Dumbbell One Arm Lunge

How to do the Dumbbell One Arm Lunge

1. 1Stand tall holding a dumbbell in one hand at your side, feet hip-width apart and core braced.
2. 2Let the dumbbell hang naturally against your thigh and keep your shoulders square and level despite the load on one side.
3. 3Step forward with one leg into a long stride, keeping your torso upright.
4. 4Lower under control until your front thigh is roughly parallel to the floor and your back knee drops toward the ground.
5. 5Keep your front knee tracking over your toes and your weight balanced through the middle of your front foot.
6. 6Drive through your front heel to push back up to the starting position.
7. 7Complete your reps on one leg, then switch the dumbbell to the other hand and repeat with the opposite leg.
8. 8Set the dumbbell down with control once both sides are finished.

Form tips

• Brace your core and keep your shoulders level to counter the offset pull of the single dumbbell.
• Take a long enough stride that your front shin stays close to vertical at the bottom, protecting the knee.
• Keep your chest up and avoid leaning toward the loaded side to stay balanced.
• Start light to master the unilateral balance demand before adding heavier dumbbells.

Common mistakes

• Leaning your torso toward the dumbbell, which throws off your balance and reduces glute and quad tension.
• Letting the front knee cave inward, which stresses the knee joint and weakens the drive out of the bottom.
• Taking too short a stride so the front knee shoots past the toes, shifting load off the glutes and onto the joint.
• Pushing off the back toe instead of driving through the front heel, which cheats the working leg.

Frequently asked questions