Lunge Exercise:
Benefits of Lunges

Discover how the lunge exercise will help you. This page includes a list and explanation of the major benefits of dumbbell lunges.

If you decide you want to add dumbbell lunges to your program, then must read this guide to dumbbell lunges and utilize these tips on how to do lunges.

Dumbbell Lunge Benefits. There is a laundry list of advantages to this popular leg exercise. So without further ado, here are the benefits of lunges...

• Better Balance. Lunges are unilateral exercises, meaning that they train one side of your body independently from the other. Training one side at a time vastly improves your balance and coordination. Bilateral leg exercises like the squat exercise and deadlifts are best for overall strength and muscle building purposes, but they simply can't deliver the balance and stabilization benefits that lunges do.
• Be More Functional! This compound leg exercise is hailed by many as the ultimate lower body "functional" exercise. Although the true definition of a functional exercise is hotly debated fitness topic, it is essentially an exercises that directly improves your performance of natural, everyday movements. Lunges, no doubt fall into the functional category because -- think about it -- you're training the movement of walking (albeit by taking huge steps)!
• Superior Symmetry. Possibly the best benefit of the lunge exercise is that you can "even out" strength and muscle imbalances by bringing your weak side up to par with your stronger side. In effect, this can improve your strength on squats and deadlifts by building a creating an even strength distribution and eliminating the "weakest link."
• Increased Hip Flexor Flexibility. The lunge technique forces you to stretch your hip flexor muscles, which are chronically tight for many individuals in today's increasingly sedentary world. The lunge exercise certainly isnt't the end-all, be-all for hip flexibility. But it's a good start! For a more complete solution to your flexibility woes, implement a well-structured stretching and mobility routine.
• Core Workout. You can say that nearly all weight lifting exercises improve your "core" muscles (i.e. abs, obliques, lower back). However, dumbbell lunges make most of these exercises appear insignificant with regard to their effect on core stabilization. The balance required for moving a load back and forth in a straight line (while maintaining a neutral posture using mostly just one leg) gives direct core exercises a run for their money.
• Spinal Deloading. The dumbbell lunge exercise deloads your spine, while exercises like squats do the opposite. Spinal loading isn't a bad thing in and of itself. However, deloading is beneficial for giving your spine some rest and recovery especially if you're an experienced lifter. As a more experienced lifter, you can introduce more compressional pressure your spine once you've moved up to big-boy weights. Therefore, utilizing lunges for light leg workouts or as a complementary exerise on heavy workouts give you a break. (They're effective on their own, too!).

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