Simply hold the dumbbell in one arm, and do a bicep curl while extending the opposite leg backward. Touch your toe back to the group after a few seconds, and repeat 12 times. Make sure that you do your best to keep your balance and put your foot down slowly. Care for your ankle is important, as you don’t want to accidentally twist it by moving too quickly and standing on it funny. Then it’s time to do it again with the opposite leg.
Make this exercise a regular part of your workout routine and you’ll see tight, toned thighs in no time!
The Single Leg Circle
Unlike the two exercises above, this exercise doesn’t require any special equipment besides a flat place to lie down. Avoid surfaces that are too soft like a couch or a bed, but also make sure you put down sort of padding if you’re going to be lying down on wood or tile. The key is to be moderately comfortable while still being on a completely flat surface that will put your body to the test.
Stick one of your legs straight up, and move it in a circular motion like you’re trying to draw a circle on the ceiling with your foot. The combination of keeping your leg in that position and the tight circles will lead to a great workout for both your thigh and your leg as a whole.
READ: Best Exercises to Lose Inner Thigh Fat at Home
After five circles, switch legs. Alternate between both legs five total repetitions for maximum thigh toning benefit.
Lunges With Dumbbells
Hopefully, you held onto the dumbbells from our Flamingo Balance, as you’ll need two of them for this next exercise.
Lunges are an important part of any calisthenics routine and are great at improving flexibility and building an incredible amount of strength. The lunging motion with the added weight of a dumbbell in each hand will do wonders for improving your leg muscle fitness and toning your thighs.
Simply hold a dumbbell in each hand, and then do a lunge motion forwards. To do a lunge, simply extend one of your legs backward and bend the opposite leg. The leg that you’ve bent will be supporting the majority of your body weight and this stress on the thigh muscle will lead to great gains in strength.
If you’ve mastered this movement, try using the dumbbells that you’ve been holding at your side to do a dumbbell curl. This will work out your arms in addition to your legs, adding a whole other component to this great exercise.
The Plie
This motion takes inspiration from ballerinas, and it’s no secret that ballet dancers have some seriously powerful legs. If it works for them, it will work for you too.
Simply put your arms out in front of you, and do a series of squats. What separates the Plie from a normal squat, however, is the fact that your feet should be pointing outwards. This modification to a normal squat helps immensely with targeting the bum and rear thigh region.
READ: 3 Moves For Thinner Thighs
Beautiful thighs require attacking them with strength building exercises from every angle, so including this ballerina-inspired movement to target the back of your thighs is definitely worthwhile.
Conclusion
Beautiful, toned thighs may seem out of reach, but with a steady combination of these exercises, you should start to see a difference within a couple of months. Keep in mind, however, that thighs – like the rest of your body – get a lot of their strong and healthy appearance from a healthy weight. If you’re overweight, the easiest way to fix that and to see a real difference in your thighs is adjustments in your diet.
A good diet combined with these exercises should start to give you the results you need. We hope you’ve found this list of 5 simple exercises to tone your thighs educational and helpful. They’ll definitely make a difference, so start your new routine today!
This post was written by Nancy Moore – the founder and creator of Fitnessgrams. She created Fitnessgrams.com to be a haven for people looking to get fit, boost their health, lose weight, or improve their well-being. Here you will find experiences, workouts, information from the experts, healthy living tips, and tools to find well-being and balance.