intermediate35 min

The Living Room Legs Day

Quads, hamstrings, and glutes using dumbbells. Day 3 of The Living Room Program.

Muscle Groups

legs

Equipment

dumbbells

Overview

Legs
  1. 1
    Goblet squat
    12 reps

    Hold one dumbbell at your chest. Feet shoulder-width, toes out slightly. Break parallel every rep and keep your chest tall.

  2. 2
    Romanian deadlift
    12 reps

    Both dumbbells, soft knee bend. Hinge at the hips and push them back until you feel a strong hamstring stretch. Slow on the way down.

  3. 3
    Reverse lunge
    10 each leg

    Step back, not forward. Front shin stays vertical and your knee tracks over your second toe. Back knee taps the floor lightly.

  4. 4
    Sumo squat
    12 reps

    Wide stance, toes out 45°. Hold one dumbbell hanging between your legs. Drive your knees out hard as you descend and squeeze your glutes at the top.

  5. 5
    Single-leg Romanian deadlift
    8 each leg

    Hold one or two dumbbells and hinge on one leg. Move slowly — this is a balance exercise as much as a strength one. It's fine to touch down between reps.

Round 1 / 3
0 / 5
Jump
Rest
1m 30s
Nowlegs

Goblet squat

12 reps

Hold one dumbbell at your chest. Feet shoulder-width, toes out slightly. Break parallel every rep and keep your chest tall.

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The Living Room Legs Day

Day 3 of The Living Room Program. This session covers the full posterior chain and quads in five movements, all done with dumbbells and no bench or rack required.

Two squat patterns, two hinge patterns, and a unilateral finisher. The single-leg RDL at the end is a balance and coordination challenge as much as a strength exercise. Go slow and own every rep.

Tips

On the goblet squat. This is the signature exercise of The Living Room Program. Drive your elbows between your knees at the bottom to reinforce an upright torso and deep squat position.

On the Romanian deadlift. The movement is in your hips, not your knees. Push your hips back as far as you can before lowering the weights. When your hamstrings stop you from going further, that's the bottom.

On the reverse lunge. Stepping back is gentler on the knee than a forward lunge. If your balance is shaky, do these next to a wall or the back of the sofa for support.

On the single-leg RDL. It's fine to touch your back foot down between reps while you're learning. Work toward keeping it off the ground for the full set. Use a lighter dumbbell than you think you need.

Kettlebell note. This is the best day of the week to swap in a kettlebell if you have one. Goblet squat and swings are a natural pairing here.

Tags

legsquadshamstringsglutesdumbbellsliving-room-program