We are all perfect in own imperfections. But if you think that your leg shape may need a bit of a correction, it’s possible to accomplish if you just select the right exercises. The workouts can’t be random and the selections differ depending on what you need to work on. For some corrections, you may need to strengthen the outer muscles and stretch the inner ones, while for others it’s exactly the opposite.
We at Bright Side think that these exercises can make a big difference to some people and are excited to share them with our readers.
Stand straight, place your feet together, and have a look in the mirror at where your legs touch. Pay attention to your thighs, knees, calves, and ankles.
If your knees bend slightly outward when you are standing straight, you might have a bow-legged shape. To fix this, you need to work on strengthening the muscles that will pull your knees closer to each other and also on stretching the muscles that are pulling them out. This will indirectly improve their shape.
One-leg squats, or pistol squats, work on gluts and the insides of the thighs.
Note. At first, you may need to use a wall or a chair for some balance while building enough strength.
The figure 4 stretch works on the hip’s internal rotators and improves the flexibility of the hip muscles.
Toe touch focuses on stretching the hamstrings and the outer thighs.
If the thighs are close to each other, but the shins don’t touch you might have knock-kneed legs, also called X-shaped. This might be caused by weak muscles on the outside of the hips and thighs, and very tight muscles on the inside of your thighs.
Side lunges target the inner and outer thighs and hips.
Lying hip abduction works on the outer thighs and hips.
Side step-ups also improve the strength of the outer thighs.
If your knees touch but your lower legs go outward and look too skinny, you might have false curvature. The key for correcting this is increasing the muscle bulk in your lower legs to make up for the visual imperfection.
Heel raises increase calf strength.
Deep knee bends cause your muscles to contract, which increases blood flow, and makes all exercises more effective, while also preventing strains.
If your legs touch each other at the upper thighs, knees, calves, and ankles, having only one tiny gap from the ankles up to the middle of the calves, consider yourself lucky. This shape is considered normal. But as we all know, perfection has no limits, so it might be a good idea to practice some of the most common exercises to keep your legs toned and strong.
Squats cover multiple muscle groups including hamstrings, calves, abs, and glutes and are considered to be one of the most effective exercises for your lower body.
The glute bridge tones abs, hamstrings, and glutes (hence the name).
Walking lunges work your entire leg, including your thigh muscles, and also help with symmetrical toning.
Keep in mind, exercises cannot change the way bones and joints are structured, but it can improve the severity of some conditions and totally help with some mild issues.
What do you think about our selection? Which one would you try first? Or maybe you know of other workouts that are very effective at making the legs look perfect. Tell us your thoughts in the comment section below.