34-Minute KNEE FRIENDLY STANDING Lower Body Blast Workout - NO SQUATS or LUNGES

Hey, everybody. I'm Amy from Bodyfit by Amy. And this is your knee friendly lower body blast workout. In this workout, we are going to keep it body weight. I'm going to give you options if you want to add some weights or some mini bands. We're going to keep it all standing and we're going to do this lower body workout with no squats or lunges. So if those are bothersome to you, but you still want to work your legs, your glutes, your hips, your core, we are going to get it done today. You don't need any equipment, just some space to move. Are you ready? Let's do it. All right, so go ahead and just start moving your body. So this is something that you all have asked me for a lot. I know, particularly lunges. Let's just roll your shoulders. We're just going to get this quick little warm up. Particularly lunges can be bothersome to your knee. And I try to give you lots of options within the workout. But a lot of you have requested some full workouts that are all lower body and have no squats and lunges. I do want to encourage you to really work slowly through pushing through your range of motion, not pushing through pain, but when it comes to things like squats, if you think about it, let's just take it side to side. I just want you to shift your weight. Hips to the back, not too much. Right. If you think about it, we do squats all day long. Sitting down and getting up from a chair, getting on and off the toilet. So working through that motion, just step it out side to side just to open up the hips is really important for functional movement. Also being able to hinge correctly. Having said that, I want to give you some options. Not just to strengthen and improve function of your lower body, let's just get a little hip roll if you need to grab onto something. But also give you options to strengthen, to tone, to tighten, to get all of those things that we want from our workouts. Getting it done. So I've got a chair here. If you have a sturdy chair. A lot of what we're going to do with today is going to be one leg which you just to get some little hamstrings right through if you need to grab on. I'm always going to give you an option to grab on with the chair if you need a little extra balance. Some things I think we'll need them more than other. And then just do little lifts to the back. Not super high. You don't have to Arch the back, just opening up through the hips, right through there. So if you have a sturdy chair, if you don't have that, certainly using the wall is an option as well. One hand or two. And if you don't need the balance, don't worry about it. But I'm going to give you some options to use it. Okay? So speaking of, let's put the hands behind the head. We're just going to do a hinge pattern. So again, this is something that we do all day long, right? Picking things up off the floor, cleaning, unloading the dishwasher, whatever it is. We need this motion. So soft bend in the knees, driving the hips back. So just working through that mobility is super, super important. And we don't have to do it today because this is a no squats and lunges workout. But if you have the option for us, we're just going to drive those hips to the back here in a little half squat motion. But if you can practice just sitting down in a chair and then coming up, sometimes taking it slow and at your own pace, just not thinking of it as a squat on a workout, but actually sitting and then improving that movement pattern, I highly encourage you to do that. All right, so little baby kicks forward. Flex that foot to get that little stretch. Now that we are warm, we're gonna get right into it. So everything is in 30 second intervals today. To create a little extra burn, we're gonna do several things back to back. If you need more of, just step, touch right here. If you need more of a breather, certainly get it. You can hit pause, you can sit out around, whatever you need. But just to build some of that strength, some of that endurance, since we are not using as much of those big muscles that we use that we get with our squats and lunges, we want to create that burn in a different way. All right, I'm going to give you options. The name of the game today is to just keep moving, to get your heart rate up, to get your legs moving, to think about improving that strength, that function, that endurance, that mobility. We're gonna get it done today. All right, if you want to hold a dumbbell on one side, you can. I've got one hand here. We're going to start with just a little step out. So I want you to think soft bend in the knees, not a squat, but just to step one side, tap it in. Here we go. So here to here. So if you can think of hips going to the back, keeping that chest open and proud, pushing through that stationary Leg. All right, so this is always what I suggest if you need a modifier for a regular squat in a workout or a side lunge. Just a little tap out. Not getting low, but you are pushing through that heel. Your entire leg on this side is working. You're getting the mobility this way. Now let's add on. So we're here. Knee up again. You can use the balance. If the knee is not right for you, you just keep the tap. But if you want little knee lift that's going to engage the core, you want to take it up even more, you can add a little cross. Again, not squat. Just step out, knee in, step out, knee in. Or here, tap here, tap. You can see where we're going here. Right now, we're gonna add a little side leg lift. Join me here. 30 seconds. If it's starting to feel too much on this leg, just do the leg lift, flex the foot. Little lift if you can. Step out, out. Little tap, little lift. Tap, little lift. All right, Little burn. Breathe. We got 10 more seconds here, and then we're gonna up our pace. We're gonna go back to that very first thing we did, our little side leg lift right through here. Watch me tap in and out. Join me here if you can. If you need the balance, you can take it slow, you can pick up your pace. It's up to you. But I want you to push into this heel. Get the arms and legs moving. If that is not right for you or you have your weight, take it even slower. You can go here. Up to you. I know. Little burn. 10 seconds to go. Can you feel it? Yes. You can. We got five, four, three, two, one. Yes. A little tap through those legs, you got a 30 second breather. So that leg that was doing most of the work, get a little stretch through here. We're gonna do all of that on the other side. So move around to the other side of your chair. I'm gonna move my chair because it's lighter, but up to you or on the wall. Starting with just our small little tap out Again, I want you to get the focus of. Think of little half steps. Squat, right? But more just pushing through here. Tap it in. We add a knee, we add a leg lift. We go quick taps. Here we go. So out and in. So what we're not doing, we don't have to lean into it, right? We can just step out and in. Right through here. Same set of muscles. We're just not getting as low. And again, I encourage you, especially with the squat pattern, because it is so functional lunges are a little bit different, but squats and hinges, we need them in everyday life. So I encourage you to work through that on your own in outside of the context of workouts. Bring the knee up. So tap knee, balance if you need it, always fine. Push into the heel here, tap out, knee up again. If you want some core, and you can always pick up your pace on these. If you're someone who can manage this, right? If that's good for your balance, totally fine. But if you struggle with mobility, you need to take it a little slower. Take it slower. We're gonna add that side leg lift right through here. Tap, tap out, leg lift, flex the foot. And again. We're not getting super low. It's not a squat, right? It's a little tap lift, tap lift. Up to you. You want to go a little quicker. If you want to go a little slower, flex the foot through the hip. We're going to work through those hips and glutes a little more directly in just a minute. We got one more round of 30 seconds. Quick taps. Here we go. Tap, tap right through here, right? Power through if you can. Tap it in, tap it in. If you need to keep it slow, slower with balance, totally fine. If you can really pick it up, you're gonna feel that leg work right again. Focus your weight in your heel. I know you're gonna feel a little quad burn, but if you focus in that heel, you'll feel your hamstrings, your glutes, your hips, everything working in that lower body without those lunges. Three, two, and one. Shake it out. Gets that heart rate up a little bit too, right? All right, team, so now grab a sip of water. If you need it, you can go back to that first side. We're going to have a stationary leg. We're gonna do some little side leg lifts. We're going to take it to a little kick, and then we'll hold it up. So I would love for you to try to use balance on this. You may not need to, but zip up that core here. Slight bend in this knee. It's a little lift up and down. So slight bend in the knees. This is a way those little Pilates side leg series that we do on the ground, it's a way to take them standing, right? So I want you to think about that core engaged. And watch my leg. It's bent right through here. Little lift. This leg is still working. Getting the weight right. A little tap up, tap down. I'm tapping down in between. If you want to Keep it off the ground. You can. If you want to have a weight or a mini band, you can. Let's take it to a little kick. So you do the lift. Extend out and in. You can take it nice and slow. You don't have to go high with it. You can just go here, extend. Or if you want, you can go a little higher. Maybe if you are someone who likes kickboxing, things like that, you don't have to go fast. What I don't want you to do is lean into it here. Stationary leg, slight bend. You can tap down in between, or you can keep it off the ground. Last one. You're gonna need that balance. I just want you to do little baby kicks. So maybe it's here, maybe it's here. Maybe it's all the way up here. And you can feel more of that oblique. You pick where you need to be. You can point the toe or flex the foot, it doesn't matter. But extend it out right through here. Yes. Burn. Yes, I know. So this leg is working. This leg is working. Again, totally fine. To be down here or to tap down in between. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Shake it out right here. All right. If you want a little stretch, if you can cross it over here, get a little stretch. Even better if you're able to go here. But if that doesn't work, just cross it and drive those hips back. Same thing. Other side. Just three rounds. Little side lift, lift and kick. And then hold that kick up. So working those hips, those glutes, those outer thighs. Let's get it done. In three, two, one side lift. Right here. Lift. So again, think about that stationary leg. It's already done a lot of work, right? There's a string up through the top of the head. I'm not leaning into it. I'm not putting too much weight into my balance. I'm trying to use my core and I'm lifting. Leg is bent. Core engage. You can keep it off the ground or tap it down in between. You can have a weight or a mini band, too. Wanted to keep this one. Body weight, but always an option. Let's take it here. Up, kick and down. So slow and controlled. Right through there. Or up and kick a little quicker. Again, try not to lean into it. That kick can be low, somewhere in the middle, or it can be high up to you. Point the toe or flex the foot. But we're working through here. Slight bend in this knee. Try not to lock it out, right? We don't want that pressure on the knees. Slight bend and that also keeps this leg working. Hold it up. Where is that baby kick for you? Point your toe. Is it down here? Is it tapping? Is it here? Is it all the way up? You tell me you do. You be where you are today. This is your workout. Pushing through, burn. I know it's tempting to go here, but I'm trying to use my core to stabilize burn. We got 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Cross it over and bring those hips back. If you can be here, if you're able to get here, get here. Yes, team. All right, so let's. You can keep the chair right where it is. What we're gonna do is we're gonna side step, sweep across. All right? Actually, let's do the opposite. Bring it. Lift for that inner thigh. A little step out with the toes out. So we're here. Lift. If it feels okay for you, you can get a little lower. Step out, reach across. Out. Reach across. You're lifting from that inner right. It doesn't have to be a deep plie squat like that. It's just opening out. Really good for mobility. But if that doesn't feel right for you, you can just take the leg across. Yes. But if you can step out, a little soft bend, and then I want you just to take the lift up, up and down, heel in, toe out. It's like a little ballet. Right. But you don't have to think of it that way. I want you to think soft bend in the stationary leg, lift through that inner thigh. Again, really good mobility. Yes, you can. Working those tiny little muscles here. Breathe. Three, two, one. Now I want you to take it out here, and we're just going to lift the heels one at a time. So you can decide. Do you want to be straight up and down, get a little heel lift? Do you want to get a little lower? Does that feel okay? Sometimes repetitive squats or super low squats are tough on our bodies. But we can hold here using our core, using those inner thighs with no problem. Right. What do you feel? What do you need in this moment? Good posture for 3, 2, 1. Good. I want you to slide to the other side again, you can move your chair, or you can just turn right around and just listen to my cues. We're gonna get it all done on the other side. All right? It's a quick one, step out, little lift. Then we'll do just the lift. And then we're just gonna do a little calf raise. So whatever that is for you, that's just here. You may need a little balance for that, but we're thinking inner thighs connecting with the core and calves. In 3, 2, 1, tap out. Take it across. So you can tap that toe down or you can lift. What I don't want is for you to feel like you're twisting in your torso. Right. You don't have to stay super rigid here, but try to keep those hips open. It'll tap out. Little lift or tap and tap up to you. Breathe right through here. Yes, team, after this, we are going to a little tap back. I know, yes. Little lift through here and up and up. Take it across your body if you can, to really get. We're going for mobility just as as much as we're going for strength. So lift, breathe. 10 seconds. Then we're going to just a good old calf raise. Then we're turning into our chair, and we'll get some glutes and legs through the back. 3, 2, 1. So wherever you are, just up on the toes and down. If that is not good for you, you can just go one at a time or again, you can do what we did before, right through here. But if you can lift up and down with balance, if you need to have those toes forward, that works too. But little calf raise, really good for strengthening our ankles, encouraging that core strength and function. We got five, four, three, two, and one. Catch your breath. All right, team, shake that out. I would love for you to get a little hamstring stretch. Just lean into it here. Right, right through here. There we go. All right, so we are gonna get it done this time. Our balance is here. So instead of that side tap, we're tapping back. Same idea. Balance here, tap back. We'll add the knee. We'll do a little lift and we'll do quick ones. So balance your core. Engage. Tap back and in. So same idea. Soft bend in this knee. You may or may not need the balance. You may just need balance on one side. Like to be here, but you can also be here. Tap it back. Lower body working together. Shoulders back, chest open. We're keeping it slow to focus on that form. You're stepping back on what we call train tracks. So hip distance apart. Now let's bring the knee up here. If you don't need the balance, you don't have to take it again. It's not a lunge. You're slightly hinged forward through here. Right? And up. Drive. Yes. If you want to just bring the knee in this way, that works too. Now can we get a little tap back lift? Tap back lift for you too. Tap back lift. Tap, lift, lift Drive up through that heel. Core is engaged. Are you feeling that front leg so we can get it working without that squat? This is always my modification. What I say. Great one for a lunge in a workout. Now let's take them quick right here. Tap, tap, tap. So soft bend so you're not locked out, but you don't have to be super low. Again, certainly it's not a lunge. If you want to get quick ones, take it here or balance here. If you want to do quick ones, add that knee. You can. It's up to you. But are you feeling the burn? I know I am. What is quick for you? Is it just slightly quicker than our first round? That's okay. If it's here, take it here. We got three, two, one. Little stretch. Yes, Team. All right, we're gonna do the same thing. Other side, so I'm gonna stay facing here. Tap, tap, tap, a knee, tap, leg lift, and quick tap. So little shakeouts. Tap it out right here. Feel that heart rate. You can just march it or heels in front. Yes. Getting it done in three. Into other leg. Here we go. Tap back, tap in. So again, you can make it whatever you need it to be. If you are someone who's a beginner or you have some mobility issues that are keeping you from going super fast or super low, totally fine. Be where you are. You can keep it here if you want. You can put a little more power into it with or without the balance. Two hands are one. Totally up to you. Right, tap. Let's add the knee right here. So tap knee again, not super low, but you are doing a slight bend here. Again, great option in a regular workout. When that lunge comes up, this is where you can be if that's not right for you. And just like squats and our hinges, I do encourage you to, on your own, work through the mobility and flexibility, not through pain, but just to increase on your own outside of a workout. Keep it slow. Tap, little lift, tap, lift. So tap in, lift up, tap in, lift up. Balance. If you'd rather just take the lift. Yes. Right, there we go. Tap in, little lift. Not leaning into your balance. Wherever you are, breathe almost to those quick ones. You know we love it. Here we go. Quick. What is quick for you is that with balance, is that same speed, is that really picking up your pace, making this leg work, but without a lunge, is that driving the knee up you? Do you. Any of those options are good for where you are, but just slightly quicker. Keep the weight in that heel. I know, I know. Breathe. I'm feeling it too. We got 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Little taps right here. So what I want you to do is wiggle those toes in your shoes. I know sometimes when we're keeping that foot stationary, we sometimes feel a little tingling or numbness. That's normal because you're working really hard through that leg. Grab a sip of water. All right, team, so we're gonna stay facing in. Or with a little balance, we're gonna take it with a little leg lift here, right? So you can tap it down or you can lift it up right here. So squeeze, Tap down almost just like we did before with that little tap. But it's just the lift. Core engaged. I want that heel up, toe down, because we're gonna make it a little different as we go. And breathe. Balance here. Soft bend in that front leg. I know. I feel it too. Yes, you can push it back a little more if you want to really get that glute. Then we're going to turn that heel in, toe out here and here. Squeeze. We're getting through this quick, I promise. No, it feels like a good burn balance, but it's up to you. What do you need if you need balance? Chair wall, no balance. Last one we're going to do is we're going to cross behind in a little mimicking, a little cross curtsy. If that doesn't work for you, you just stay with one of these. But we're going to cross behind. Tap it in. Cross tap. Join me so into those hips. Right? Notice I'm not getting low. It's not here, right? It's here. Tap behind. Tap little outer thighs, glutes, inner thighs here. Tap small. 10 seconds. Burn. Let's get those small muscles all the way through. Three, two, one. Shake it out. Little stretch through here. So just lean into that. Get a little back stretch. I know our backs are feeling it a little bit too. So if you have that chair, you have the wall. I want you just to stretch through that low back right here. Right? Okay, team, Other leg. Can you remember which one you should be able to. I'm gonna take it here. So other leg, little lift or bring it in. Not a little tap back. Just a lift. Core engage. Lift. Toe down, heel up. You can bend it a little more if that's a better option for you, or you can do a little lift. So. So this one is straight. Then we're going to turn it in. Then we'll tap it behind almost to the end of this workout. Right? Breathe. Yes, team. Now turn that heel in, toe out. Little soft bend in that front leg, right? Working the hips, working the glutes, pressing into the heel of that front leg. Core is lifted right through here. Yes, you can. Little lift. Yes. 10 seconds to go. 5, 4, 3, 2. Last one. Little tap behind, bring it up. Tap behind, bring it up. So think outer thighs and glutes, inner thighs. You make this what you need to be for you. If that's a little lower and that feels okay. Again, sometimes when it's not in the context of getting super low, we actually feel good. Getting a little half bend, right? You do. You tap and up. I'm feeling all kinds of muscles in those legs I didn't feel before. Three, two, one. Oh, man. Little tap. All right, team, so I want you to take it out right in front. We are almost done. Last little set. We're actually going to turn into our chair now. If you only have the wall, you're going to use the wall. We're going to do a little hinge pattern, right? So it's this. Instead of little taps, it's a hinge. We're going to add a little hinge and a lift. Then we'll add a little lifts. So you can either be here, but I want you actually to lean forward on this one or put that chair in front of you. How about this? Put the chair in front of you and you can feel it here. So I'm going to start right leg forward, left leg back. So it's a little hinge your shoulder hip distance apart, but you're in a kickstand, so it looks like this. And you're going to hinge dropping in the chest, pushing up through that heel. I'm going to give you some. Some options as we go to take it one leg, but it right now, just take it for two. Wrap that core, shoulders back. 30 seconds right here. So touch and up. If you feel good with this and you want to add some weights, you can. Or a mini band. It's up to you. Little touch. If you're feeling good with that balance, feel the difference in the back of the leg. You can take one leg up. What we're not doing is rounding in the back, right? And we're not locking out. It's not a straight leg. Slight bend in both legs. You can either do kickstand or hinge it here. Breathe. Let's add a little lift. So kickstand lift all the way up or one leg lift all the way up? Yes, you can. Down, up. This can be as low and as slow as you need it to be. It can be quicker as long as you have good form. What we're not doing is leaning into the front of the back of the chair, the wall. All right, I want you to hold it here. Soft bend in the knees. You're here. Here, Lift and lower. Lift and lower. Can you get a little further down? Lift that leg up. Squeeze so both legs are working. Squeeze here, Push here. You can be right here. Strong legs. I know. Or you can just do a little tap. That works too. We got five, four, three, two, one. Little stretch burn, right? I know. How about a little stretchy? That little flex foot. Let's get the other side. Let's finish this out, team. I know. All right, so shake it out. Little taps right through here. Let's keep that heart rate up. Hope that your feet are feeling good in those legs. I know I am, man. So good to take a little break from squats and lunges, even if you like doing them. All right, kickstand here. Hinge it forward. Here we go. So hinge and up. You don't have to touch the chair. You can just have the chair there for balance. You may not need it again. We do this move all the time with weights, so you could have dumbbells or kettlebell or a band over the foot. But if you want the chair for balance, especially if you want to take it one leg, take it here. Keeping the hips and shoulders square, keeping that back nice and flat. So you really got to think about pulling the shoulders back. The common mistake we make is this. Right? Let's add a little leg lift. So kickstand, little lift. And up. You can even do that with weights. Lift and up. Bring it up. Boom. If you're one leg, you're here. And cool. Burn. I know. I hope you're feeling it too. And breathe. All right, team, let's hold this one down. So what does that mean for you? Here or here? Little lift. You can just lift it from here. Really small. You can just lift it from higher up, just like we did before. Or you can be balanced. Both knees are slightly bent. Squeeze here in the glass. The glute. Squeeze here in the hamstring. Push it through. We are so close. Yes, team. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Yes. Shake it out right through here. All right. Heel taps in front. Nice and slow. Let's cool it down. And the way we're gonna do that before we get some quick stretches is by a little cardio mobile mobility. These are things that you can do to really get that mobility through your lower Body, especially as you're working your way towards getting stronger and having better function. If you can, little kicks. All right, so you can just take it heels, if that's good for you. If you need to take it here, stretch it out. Yes, team. I know. Take it right through there. Ah. You don't have to go the same pace as me. We're almost done. I know. Take it out right through here, side to side. So just little weight shift. All right. Just here to here. If you're able to get low, get a little back stretch, you can. But again, I know that's not right for everybody. And you came for a workout with no squats and lunges, right? Yes. Little tap behind, Right tap and up, reach and up. As you get more mobility, you can get a little lower in it, but just working in what we call the transverse plane, right in that rotational movement. So good for our bodies. So good to be moving. 4, 3, 2, 1. All right, team. So grab on with a little bit of balance. I want you to just get some rolls through the hips, whatever that means for you. Maybe it's small, slow, and low. Maybe it's a little higher. And can you reverse that direction? Range of motion is so, so important for everybody, especially as we age. I know a lot of us love strength and cardio. I'm one of them. But mobility and flexibility is so, so important. If you have a chair, I want you to sit down, sit on the edge, bring one foot forward, hinge it here. You can just lean into that. A few deep breaths. Flat back, stretching a little deeper. If you don't have that chair, just here, hand on the wall, leaning, almost get same thing, other side. So if you liked this workout, please let me know. I would love to hear from you in the comments. Do you want to see more of this? I'm gonna do some with the mini band, but let me know. I would love to hear from you. Take those knees out, and if you can, just gently here. If you're not in a chair and you're on the wall, just want you to kind of come here if you can, with whatever feels good for you. So leave me a comment. Like this video. And of course, don't forget to subscribe and check out all of my other playlists. I do have a lot of low impact and another, quicker version of this, about 15 minutes has similar movements. If you want something a little shorter, a little more along the beginner lines, you want something a little more intense, check out the mini band. Cross it over right here. If you can you can get a little hip stretch again just sitting here. If you can do this throughout your day, especially if you're someone who sits at a desk, right, getting that little stretch. Even better if you can get that leg up here leaning over into that, those hips get super, super tight. So let me know, I want to hear from you. And of course check out all the links in the description below. Would love to have you join us in the Body Fit Athletic Club if you're looking for that supportive, encouraging private community on the Body Fit by Amy app. If you want to be there, would love to see you there. You also get our nutrition plan, access to me and to our dietitian, weekly live streams, Q A and so much more. If you're looking for one on one coaching, check out Body Fit Elite. And of course, slowly bring it up. Roll through your back. Don't forget to follow me at Body Fit by Amy and check out everything on my website, Body Fitness by Amy.com let's get one big deep breath in and out. Thank you so much for joining me today. You did it. That was your knee. Friendly lower body, last workout. Great job everybody.