If you are looking for some exercises to do at home with minimal exercise equipment here are some you can add to your daily routine. While I do 2 days a week in leg day weight training this is a great break from the heavier days. All you need is a medicine ball, a workout mat and 20 minutes out of your day. I think we can all spare that, right?
You can buy a two handle medicine ball here which is great for posture and balance when doing some of these exercises: CLICK HERE
For beginners try to do these without any weights, but as you increase your strength and balance you can do a 6 or 8 pound medicine ball. This will add some resistance and help you to begin to build the muscle. Since we are focusing on the legs, butt and glutes the more weight we can get you up to the more you can build muscle and change the shape of your rear!
Single Leg Deadlifts
Very challenging and will make you work up a sweat. This is an isolated leg movement, which forces you to work each leg individually and doesn’t allow one leg to compensate for the weaker one. I like this to make sure I am strengthening both legs and not just one. Hold your medicine ball on both sides right in front of you with regular stance. Keeping your back straight and in a neutral spine lower the ball close to your straight leg and let the back leg raise up straight in the back. As you teeter up and down make sure to squeeze your butt/glutes. I do 10 on each leg for 4 sets.
Medicine Ball Squats
These are a great introductory way to learn how to do proper form for a squat. You will want to hold the medicine ball up to your chest and have your legs about shoulder width apart with toes slightly pointing outward. Lower down as if you are going to sit back into a chair and let the ball come down in between your legs to hit the floor. Push your butt back, keep your chest out and never let your knees pass over your toes. Again, concentrate on the glutes and butt muscle squeeze throughout the exercise. I do 15 squats for 4 sets.
Donkey Kicks Upward
Get down on all fours and make sure your back is not rounded up or down. For each leg flex your foot as if you are trying to kick up and hold the ceiling up with your foot and push through to raise the leg. Over time you can work to add a weighted ankle strap to do these with more resistance. These are great to shape, firm and lift your butt. I do 10 reps for each leg for 4 sets.
Pointed Toe Leg Raise and Pulsing
In the same all fours position you will want to take each leg and straighten out with a pointed to behind you. Do not bend the knee for this one. You will raise the leg as high as you can go, contracting your glute muscle at the top, then lowering it all the way back down to touch the floor with your toes. Do this for 10 reps then for 10 more reps just pulse the leg for the top portion only coming down about 1/4 of the way down.
It should take you no more then 20 minutes to go through these 4 exercises on each leg for 4 sets. After a few weeks you can start to up the weight of the medicine ball to either dumb bells or a plate weight. You can also buy some ankle straps and use those for the donkey and leg raises as well. I bought mine on Amazon and love them: CLICK HERE
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