Have you ever watched some one perform a forward lunge for the first time? Chances are if they've never done any lunges before, it looks ugly. Even for someone who has done some training for awhile can look pretty bad doing a forward lunge. The stride is either too short or too long. The knee of the forward leg buckles in. The upper body collapses forward. And some people just do not have the strength to get back to the starting position. These same people are probably holding dumbbells by their side, when they can not even perform a proper bodyweight forward lunge. Yet, the forward lunge seems to be one of the first leg exercises beginners tend to place in their leg programming. And it's not just the people exercising who are guilty of this. Trainers are making this mistake also.
Don't get me wrong. I am not telling you to abandon the forward lunge. What I want you to do is progress to the forward lunge. I suggest starting out your unilateral lower body training with a split squat. Once you've spent time on the split squat, move to a reverse lunge. The reverse lunge is an acceleration pattern,as opposed to the forward lunge which is a deceleration pattern. Acceleration patterns are usually easier to perform. Once you've mastered the reverse lunge, now move to the forward lunge.
Anyone can do a forward lunge. But don't you want to do it right?
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