Lunge and single leg exercise
Step-Up
Build concentric single-leg drive for the first step off a standing start.
- Equipment
- Dumbbells, plyo box
- Sides
- One leg at a time
- Positions
- All positions
- Tempo
- 20X1
Setup
A box at roughly knee height, dumbbells in hand.
How to do it
- Place your whole foot on the box and drive up using only the top leg - do not push off the trailing foot.
- Step back down under control.
- Do 3 sets of 6 to 8 per leg.
- If the box is high enough that you have to lean forward to get up, lower it.
Coaching cues
- Whole foot on the box
- Drive with the top leg only
- Step down, don't drop down
Common mistakes
- Bouncing off the back leg to assist
- Box too high, causing a forward lean
Sets and reps by goal
| Goal | Load | Sets | Reps | Rest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Strength | Heavy dumbbells | 3 | 6 to 8 per leg | 2 min |
| Size | Moderate dumbbells | 3 | 8 to 12 per leg | 90 sec |
Tempo 20X1: Take 2 seconds to lower it, no pause, lift it as fast as you can, hold for 1 second at the end of the lift.
Related exercises
- Lateral LungeLoad the frontal plane: strength moving side to side, not just forwards and back.
- Copenhagen AdductionBuild eccentric adductor strength to protect the groin.
- Rear-Foot-Elevated Split SquatBuild heavy single-leg strength with almost no spinal load.
- Split SquatLearn the single-leg pattern and expose side-to-side differences.
- Walking LungeLoad the legs eccentrically while moving, which is closer to how rugby actually loads them.
- Back SquatBuild maximal bilateral lower-body strength, the foundation of scrum drive and contact.