Make Your Muscles Ache Pleasurably With These Top Inner Thigh Exercises
Your inner thighs have three muscles passing through them, known as the hip adductor muscles. They begin at the pubis, then extend to the knee and inner thigh, enabling your knees and hips to rotate, extend and flex, alongside the other muscles in your thighs. You can strengthen these adductor muscles by isolating them with certain exercises. You only need the bare minimum of fitness equipment, such as an exercise ball, to perform these movements at home.
Usually, working out on a padded carpet or Yoga mat is beneficial, as is wearing flexible or loose fitting clothes during your training session. When exercising, always focus on maintaining your form and completing as many reps as you can. This is vital, if you are to increase the strength of your inner thighs noticeably.
When I first started bodybuilding, I always preferred to work my upper body. For me, the priority was to develop huge guns, massive pecs and a washboard stomach. My legs just didn’t seem to be as important, so I neglected training these somewhat. Lots of aspiring bodybuilders fall into this trap, and end up with physiques that are ‘top heavy’ and out of proportion. However, even when I finally started giving my lower body the attention it deserved, I failed to exercise my inner thighs correctly. I am willing to wager that, if you are reading this, then there is a decent chance that you are neglecting this muscle group too.
Assuming that I have hit the nail on the head, I’m guessing that you would prefer inner thigh exercises that are enjoyable and varied. This is exactly what I will provide you with. Bear in mind though, enjoyable and easy are two different things.
Cossack Squats
Funnily enough, I had known about this exercise for years, but never got round to actually using it. In all likelihood, you will be familiar with it too. Cossack squats are highly effective, however most people tend to overlook them, in favor of some fancy gym equipment. This is a shame, because I had never experienced such a satisfying pump in my quad muscles, before I started incorporating this exercise into my workouts.
The notorious Thighmaster and adductor machine are examples of commercial gym equipment advertised to help people train their legs. However, I advise proceeding with caution, prior to using this equipment. To my knowledge, there are no sports that involve squeezing your knees together, while lying down or seated. It seems hard to believe that performing these movements are going to benefit you in any significant way. As the saying goes, the old ones are always the best ones, so I’m going to get you toning those flabby inner thighs old school fashion.
Instructions: Adopt a broad stance. Ideally, your feet ought to be one foot away from your shoulder line. Lift your arms up straight ahead of you. Doing this stabilizes your body, while you are performing the squats. Next, squat sideways, dipping as low as you can and extending your other foot. Don’t forget to keep pointing the toe of your flexed foot upwards.
Gradually raise your body back to where you started. Perform this exercise again on your other side. It is best to do about two or three sets of ten to twelve repetitions.
Inner Thigh Blitz
This is another exercise that I had never really considered in the past, but which turned out to produce great results. This is an excellent way to strengthen your inner thighs. Both men and women can take advantage of this, because it also serves as a form of modified Kegel training.
Instructions: Stand with your feet spread, so that they’re aligned with your shoulders. Next, lean on a chair or a bench, with whichever hand you prefer. Now, put a ball in-between your thighs, then gradually move your weight onto the balls of your feet.
Position your other hand onto your thigh, and gradually perform a make-believe wall squat. Dip just an inch and do not go the full way, gripping the ball the entire time. Lift back up and return to the starting position, then lift your hand from your thigh and grip the ball once more. Perform a minimum of two sets of fifteen repetitions.
Ball leg Raises
I always find that using an exercise ball makes my workouts more dynamic. This is especially true, if I have been doing the same sorts of workouts for a while, and want to try something new to shock my muscles. Ball leg raises hit various muscle groups, and will improve your balance and strength immeasurably.
Instructions: Lie down on your side. Outstretch one arm, parallel with your body. Your other arm should be rested on the ground, to maintain your balance. Position your head so that you are not straining your neck in any way.
Put a big exercise ball between your legs. Maintain this position, then use your lower body alone to raise your legs up to the ceiling. Keep this posture for a few seconds, then go back to the initial position. Aim to get to the point where you can perform at least twenty repetitions in one attempt.
You should aim to do more than just enhance the appearance of your legs, when exercising your inner thighs. Your inside leg muscles are crucial for virtually all sports, because they stabilize your hips and generate power while you are moving back and forth, in a sideways direction. If you fail to correctly train your inner thighs, in a manner that is appropriate for athletic performance, it might hinder your multidirectional mobility, and boost your chance of suffering a pelvic injury (hockey players take note).
I usually work my inner thighs as part of either my lower body, thigh or hip workouts, based on how I choose to organize my exercise regimen at the time. It is best to perform no more than two inner thigh exercises per workout. This way, you will have time to work on other areas of your thighs for a balanced approach.
