3 Big Common Mistakes During A Lunge

The Lunge, a great exercise to help with leg strength and overall movement.

When performing this exercise, it is not uncommon to hear "my knees hurt". This could be from a few reasons - tight muscles or most commonly is performing the exercise incorrectly for weeks, months, years.

Here are a few common mistakes when it come to lunging:

1. Allowing the front knee to go too far forward.

This is like jack knifing a trailer - OUCH! All of that pressure is moving in a downward and forward momentum with only your toes to stop you...not a recipe for success.

In this situation, keep your heel on the ground and lift the toes up. You will instantly find that your front knee can only go so far forward. Perfect world scenario is the knee is behind the toe.

2. Not bending both knees.

to keep balance and to open your hips, you will want to have both legs in a bent position - 1 leg forward, 1 leg back. Here you will want the hips to be slightly forward of the rear leg and knee approx. half a fist off the ground, with the front knee not going over the toes (this is your lowered position). Press through the heel of the front foot and toe of the rear foot to come up to the top position.

3. Leaning either too far forward or too far back.

Your torso positioning can become important in the way you might feel it, which muscles might become under load, abdominal bracing or how much pressure you put on your spine. My suggestion on optimal positioning is a slight lean forward whilst keeping hips open/in an extension position. This will allow your glutes to remain activated and create some real power on the way back up.

A few simple tweaks can massively make a difference to how and where you feel it working during this exercise.