternate legs. Repeat to muscle fatigue (in the range of 12 to 20 reps).
SQUATS
What you will need: Dumbbells (not recommended for beginners) -- in a manageable weight.
The exercise:
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart holding your hands or dumbbells at your sides. Your head is straight, the natural arch maintained in your back.
Inhale, swing the weights (or your bare hands) slightly forward for balance while bending at the knees and hips to a sitting position (or as low as you can go and still maintain balance).
Be sure the buttocks don't drop below the level of your knees, and your knees do not extend past your toes.
Exhale and slowly return to a standing position, allowing your hands to drop back down to your sides. Repeat to muscle fatigue (in the range of 12 to 20 reps).
GENERAL NOTES:
Hand weights increase intensity.
Rest for about a minute after you have done all three exercises then repeat the entire set two or three times, depending on your level of fitness.
Do two to three times a week, in addition to being active, for best results.
These moves also bring the lower back and abs in to stabilise muscles. Adding hand weights also use arm and shoulder muscles.
