Sculpt your lower body with these effective shaping exercises. Incorporate these moves after your cardio workout and for best results, perform 3-4 times per week.
Equipment: A set of dumbbells (5 to 15 lbs, depending on your fitness level) and a resistance loop.
Balancing Squat
This exercise targets your hips, glutes, and abs.
How to do it:
Stand tall with your feet slightly wider than hip-width apart. Keep your chest lifted, while maintaining a neutral spine, lower into a deep squat, reaching both arms to the floor. As you press up, shift your weight into your right leg as you bend your left knee and grab onto your shin with your left hand. Hold for 1 count, release your leg, and return to start. That’s one rep. Do 20 reps, alternating sides each time.
Side-Stepping Curtsy
This exercise targets your thighs, hips, and glutes.
How to do it:
Stand tall with your feet slightly wider than hip-width apart, hands clasped behind your head. Cross your right leg behind your left and lower into a curtsy lunge, reaching your right hand to the floor [as shown]. Quickly stand back up and return to start. That’s one rep. Do 20 reps, alternating sides each time.
Hinging Deadlift
This exercise targets your hamstrings, glutes, and lower back.
How to do it:
Grab a pair of dumbbells and stand with your feet slightly wider than hip-width apart, knees slightly bent. Hold the weights in front of your thighs, palms facing in. Maintaining a neutral spine, hinge forward from your hips, reaching the dumbbells to the ground, until your torso is almost parallel with the floor. Focus on using your glutes to raise your body halfway back up and then return to full forward hinge again. That’s one rep. Repeat 20 times.
Shifting Side Lunge
This exercise is a great combination of a sumo squat and a side lunge.
How to do it:
Stand with your feet together, holding dumbbells by your sides. Take a wide step out to your right and lower into a side lunge, reaching dumbbells on either side of right leg [as shown]. Bend your left knee and shift your weight into both legs, into a wide squat position, reaching the dumbbells to the floor in front of you, then extend your right leg and shift your weight to the left, moving into a side lunge with your left leg.
Push off your left foot to bring your legs together and return to start. That’s one rep. Do 20 reps, alternating sides each time.
External Hip Raise
Tone your hips with this super-effective strength move.
How to do it:
Loop a resistance band around your ankles and lie on your right side, supporting your upper body with your right hand and forearm. Extend both legs out, feet flexed. Brace your abs in tight and lift your top leg up to hip height, rotating your leg to turn your toes down to the floor, keeping tension on the band. Lift your leg slightly higher than hip height, pushing against band, with heel rotated up to the ceiling. Return to hip height. Repeat 20 times quickly and then switch sides.