Why dread leg day in the gym when you can do yoga? Incorporating yoga into your workout regime is a great way to strengthen and tone the largest muscles in the body.
Try some of our favorite yoga poses for strong legs.
Warrior II
- Begin in Mountain Pose.
- As you exhale, step your feet 3 1/2 to 4 feet apart. Raise your arms parallel to the floor and reach out strong with the shoulder blades wide apart. Face your palms down toward the floor. Turn your right foot forward 45 degrees and your left foot out to the left 90 degrees. Align the left heel with the right heel. Engage your thigh muscles.
- Exhale and bend your left knee over the left ankle. Keep the shin perpendicular to the floor. Keep the right leg engaged while pressing the outer right heel firmly to the floor.
- Stretch the arms as far back and as far forward as you can, keeping them parallel to the floor. Keep the torso elongated and the shoulders back and down. Turn the head to the left and gaze over the fingers.
- Stay in Warrior 2 for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Inhale to come up. Reverse the feet and repeat on the left side.
Bridge
- Lie on your back with your knees bent and feet on the floor. Extend your arms along the floor, palms flat.
- Press your feet and arms firmly into the floor. Exhale as you lift your hips toward the ceiling.
- Draw your tailbone toward your pubic bone, holding your buttocks off the floor. Do not squeeze your glutes or flex your buttocks.
- Roll your shoulders back and underneath your body. Clasp your hands and extend your arms along the floor beneath your pelvis. Straighten your arms as much as possible, pressing your forearms into the mat. Reach your knuckles toward your heels.
- Keep your thighs and feet parallel — do not roll to the outer edges of your feet or let your knees drop together. Press your weight evenly across all four corners of both feet. Lengthen your tailbone toward the backs of your knees.
- Hold for up to one minute. To release, unclasp your hands and place them palms-down alongside your body. Exhale as you slowly roll your spine along the floor, vertebrae by vertebrae. Allow your knees to drop together.
- (WARNING: Do not perform bridge pose if you have a neck or shoulder injury.)
Chair
- Stand in Mountain pose with your feet hip-width apart. Inhale and raise your arms toward the sky. Keep the arms parallel, palms facing each other.
- Exhale and bend your knees. Focus your weight in your heels while sitting back as if you are about to sit in a chair. Lean the torso slightly forward over the thighs. Keep the thighs parallel to each other.
- Keep your torso long. Press your shoulder blades together.
- Hold the pose for 30 seconds to a minute. Release the pose by straightening your knees with an inhalation. Exhale and release your arms to your sides.
Crescent Lunge
- Start in a low lunge. Place your hands on the ground outside your foot, shoulder-width apart. Step your right foot in between your hands. Extend your left leg straight back. Balance on your toes.
- Rise up slowly, lifting your torso off your right leg. Keep your chest up and reach your arms up toward the sky. Keep the arms parallel to each other with your biceps near your ears. Press your pelvis forward . Keep your right knee stacked over your right ankle and keep your back heel lifted.
- Exhale and keep your back leg straight so that it’s hovering over the floor. Inhale and press back up. Do this on both sides.
