Forward lunges with a barbell on your shoulders are not just an exercise for your legs. Correct execution of lunges with a barbell on the shoulders Lunges execution technique for men

Lunges with a barbell for girls are one of the favorite exercises for working the gluteal muscles and hamstrings. This is not a very difficult and yet effective exercise that quickly allows you to tighten your buttocks and achieve the desired shape. It is included in almost every leg training program. The article will look at how to perform lunges correctly, what types of this exercise there are, and how to make it as effective as possible.

The benefits of lunges

U exercise involves several muscle groups, including:

Quadriceps.
Gluteal muscles (maximus, adductor, soleus).
Thigh biceps.
Calf muscles.
Spinal extensors, psoas and obliques.

Thanks to barbell lunges Shoulders can provide benefits that many other exercises do not:

Correct technique

In order for lunges with a barbell to be effective and not cause harm to health, you need to thoroughly study the technique of performing them. First, it’s worth considering the technique step by step:

Exercise options

In addition to lunges with a bar on your shoulders, there are many variations of the exercise:

In addition to the correct technique, you need to take into account some more subtleties that will help you achieve maximum benefit from the exercise. To do this, there are general recommendations for performing the exercise:

Many people wonder which is better - lunges or squats. Squats are a basic exercise and are considered the most effective for working the lower body, gaining mass and losing weight. But squats aren't for everyone, at least not with heavy weights. However, girls are recommended to do both exercises to develop their legs and gluteal muscles, and not replace one with the other.

If we talk about which lunges are better to do - forward or reverse, then there is not much difference in them. It is believed that reverse exercises reduce stress on the knees and make it easier to maintain balance. However, the most common option is still the classic forward lunge. You can try different exercise options yourself and choose the most suitable one for yourself or alternate them for more variety.

Make your legs slender and your buttocks firm? Easily! Using lunges with a barbell or dumbbells in your arsenal of exercises, you can work the back of the thigh and gluteus maximus muscle so that those around you will watch you. The main thing is to familiarize yourself with the technique and perform the exercise correctly without the risk of injury.

Lunges with weights are an effective basic leg exercise that works the hamstrings, glutes, and back.

Lunges with a barbell or dumbbells effectively pump up your hips, sculpt your buttocks, and work out all the other muscles involved.

Who needs lunges with barbells and dumbbells?

This exercise is necessary for women and men who want beautiful and strong buttocks - it really “sculpts” this particular area.

For the fair sex, their legs (thigh biceps and buttocks) are a sore subject. After all, many ladies have excess fat and underdeveloped leg muscles. Is this beautiful? Slender legs and juicy buttocks - that's what's nice to look at!

As for men, many of them neglect training the back of their legs and only train their torso, arms and quadriceps. This cannot be done; it is necessary to carefully think through the training plan and distribute the load evenly so that the body is equally pumped up, without any lag.

Therefore, lunges with a barbell or dumbbells are relevant for absolutely everyone, without exception. Along with deadlifts on straight legs and leg curls in the machine, they will undoubtedly “forge” a butt from which you will not be able to take your eyes off.

Execution technique and nuances of lunges

In non-rest circuit training, the barbell for lunges is often replaced with dumbbells to increase the load on the entire core.

First, you should master lunges without weight in order to select the optimal step length and objectively evaluate the position of your legs and the angles formed in the knee joints. And only then take up weights, so as not to harm yourself or earn serious injuries from improper technique.

If you intend to perform lunges with dumbbells, take one apparatus in each hand, so that they are on the sides of the body. If your weight is a barbell, place it on your shoulders as during.

Inflate your chest like a wheel, pull in your stomach, bend your back slightly at the waist, fix your head in the same plane as your spine, direct your eyes only forward, and place your feet parallel to each other, pelvis-width apart.
Take a big step forward, but keep your torso straight. To do this, leave your left leg straight and bend your right leg at an angle of 90 degrees. With such a stance, special attention should be paid to the knee of the right leg - it should not extend beyond the toe.
Place your center of gravity on your front right leg and tighten the back of your thigh with your gluteal muscles.
The knee of the left leg should be a couple of centimeters from the floor, but not touch it, otherwise the whole point of the exercise is lost.
Returning to the starting position should be done only with the strength of the right front leg.
Then lower yourself down again until your knee almost touches the floor and rise up again.
After completing the required number of reps, switch legs and repeat the sets so that your hamstrings and butt get the same amount of polish.

It is necessary to maintain a right angle, because in the case of an obtuse angle of the front leg, the lunge with a barbell or dumbbells will be made very far and it will be difficult to perform the exercise technically correctly. In the acute angle version, excessive stretching is loaded on the knee ligaments, which can lead to dangerous injury.

It is important to “feel” the exercise: lifting should be smooth and leisurely due to the thigh biceps and buttocks, and not due to inertia as a result of sudden movements; the back leg should also not take on the load, it only performs a supporting function. Only in this case will effective pumping of muscles occur. If the load on the necessary muscles is not felt, the exercise is performed incorrectly.

When lunging, it is important to observe proper breathing: when lowering down (squats), you need to take a deep breath, when standing up, exhale.

The exercise may seem difficult for those who have weak muscle stretching, so it is recommended to do a short warm-up before each workout, and stretching after the workout.

Video about the technique of performing lunges with a barbell from Denis Borisov and tips.

Wanting to diversify the leg muscle training program, many athletes first of all pay attention to an exercise such as lunges with a barbell. Being basic, it is excellent for high-quality work on the main muscle groups of the lower body - buttocks and thighs. It is often used even instead of classic squats, since, loading the same muscles, it is simpler and more convenient for many.

Lunges with a barbell on your shoulders can be performed in several variations. One of them - performed without a step for each squat - was recently discussed, and now a more complex method should be considered in more detail.

Lunges with a barbell on the shoulders

Working muscles

Since the difference between these two exercises is minimal, and lies only in the fact that in the first case a step forward is taken once, and in this case - for each squat - it is natural that the same muscle groups are involved.

The front surface of the thigh receives maximum load, performing the bulk of the work. The buttocks are not far behind - the gluteus maximus muscle (especially if you take a wider step) is also loaded quite seriously. The hamstrings are used to a lesser extent.

The abdominal muscles, spinal extensors and core stabilizer muscles are subjected to constant static load. Moreover, the latter have to do quite serious work - wide steps forward from the barbell on the shoulders require continuous balance support. For this reason, the exercise is most often performed either in a Smith machine or with dumbbells in your hands - which makes it less dangerous and difficult.

To whom, when and why

The exercise can safely be classified as the most effective, but at the same time, the most dangerous.

To whom?

Essentially, barbell lunges are equally beneficial for athletes of all fitness levels. However, due to the complex technique and the need to constantly load the stabilizer muscles, it is better for beginners (whose muscles are not sufficiently developed) to do such an exercise, due to the increased danger.

First of all, it is important to include this variation of lunges for professional and experienced athletes, practitioners who want to diversify their complex and stimulate muscle growth.

When?

Lunges are performed on the day of leg training, either immediately after the warm-up, or after the classic squat (if it is also present in the program).

The exercise is equally useful both for increasing volume and for drawing relief, but it is most often used in the second case.

For what?

Lunges allow you to work out the muscle groups involved quite well. Correct and regular implementation of it allows you to “tighten” and properly shape your buttocks - for this reason, girls do it very often, despite the high complexity of the exercise. It will also help, more precisely the quadriceps, and not just the gluteal muscles.

Execution technique

The most difficult (albeit the most common and effective) option is to perform lunges with a barbell on your shoulders. If you have problems maintaining balance, or this is your first time performing this exercise, it is better to either take the minimum weight or do the exercise in a machine.

We place the barbell on the trapezius muscles, holding the bar with our hands (as when doing squats). We stand straight, place our feet approximately shoulder-width apart. The body is straight, the head looks straight forward. This is the starting position.
We hold our breath while inhaling, lunge forward with our right leg, shifting the center of gravity to it. Simultaneously with the lunge, we squat on our left leg, placing it on the toe.
Leaning on the foot of the right (in front) leg, we rise from the squat and return to the starting position. Having passed the main part of the trajectory, we exhale.
We repeat the required number of times, first for one leg, then for the second leg.

Working weight. Due to the high complexity of the exercise and the need to constantly maintain balance, using maximum weight is extremely dangerous. It can only be taken on a Smith machine due to its limited bar travel.
Number of repetitions. For deep and high-quality work on the quadriceps and buttocks, it is important to perform a large number of repetitions. Optimally – from 10 to 20 times per approach.
Execution speed. High speed when performing lunges is the easiest way to get seriously injured. Be sure to move smoothly and slowly, especially if you are using a medium or maximum weight.
Frame. A mandatory nuance is that the body is perfectly level throughout the entire movement. At the lowest point, allow a slight forward bend at the hip joint.
Holding your breath. Since it is quite difficult to maintain a perfectly level body position, be sure to hold your breath while moving.
Hips. At the bottom of the exercise, the thigh of the front leg should be parallel to the floor, and the thigh of the second leg should be perpendicular.
Knee-joint. At the bottom of the exercise, the knee of the front leg should not extend beyond the toes. Otherwise, a harmful load on the joint is created. Ideally, the angle of the knee joints at the lowest point should be straight. The knee should not go beyond the line of the foot.
Step width. How wide to step is determined by each athlete based on the position of the hips and the angle at the knee joint. It should be borne in mind that a wider step will increase the load on the buttocks.
Feet. The foot of the front leg should be either straight or slightly turned inward - this can partially make it easier to maintain balance.

Execution Variations

There are three ways to do this exercise.

Lunges are performed first on one leg, then on the other.
Lunges are performed on each leg in turn.
Lunges are performed with a step forward, that is, you do not stand in front of the mirror all the time, but step forward. This variation is the most difficult, and is usually done by experienced athletes with either minimal weight or dumbbells.

Do you need to work your gluteal muscles and pump up your hamstrings? Pay attention to lunges with a barbell. These exercises are an excellent addition to the basic program, working on the lower part of the person's body. However, lunges should be done correctly, otherwise there will be no noticeable result, and you can easily get injured. How to perform this exercise correctly? Let's take a closer look in our article.

Warm-up

The most important stage of any workout is warming up. It not only avoids the possibility of injury, but also helps to significantly increase the effectiveness of exercise at the same level of load. Warm-up, depending on the fitness of the body, can last five to fifteen minutes. To warm up, you can run in place or on

What do lunges pump up?

Lunges are the name given to the legs and work the hamstrings, hamstrings, and buttocks. Significant results can be achieved in just a month of regular exercise. By performing this complex correctly, you can pump up your buttocks perfectly, while other muscle groups are also involved, but mass growth does not occur.

To perform this exercise, you also need a set of plates with fastenings. If the weight of the weight is small, you can squeeze it with your hands. Lower the barbell behind your head, placing it on the trapezius muscles located below the 7th cervical vertebra. The weight should not put pressure on the neck itself.

Stand straight with your feet shoulder-width apart. Take a long step forward with your right foot, turning your foot slightly inward to make it easier to maintain balance later. If lunges with a barbell are performed in order to pump up the gluteal muscles, place the leg standing behind you on your toes. Bend your knees and lower yourself, focusing on your right leg. The left leg lowers to the floor, you can touch it (not important).

After this, straighten your knees and rise. Repeat 8-10 times on this leg.

Do the same, placing your left limb forward. During the exercise, watch your posture - do not bend your lower back. The back should be tense, the stomach should be pulled in. Raise your face, look forward. When performing lunges with a barbell, do not arch your pelvis, keep it vertical. Do not tilt your body, make sure that your stomach does not “lay” on the thigh of the leg in front.

You can diversify the exercise and perform lunges with a barbell, alternating the right and left limbs.

Important

When performing lunges, make sure that the knee of the front leg does not bend more than 90 degrees and the knee does not go beyond the plane of the toe. The optimal position for the lower leg is perpendicular to the floor. If you break this rule, you can easily injure your knee.

We looked at lunges with a barbell, the technique of which works the entire hamstrings, glutes and quadriceps. However, if you perform the exercise a little differently, you can successfully pump the inner thigh, as well as the adductor muscles.

Second option

Spread your legs very wide and, placing the barbell on your shoulders, lower your weighted body, transferring the weight to your right leg. Straighten up and do the same on the other side.

When performing this exercise, do not try to lift a lot of weight. Repeat 8-12 times in each direction.

This exercise is especially loved by the fair sex who have problems on the inner thighs. As you can see, lunges with a barbell for girls will allow you to “sculpt” a beautiful shape of your legs and buttocks and help you get rid of unnecessary fat.

Additional "chips"

If you see that the exercise has become too easy to perform, increase its effectiveness and make it heavier. To do this, place your front foot on a low (10-18 cm) bench or other elevation. This “trick” will allow you to go lower and stretch your gluteal muscles as much as possible.

To improve balance, some athletes do not place their legs in one line, but spread them slightly to the sides.

You need to lower your body as low as possible and straighten up completely. You can tilt your body forward slightly at the bottom of the movement. This will help further stretch the buttocks.

If you have problems with balance, it is better to perform lunges in a special Smith machine. The bar is secured in it, so you won’t have to fall over.

Who are contraindicated for lunges?

If you have knee problems, you should approach lunges with great caution. Work with light weights. Be sure to train with a partner - he can provide backup during the exercise.

If the trainee has back problems, you can replace the barbell with dumbbells. This option is also chosen by those who exercise not in the gym, but at home. The load on the spine will be significantly lower; many beginners choose this method. However, over time, when experience and training increase, it is recommended to start lunges with a barbell.