Radojko Maksimovic/istockphoto
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It's time to get those legs ready to strut along the ocean shore. But forget about hitting the gym. It’s too beautiful out to lock yourself up in a stale, sweat-soaked, electricity-sapping room. Instead, save earth's energy and use your own by suiting up in your best asset-flaunting green bikini and hit the beach for this quick outdoor green exercise routine that focuses on sculpting your legs.
Dale Dymkoski, one of Hollywood's top trainers who helps sculpt some of the most eye-catching bodies like the Pussycat Dolls, says that when it comes to working the legs, many women make one huge mistake: Avoiding Weights.
"The single biggest mistake women make with their workouts is to not strength train the lower body." Sure you might run or bike, but those exercises focus on aerobics and cardiovascular (heart) strengthening as opposed to focusing on the muscles in the legs. Not the same thing. Dale explains that "Sustained aerobic activity (like biking and running) breaks down muscle tissue. The more lean (muscle) tissue on the body the greater its ability to burn calories." Translation: you want to build lean muscle in your legs. Muscle burns calories. Calories burned equals fat singed equals a trimmer, slimmer body. And that's the point right?
Dale can't stress enough the importance of strength or "resistance" training, saying that "if you are not strength training in addition to exercising aerobically, then you are working very hard and slowing your metabolism down at the same time!" He equates it to driving your car with the gas pedal to the floor and the emergency brake on. Sure, the engine is working really hard, but the car is not getting very far.
Just because it is called "weight training" doesn't mean that you need weights. Green your exercise by using the weight you already have—your own! Dale is a big believer that using your own body weight and paying particular attention to form can produce gym-worthy results without ever stepping foot in the gym.
Try Dale's Green Exercise Routine to Sculpt your Legs Lean:
Squats
Image courtesy of Tom Young/istockphoto.
The squat is probably the single most important exercise you can do when it comes to shaping your legs. 60% of the body's mass is below the waist. With this one exercise, you are using every muscle in your lower body as a prime mover and using the core and upper body to stabilize. You will burn more calories squatting than with any other basic leg exercise.
The goal of the squat is to lower the body's center of gravity (imagine a point just below the belly button) with control using your hips, knees, and ankles.
How low do you go?
Squat as low as you can while maintaining balance and proper joint movement. It is not true that squatting deep is bad for your knees or back. But only go as low as you are able before the form breaks down (heels coming off the floor).
Here's how to do a proper Squat:
Facing the mirror, stand with your feet shoulder width apart, arms extended in front of your body at shoulder height. Gently lower your body toward the floor, pause a split second at the bottom, then extend back up to standing position. Try to go down slower (3 seconds top to bottom) and up faster (1 second bottom to top). Do 3 sets of 15 reps or until failure.
Split Squat
Image courtesy of Kais Tolmats/istockphoto.
Standing with your feet together in a squat position, take an easy step back. Shift all your weight to the front foot (back heel is off the floor. You are on the ball of your back foot, front foot firmly planted). A common mistake with this movement is to stand with the feet too far apart. It should be a comfortable, easy stance. Exaggerated distance between the feet does nothing but make it harder to balance and the movement more awkward than it needs to be (see photo). Lower your center of gravity onto your front foot. Again, how low you go will depend on your flexibility and range of motion. You want to get as low as you can while staying balanced and NOT allowing the front heel to come off the floor. You may advance this exercise by squatting on one leg. Yep, lift one leg completely off the floor and lower body weight onto one foot and stand up 10 times (this is very difficult). Do 3 sets of 12 reps or until failure. (note: you can further intensify the action with lights hand weights if you'd like)
Stiff-Legged Deadlift
Image courtesy of technotr/istockphoto .
This is the best exercise I know for the butt and hamstrings. It is not the easiest movement to teach and to perform. But, for women seeking to firm and "lift" the butt (ie. The part of the butt that falls out of the bikini), this is the best exercise.
A little bit of weight here will be helpful. If you have 10 or 15 lb. dumbbells, use those. Otherwise, anything you can hold in your hands that will total 10-30 lbs is great. Or, as a last resort, hold a broomstick.
Holding the weight (bar or dumbbells) in front with arms fully extended and the palms facing the body, bend forward at the waist. The back is to stay flat, the spine extended. You will feel the hamstrings stretch as you go down. Get as much hamstring length as possible without bending the lower back. After a 1/2 second pause at the bottom of the movement, extend the hips and return to the starting point using only the hamstrings and glutes to perform this action. Do 3 sets of 10 reps.
How low should you go?
How far down you go will depend on the flexibility of the hamstrings. This exercise is not about how far down you reach. It is about how much the hamstrings stretch. The common mistake people make is to bend the back (flex the spine) to get down. The action on "the way up" is hip extension. Lift the weight with the glutes and hamstrings NOT the lower back. If you are not able to perform this movement without bending the back, substitute a less challenging exercise to target the same area.
There you have it. Perform this 15-minute green exercise workout every other day and you can have bikini-ready legs in no time!
More on Green Exercise:
Get in Shape Without Leaving Home
Boost your Calorie Burn with a Boot Camp Style Circuit Workout
Jumping Rope Improves Your Health the Green Way
More on Green Bikinis:
View and Vote: Swimsuits
Eco Bikinis: Hotter than Ever
G-Word Online Clips: Teeny Green Bikini
Got a tip or a post idea for us to write about on Planet Green? Email pgtips (at) treehugger (dot) com.
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