There is nothing like making a slight modification to an exercise you frequently do, to remind you just how much the human body will only improve in the very specific way you are asking it to. If you don’t know what I'm talking about then you are most likely about to have firsthand knowledge after you do this workout video.

In this lower body strength workout we are going to challenge your muscles in two ways. First we will challenge the strength of your legs in a specific motion, for example lunges. Then we will challenge those same muscle’s endurance by doing the same exercise but in a hold rather than a repeating movement. This workout actually tries to incorporate the two types of muscle fibers in skeletal muscle, fast twitch (think strength and power) and slow twitch (think endurance and high repetition), in the same routine. Because we will be holding all of these movements as close to their max load angle as we can, the slow twitch fibers will give out very rapidly as compared to a lighter load angle. To illustrate this think of the difficulty of a squat with only a slight bend at the knee (a light-load angle) versus the knee bent at a 90 degree (heavy-load angle). So in other words, get ready to feel your legs burn.

We will be doing three groups of 6 exercises. Each group will have three “active” exercises, meaning we will be moving through a range of motion, and three “static” exercises where we hold the hardest range we can of the “active” exercise that was just done. For example our first strength exercise will be a Ski Squat (optionally done with weight) and we will repeat this movement for 45 seconds. Then after a 15 second break/prep we will move to a bodyweight Ski Squat Hold where we drop down to the lowest range of the squat that is comfortable on your joints and that you can control, and we hold this position (trying not to move) for another 45 seconds. 

I went into this routine knowing exactly what it is having done this type of workout many times before and I still was surprised at just how quickly my legs turned to jello. So, if you are planning on using weight during “active” exercises then be sure to start roughly 25% lighter than you would normally do that exercise. You can always increase weight for the second set. Oh yeah, did I mention you are doing two sets of all of these exercises? If you just heard something it was probably your legs asking you to do a different routine. Ha. Enjoy.

Workout Structure
- Three Groups of Exercise
- Active and Static Style
- Done in Order Twice Through

Equipment
- Dumbbells (optional)

Warm Up / Cooldown
- Both Included

Workout

Warm Up (5 Min; 30 Sec Each)
- Side Step / Arm Cross
- Slow High Knees
- Toe Touch Circles
- Torso Circles
- Warrior Pulse L
- Warrior Pulse R
- Alternating Lunges
- Boxer Shuffle
- Sumo Squat + Alternating Leg Raise
- Jumping Jack

Strength (12 Minutes; 45 on, 15 off) x2
- Ski Squat
- Ski Squat Hold
- Lunge L
- Lunge Hold L
- Lunge R
- Lunge Hold R

Strength (12 Minutes; 45 on, 15 off) x2
- Deadlift (straight leg)
- Deadlift Hold (straight leg)
- Side Lunge L
- Side Lunge Hold L
- Side Lunge R
- Side Lunge Hold R

Strength (12 Minutes; 45 on, 15 off) x2
- Calf Raise (both feet)
- Calf Raise Hold
- Side Leg Raise L
- Side Leg Raise Hold L
- Side Leg Raise R
- Side Leg Raise Hold R
 
Cool Down (5 Min; 30 Sec Each)
- Left Over Right
- Right Over Left
- Wide Toe Touch
- Inside Thigh Stretch L
- Inside Thigh Stretch R
- Seated Toe Touch / Side Bend L
- Seated Toe Touch / Side Bend R
- Butterfly Stretch
- Deep Glute L
- Deep Glute R