By Miguel J. Ortiz
When it comes to overall strength, most of the bigger lifts like deadlifts, squats and cleans are heavy compound movements. It is a process to master them. On a different spectrum, when recovering from an injury you’ll have to deal with imbalances during physical therapy.
The point is that at one point or another you’ll need to be doing unilateral or single-leg exercises to continue moving forward. Unilateral or single-leg exercises are very underutilized and underappreciated. They are great for strengthening joint imbalances, adding core strength and improving stability which all assist in developing overall strength. So, here are three single-leg exercises that you can start doing at home or in the gym.
The first exercise is the kettlebell goblet Cossack squat. This movement requires you to start in a wide stance and then shift into a single leg squat or lateral lunge. It covers the quads, adductors, glutes and core. This forces your weight to one side. Don’t be fooled. Sometimes getting down is easier than getting up, so be mindful of your range of motion and flexibility. The opposite (or straight leg) will also go through an inner thigh stretch. So, keep in mind that while one hip is being stretched the other is being engaged. This is forcing your core to stabilize accordingly. Which brings me to the front-loaded kettlebell or weight. Adding weight will help stabilize your balance and you may find it slightly easier to get lower ranges of motion.
The second exercise requires a little more balance. The assisted one-leg Romanian deadlift (RDL) with bench. This movement can also be done with a dumbbell. It can also be done without a bench. However, if you have not done it before I recommend using a bench because it will help with correct form before adding weight. This is a very easy exercise to manipulate improperly which can lead to compensation or bad form. The posterior system needs to be trained much more than what most see in gyms and it is vital for movement. This would include the calves, hamstrings, glutes, all of the back (core), shoulders, triceps and neck. All of these areas are crucial for posture, walking, sitting and basically all movement. Notice the alignment from my heel, knee, hip, back, shoulders and neck in my video (tinyurl.com/ORTfitness). Everything is aligned, and by focusing on this alignment you will target all these areas, including the hamstrings and glutes more than others. The RDL tremendously improves stability, hip and core strength.
Lastly, to combine the two movements above, I give you the Bulgarian split squat. It is also known as the dumbbell rear leg elevated split squat, RLESS for short. This movement is not your normal split squat because the back leg is elevated forcing you to add significantly more weight to your front leg. This is an exercise that is going to burn quite a bit. The back leg gives reassurance, but is only assisting with stabilization. This movement can really expose hip imbalances so form is very important. Perfect your form first and then add weight as you feel more comfortable.
Enjoy your movements and stay active.
– Miguel J. Ortiz is a personal trainer in Atlanta, Georgia. He is a master trainer for pain-free performance and a certified nutritional consultant with more than a decade of professional experience. He can be found on Instagram at @migueljortiz. You can find videos of the exercises mentioned in this column on his YouTube channel at tinyurl.com/ORTfitness.
