11 Dynamic Leg Stretches to Optimize Your Workout Routine

So you’re a bit of a workout junkie. Exercise is a part of your daily routine. But you’re also caught up in the whirlwind of modern-day living and have been known — on occasion — to skip the old leg stretches before working out.

Don’t do that!

If you want to get the most out of your workout and avoid injury, you need to make dynamic leg stretches a part of your routine.

Dynamic leg stretches prep your muscles and joints for the core part of your workout. More importantly, these stretches help prevent muscle strains and sprains. They especially benefit athletes who run or jump as part of their routine. And fitness experts recommended doing them before weightlifting.

But what exactly is a dynamic leg stretch?

Well, unlike static stretches, dynamic leg stretches incorporate movements similar to those used during the actual workout routine, minus the impact and speed. Due to muscle memory, your body is then more prepared to go through these movements during your actual workout. Dynamic leg stretches also help increase your body temperature, lubricate your joints, and improve flexibility.

Let’s get started!

11 Super Easy Dynamic Leg Stretches for Your Workout Routine

You can reap all the benefits of dynamic leg stretches by incorporating two to four of these into your workout warmup:

1. 

   Shin Box

• Sit on the floor with your right leg bent at a 90-degree angle in front of you and your left leg bent at a 90-degree angle behind you.
• Stretch your arms in front of you.
• Lift your knees off the floor and rotate to the left.
• Complete 10+ rotations.
• Repeat with the left leg in front of you and the right leg behind.

2. Walking Lunge

• Stand with your feet hip-width apart, arms at your sides and hands on your hips.
• Lunge forward with your right foot and dip down until your knee is bent to a 90-degree angle and your right thigh is parallel to the floor.
• Bend your left knee to a 90-degree angle.
• Move your left foot forward to return to a standing position.
• Repeat on the other side.
• Complete 10 reps per side.

3. Leg Swing

• Stand in a “T” position with your feet together and your arms lifted out at your sides.
• Shift weight to your left leg.
• Lift right leg straight out to your side.
• Swing your right leg in front of your body, bringing it parallel with your shoulders and in front of your left leg.
• Repeat for 30 seconds.
• Switch legs and repeat.

4. Half-Kneeling Posterior Tilt

• Kneel, resting on your knees.
• Place your right leg in front of you with your knee bent at a 90-degree angle.
• Tilt your pelvis forward and upward while keeping your right leg bent at 90 degrees.
• Hold for 10 seconds.
• Repeat five times.
• Replicate the entire exercise with your left leg in front of you.

5. 

   Air Squat

• Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, arms at sides, and hands on hips.
• Squat, lowing your hips as if you’re sitting down on a chair.
• Return to a standing position.
• Repeat 10+ times.

6. Lateral Lunge

• Stand with both feet facing forward, hip-width apart.
• Take a sideways step to the right.
• Bend your right knee, sending your hips back.
• Shift weight over the right foot.
• Drop into a right side lunge.
• Return to standing.
• Continue for 30 seconds.
• Repeat on the opposite side.

7. 

   Modified Single Leg Deadlift

• Stand on your left leg with a slight bend at your knee.
• Swing your right leg behind you then touch your right toes on the floor behind your left leg.
• Hinge forward until your torso is parallel to the floor.
• Return to start position.
• Continue the sequence for 30 seconds.
• Repeat, this time standing on your right leg with your left toes on the floor behind your right leg.

8. Bent-Knee Lateral Swing

• Stand with legs hip-width apart.
• Place hands on a wall for support.
• Shift weight to the left leg.
• Lift right knee up, bending to a 90-degree angle.
• Swing right knee toward the left shoulder.
• Then shift right knee over to the right.
• Continue pattern for 12 reps.
• Repeat on the opposite side.

9. 

   Bent-Knee Forward and Backward Swing

• Stand with legs hip-width apart.
• Place hands on a wall in front of you for support.
• Shift weight to the left leg.
• Lift right knee to a 90-degree angle.
• Press right knee toward the chest.
• Extend your right leg behind you, lengthened into a straight position.
• Continue pattern for 12 reps.
• Switch legs and repeat.

10. Leg Pendulum

• Stand up straight with legs placed hip-width apart.
• Shift weight to the left leg.
• Lift right leg from the ground.
• Swing right leg back and forth 10 times.
• Place the right leg on the ground.
• Repeat on the opposite side.

11. Knee Grabs

• Stand up straight with your feet together.
• Raise your right leg, bending your knee.
• Grab your knee and pull it toward your chest.
• Bend forward.
• Straighten back up.
• Place right leg back to the floor while taking a step forward.
• Repeat movement on other side, continuing to move forward.
• Continue for 30 seconds.

Wrap Up

We’re all a little stretched for time and like to dive right into our workouts because we feel the core of our routine is the most important part. But dynamic leg stretches are just as essential as the workout itself. Adding just five to ten minutes to your workout with a dynamic leg stretch routine could save you from losing eight weeks of training time while you recover from an injury.

So go ahead and get stretching! You’ll be glad you did.

Anne deLeeuw (10 Posts)

Anne deLeeuw is a freelance writer who specializes in crafting content about health, wellness, and all things associated with a life well-lived. She also believes in that old saying, “practice what you preach,” and recently earned an Integrative Nutrition Health Coach certification from the Institute of Integrative Nutrition. Moving forward, Anne plans to grow her career in the wellness industry by helping women adopt all the healthy habits she’s been describing through her writing.