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BY MATTHEW IBRAHIM, AUTHOR OF TRAIN LIKE A PRO: PROGRAMMING TO DEVELOP YOUR INNER ATHLETE
People who love squats and deadlifts will tell you that double-leg training is best for athleticism. Sure, you’ll definitely getting stronger and more powerful with double-leg training exercises like squats and deadlifts.
The same goes for people who love single-leg squats and single-leg deadlifts: they’ll tell you that single-leg training is the answer for athleticism. Again, you’ll definitely build strength and power with single-leg squat and single-leg deadlift exercise variations.
Here’s the catch: both are important for athleticism. More importantly, both will help you become stronger and more powerful in your lower body, which are valuable to staying athletic. However, here’s where people go wrong: not going heavy enough with their single-leg training, not tapping into all movement planes through single-leg training (supported and unsupported options), and not performing single-leg training with enough frequency.
When it comes down to single-leg training exercises, the goal is to master technique and then go heavy with lower rep ranges. Single-leg training isn’t just for balance and stability. It’s for building strength and power on one leg in the very same way you would with your approach when training on two legs.
It’s important to tap into all movement planes in our single-leg training exercise selection (supported and unsupported options) to make sure that we’re covering the sagittal plane (e.g., split squats and elevated single-leg squats), the frontal plane (e.g., lateral squats and lateral step-ups), and lastly, the transverse plane (e.g., curtsy lunges and lateral crossover sled drags). In doing so, you’ll become strong and powerful in your lower body through a multidirectional approach, which is a hallmark quality in athleticism.
Lastly, we don’t train with single-leg exercises often enough. How often do you perform your squats and deadlifts? Likely once per week for each exercise, at the very least. Your approach for single-leg exercises should be the same. Train frequently on one leg, train frequently on two legs, train in all movement planes, and train heavy.
Interested in learning more about single-leg training and double-leg training exercises that can improve your athleticism through a progressive loading approach? Check out my book, Train Like a Pro: Programming to Develop Your Inner Athlete.