Three-way lunges are a complex strength-training exercise that develops strength and muscle mass in your lower body. It's a body-weight exercise that can be completed nearly anywhere, but you can increase the intensity of the exercise by adding weighted implements. Before adding weight, master the technique, as the exercise requires a bit of coordination.
Technique
To complete the three-way lunge, start with a stable stance, feet shoulder-width apart and torso up tall. Take a large step forward with one foot. Once it's planted, drop your back knee down to the floor while keeping your head up and torso erect. Stop just short of touching the floor with your knee and then return your front foot back to starting position. Use that same foot to then take a large step out to the side. Once it's planted, keep your head up and back straight as you push your hips backward and bend that knee to lower down into a lateral lunge until your thigh becomes parallel with the floor. Return that foot to the starting position. The final element requires that you cross over your second foot with your lead foot. Stay erect as you lower your trail knee down toward the floor. Return the lead foot back to starting position.
Muscles
Lunges primarily develop your quadriceps and glutes. Your quadriceps muscle works at your knee joint, controlling the joint as you lower yourself down and producing the force that straightens your knees on the way up. Your glutes provide movement about your hip joint, straightening you back up as you come out of the lunge. Your hamstrings also assist your glutes in extending your hips.
Benefits
Three-way lunges require your muscle groups to work slightly differently with each of the lunges, distributing the amount of force they produce varies with each of the three types of lunges. Unlike building strength with fixed exercises like the leg press, the three-way lunge requires your surrounding stabilizing muscles to become engaged to keep you balanced and to help coordinate the movement.
Resistance
When you're performing the three-way lunge, your body weight provides the resistance that your muscles must overcome. The amount of resistance body weight offers can be adequate to overload the muscles of some lifters. However, you can increase the intensity of the workouts by incorporating weighted implements into the exercise. If you use a barbell, place it on the back of your shoulders, holding it in position with both hands. With a pair of dumbbells, hold them up at your shoulders. If you allow them to hang down, your arms will likely get in your way during the exercise. You can hold the barbell or dumbbell over your head with extended arms to better engage your core. You can hold a medicine ball at your chest or over your head as well. Another option is to wear a weighted vest. Women's Health recommends completing five repetitions with each leg, which would equate to a total of 15 lunges completed on each leg.
