Every Friday night a summary from T-Nation pops into my in-box. This week features a great article - with videos - talking all about the right and wrong way to do lunges and how to progress them. Very worthwhile, just try to get by all the hardcore macho stuff (as with everything in T-Mag )

The Hardcore Lunge

Thanks Meg. This is really illuminating ... I learned more from this than from anything else I've read. Perfect timing, too: I've just started doing lunges again after avoiding them for awhile. My hips and quads are really tight, and I have arthritis in my hips. I've decided that I NEED to do lunges to keep them functioning and strong. Great info; idiosyncratic sense of humor

Meg, thank you so much for this link! I wasn't sure if I was doing lunges correctly; now I have a great visual to reference.

The one thing I wasn't sure of -- does doing a reverse lunge vs. doing a front lunge work different parts of the leg?

The walking lunge reminds me of Monty Python's Ministry of Silly Walks!

Jo

Jo, reverse lunges work the same muscles. An advantage of the reverse lunge is that it places less stress on the knees because the knees can't extend beyond the toes. I like combining them with DB bicep curls or overhead DB presses.

Did anyone see the Oxygen mag this month, or probably March's issue, with all the variations of the lunges.... I did it yesterday and it was a very nice workout...

I think reverse lunges activate the glutes more. I like to do 3 foreward, one reverse when doing walking lunges so that the reverse is on a different leg each time. Also takes longer to get to the end of the hallway

Mel

Great information. My kneee tends to cave a lot when I do lunges. Where can I find more information about "glute activation work". Specifically what are hip corrections, supine clams, and mini-band/X-band walks.

MEG: Awesome Link! Thanks so much

Lunges and Squats, Squats and Lunges....

I like these variations of the lunge... 1) for walking lunges, lunge forward then when you put your leg ahead to put it on the floor do a kick before you touch the floor... 2) do a lunge forward then when you come back lunge back then forward again... sometimes you kinda have to tap the floor in the middle before going forward or backwards...

I hope those descriptions make sense...

I did lunges today and I really focused on my form. My knee did not hit the floor as many times.