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Exercise library / Bodyweight Walking Lunge

Bodyweight Walking Lunge

Suggestions, not prescriptions. Exercises here pass automated checks. They have not been clinically reviewed, and no exercise is right for everyone. Adjust to your comfort and ability.

A lunge that moves forward with each step, with no equipment.

Main focus
Strength
Level
Starting
Equipment
Bodyweight
Load
Your body weight
Stability
Unstable: single leg, suspended or on a ball
Balance type
Stepping balance

Keep something steady within reach: a counter, wall or sturdy chair.

Before you start
  • Warm up first with a minute or two of easy walking or marching in place, and cool down the same way after.
  • Wear flat, closed shoes with a good grip, or go barefoot on a non-slip floor if that feels steady to you.
  • Clear the floor around you. Keep a sturdy chair, counter or wall within reach for any move you do standing.
  • Build up slowly. Add repetitions or minutes over weeks, not days. If you take a break, work back up gradually.

Talk with a doctor or physical therapist before you start if you have not been active for some time, if you have a health condition or a worry about exercise, if you have fallen or fear falling, or if a clinician has told you to limit activity. This library is general information, not medical advice.

What you need

No special equipment. A clear space and shoes or bare feet with a good grip.

How to do it

  1. Stand tall with your hands on your hips or at your sides.
  2. Step forward into a lunge, lowering your back knee toward the floor.
  3. Push off your back foot and bring it forward to step into the next lunge on the other leg.
  4. Keep your chest up and your front knee over your ankle through every step.

How much

To start: 1 to 2 sets of 8 to 12 slow repetitions, resting 1 to 2 minutes between sets.

As it gets easier: 2 to 3 sets of 6 to 12 repetitions with good form, resting 1 to 3 minutes. Add load or repetitions gradually, no more than about once a week.

How it should feel: The muscles you are working should feel the effort. The last repetitions should be hard but controlled, never shaky or painful.

Make it easier

  • Step back to the start after each lunge instead of walking forward.
  • Hold a counter or rail and lower only part of the way.

Make it harder

  • Hold dumbbells.
  • Add a pause at the bottom of each lunge.

Safety

  • Warm up first, and keep your breathing steady. Breathe out on the effort and in as you ease off. Do not hold your breath.
  • Move with control. Do not lock your joints straight at the end of a movement.
  • Choose a version, load and number of repetitions you can finish with good form. The last few should feel hard but not shaky.
  • Keep stable support within reach, such as a counter, rack or wall, until the movement feels steady.
More safety notes
  • Clear the floor around you and wear shoes with a good grip.
  • Go slowly, and make the movement smaller if you feel unsteady.

When to stop

  • Stop and rest if you feel dizzy or lightheaded, sick to your stomach, or unusually short of breath.
  • Stop if you feel sharp, sudden or joint pain. Muscles working hard is expected. Pain is a signal to stop.
  • Stop and sit down if you feel unsteady and cannot settle yourself right away.
  • Call your local emergency number for chest pain or pressure, fainting, or sudden weakness, numbness or trouble speaking.
  • After any of these, do not repeat the exercise until you have talked with a doctor or physical therapist.
  • You feel unsteady and support does not settle you.
  • You feel dizzy or lightheaded.

Other ways to do this movement

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Where this comes from

General guidance on build-up, warm-up, breathing and listening to your body is from the NIA and the CDC. The steps were written by Fitafter50; the equipment and safety notes are Fitafter50's general practice and are approved as a set by the reviewer.

This is general information, not medical advice. It does not diagnose anything or tell you whether an exercise is right for you. Adjust to your comfort and ability.