Workout vi.

i) Single-Leg Romanian Deadlift

• Equipment: A chair or wall for balance (optional). A backpack, water bottle, or heavy book for added resistance.

• Sets & Reps: 3–4 sets of 8–12 reps per leg.

• Muscle Groups: Hamstrings, glutes, lower back, core.

• Type: Functional Strength.

• Benefits: The single-leg version is the definitive bodyweight hip hinge. It dramatically improves balance, proprioception, and intensely isolates the hamstring and glute on the working leg, providing a far greater strength and stability challenge than the bilateral version.

• Body Impact: Builds functional hamstring and glute strength, corrects muscle imbalances, and significantly enhances hip and ankle stability for all lower-body movements.

• Form Focus: Stand on one leg with a slight knee bend. Hinge at the hips, pushing your other leg straight back as your torso lowers forward, keeping your back flat. Return by squeezing the glute of the standing leg.

• Safety: Focus on a slow, controlled hinge. Use a wall or chair for balance if needed. Stop if you feel any rounding or sharp pain in the lower back. A hamstring stretch is normal.

• Verdict: A superior progression that delivers greater muscle activation, balance training, and functional carryover than a standard bodyweight RDL.

ii) Single-Leg Glute Bridge & Hip Thrusts

• Equipment: A sofa, sturdy bench, or the floor. A backpack or heavy book for added resistance.

• Sets & Reps: 3 sets of 10–15 reps per leg (Single-Leg), 3 sets of 12–20 reps (Hip Thrust).

• Muscle Groups: Glutes, hamstrings, core.

• Type: Isolation & Compound Strength.

• Benefits:

  • Single-Leg Glute Bridge: Forces one side to work independently, correcting imbalances and intensifying glute activation.

  • Hip Thrusts: Elevating the shoulders on a bench increases the range of motion, allowing for a deeper stretch and a more powerful contraction at the top, making it the most effective glute-building exercise you can do at home.

• Body Impact: Maximally develops glute strength and size, improves hip extension power (crucial for running and jumping), and enhances posterior chain stability to alleviate lower back tension.

• Form Focus:

  • Hip Thrust: Sit on the floor with your upper back against a stable bench, knees bent. Drive your hips upward until your body forms a straight line from knees to shoulders, squeezing your glutes hard at the top.

  • Single-Leg Bridge: Perform a standard bridge, but lift one foot off the ground.

• Safety: Ensure the bench is secure. Avoid overarching your lower back at the top of the movement; focus on squeezing the glutes.

• Verdict: This combination is the most effective way to target and build the glutes without a barbell, superior to standard bridges.

iii) Fire Hydrants & Clamshells

• Equipment: Exercise mat or soft floor. A mini resistance band (optional but highly recommended for added intensity).

• Sets & Reps: 3–4 sets of 15–20 reps per side for each exercise.

• Muscle Groups: Gluteus medius, gluteus minimus (outer hips/glutes).

• Type: Isolation & Activation.

• Benefits:

  • Fire Hydrants: Train the hip abductors in a weight-bearing, functional position that directly translates to better stability in squats and single-leg stances.

  • Clamshells: Isolate the gluteus medius with a focus on external rotation, which is key for proper knee tracking and pelvic stability.

• Body Impact: Strengthens the crucial hip stabilizers to prevent knee valgus (inward collapse), reduces risk of IT band syndrome, and improves overall lower body mechanics and power.

• Form Focus:

  • Fire Hydrants: On all fours, keep your knee bent at 90 degrees as you lift one leg out to the side, like a dog at a hydrant. Do not rotate your torso.

  • Clamshells: Lie on your side with knees bent and heels together. Keeping your feet touching, open your top knee upward like a clamshell.

• Safety: Move slowly and deliberately to maximise muscle tension. Avoid using momentum. Ensure your hips stay stacked and don't roll backwards.

• Verdict: A more comprehensive hip stability routine than leg raises alone, targeting the muscles from different angles for bulletproof hips.

iv) Nordic Curl Negatives

• Equipment: A sturdy anchor point for your feet (the bottom of a heavy sofa, a partner holding your ankles), a towel or gliders, and a padded surface for your knees.

• Sets & Reps: 3–4 sets of 3–6 slow repetitions.

• Muscle Groups: Hamstrings, glutes, calves.

• Type: Isolation Strength (Eccentric Focus).

• Benefits: Known as the "king of bodyweight hamstring exercises." It provides an intense, weighted stretch and strengthens the hamstrings through their most vulnerable range of motion (the eccentric/lowering phase), which is highly effective for building strength and preventing injuries.

• Body Impact: Exceptionally develops hamstring strength and tendon resilience, directly translating to improved sprinting speed, jumping ability, and knee joint health.

• Form Focus: Kneel on a padded surface with your ankles secured. Keeping your body rigid from knees to head, slowly lean forward, resisting gravity with your hamstrings for as long as possible (aim for 3-5 seconds on the descent). Use your hands to catch yourself at the bottom, then push back up to the start.

• Safety: This is an advanced exercise. Start with a very limited range of motion or use a band for assistance. Ensure your anchor is immovable. Stop immediately if you feel any sharp pain in the hamstrings.

• Verdict: The most challenging and effective bodyweight hamstring exercise available, far surpassing the intensity of floor slides.

v) Split Squat Iso-Hold & Single-Leg Glute Bridge Hold

• Equipment: A wall, and a chair or bench (for the glute bridge progression).

• Sets & Duration: 3 sets of a 30–45 second hold per leg (Split Squat), 3 sets of a 20–30 second hold per leg (Single-Leg Bridge).

• Muscle Groups: Quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings, core.

• Type: Isometric Strength.

• Benefits:

  • Split Squat Iso-Hold: Mimics a running or lunging position, building functional, single-leg quad and glute endurance under load.

  • Single-Leg Glute Bridge Hold: Isolates one glute at a time in its peak contraction, building endurance and mind-muscle connection in the posterior chain.

• Body Impact: Builds superior sport-specific leg endurance, corrects strength imbalances between legs, and strengthens stabilisers that wall sits neglect.

• Form Focus:

  • Split Squat Hold: Lower into a lunge position (front knee at 90 degrees, back knee hovering) and hold. Keep your torso upright.

  • Single-Leg Bridge Hold: Perform a glute bridge, lift one foot, and hold at the top.

• Safety: Ensure your front knee does not cave inward. If the single-leg bridge is too hard, perform a standard bridge hold.

• Verdict: A more athletic and functional way to build leg endurance, training the legs in positions actually used in movement.

vi) Inverted Rows (Under-Table)

• Equipment: A sturdy table, desk, or the underside of a solid dining table.

• Sets & Reps: 3–4 sets of 8–12 reps.

• Muscle Groups: Back (lats, rhomboids), rear shoulders, biceps.

• Type: Compound Strength.

• Benefits: Provides a more stable and secure pulling angle than a doorway. It allows for easier adjustment of difficulty (the more horizontal your body, the harder it is) and is generally safer for the door frame.

• Body Impact: Builds a thick, strong back, dramatically improves pulling posture, and develops the muscle needed to counteract slouching.

• Form Focus: Lie under the table and grip the edge. With your body straight, pull your chest up to the table, squeezing your shoulder blades together at the top. Lower with control.

• Safety: Crucially, test the table's stability with your bodyweight before starting. Do not use a table with wheels or one that feels unstable. Keep your body rigid.

• Verdict: A safer, more scalable, and equally effective alternative to doorway rows for building serious back strength at home.

vii) Pike Push-Ups & Tricep Dips

• Equipment: A stable chair, sofa, or bench.

• Sets & Reps: 3–4 sets of 6–12 reps (Pike Push-Ups), 3 sets of 8–15 reps (Dips).

• Muscle Groups: Shoulders (anterior deltoids), triceps, chest (upper), core.

• Type: Compound Strength.

• Benefits:

  • Pike Push-Ups: Train the triceps through a full range of motion while also building crucial overhead pressing strength in the shoulders—a major functional benefit diamond push-ups lack.

  • Tricep Dips: One of the most effective bodyweight exercises for isolating and building mass on the triceps.

• Body Impact: Develops well-rounded pushing strength (horizontal and vertical), builds bigger and stronger triceps, and improves shoulder stability and core strength.

• Form Focus:

  • Pike Push-Up: Start in a downward dog position. Lower your head towards the floor between your hands, then push back up.

  • Tricep Dip: Place your hands on a sturdy chair behind you, fingers forward. Lower your body by bending your elbows until they reach about 90 degrees, then push back up.

• Safety: For dips, keep your shoulders down and away from your ears. Do not lower too deeply if you feel shoulder impingement. For pike push-ups, control the descent.

• Verdict: A superior combination that builds more complete upper-body strength and tricep development than diamond push-ups alone.