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Exercises

Legs warm up: an 8-minute routine you can do anywhere

Published October 24, 2026

A good legs warm up needs no equipment: do 1 minute each of jumping jacks, high knees and butt kicks, then 10 ankle circles each way per foot, 8 cardio lunges per leg, 10 standing side leg raises per leg, 12 clamshells per side and 10 slow bodyweight squats. That is about 8 minutes. If you are lifting next, add 2 or 3 lighter sets of your first exercise before the working sets.

  1. Jumping Jack Calves, Quads
  2. High Knees Quads
  3. Butt Kicks Hamstrings
  4. Ankle Circles Calves
  5. Cardio Lunge Quads, Glutes
  6. Standing Side Leg Raise Abductors
  7. Clamshell Abductors
  8. Bodyweight Squat Quads

Three minutes to get warm

Jumping jacks, high knees and butt kicks raise your heart rate without any machine, one minute each. The high knees work the front of the hips and the butt kicks the back of the knees, so they are already warming the muscles you are about to train.

Get warm: whole body

Jumping Jack

Calves, Quads

Jumping jacks get your heart rate up fast and make your calves and hips work in the same rhythm, with no setup at all.

How to do it

  1. Start with feet touching and hands by your hips.
  2. Jump your feet out a little wider than your shoulders while swinging your arms overhead.
  3. Jump back to the start and keep a steady rhythm for 1 minute.

Cues

  • Soft landings
  • Steady rhythm

Common mistakes

  • Landing flat-footed and loud: stay on the balls of your feet.

Swap for: Star Jump, Jump Rope

Build a session with Jumping Jack

Get warm: hip flexors

High Knees

Quads

Driving the knees up in place warms the front of the hips, which take a stretch every time you lunge or squat deep.

How to do it

  1. Stand tall and start jogging in place.
  2. Lift each knee to about hip height, swinging the opposite arm forward.
  3. Keep it light and quick for 1 minute, slowing down if you lose your posture.

Cues

  • Knees to hip height
  • Tall chest

Common mistakes

  • Leaning back to get the knees higher: stay upright and accept a lower knee.

Swap for: Skipping in Place, Fast Feet

Build a session with High Knees

Get warm: hamstrings and knees

Butt Kicks

Hamstrings

Flicking your heels to your glutes bends your knees all the way under no load, a good first step before squats or leg curls.

How to do it

  1. Jog in place with your hands resting on your lower back, palms out.
  2. Kick each heel up toward your glutes, letting the knee point down.
  3. Keep a quick pace for 1 minute.

Cues

  • Heels to hands
  • Knees point at the floor

Common mistakes

  • Swinging the knees forward: the thigh stays mostly vertical while the heel comes up.

Swap for: High Knees, Bodyweight Lying Leg Curl

Build a session with Butt Kicks

Loosen ankles, knees and hips

Ankle circles free up the joint that limits squat and lunge depth for most people. Cardio lunges then move the hips and knees through a long stride, and side leg raises reach the outer hip that forward-and-back moves miss.

Loosen: ankles

Ankle Circles

Calves

Stiff ankles stop your knees from traveling forward, which tips you onto your toes in squats. Ten slow circles each way per foot take care of that.

How to do it

  1. Stand on one leg next to a wall, holding it for balance, and lift the other foot slightly.
  2. Draw a big circle with your toes, moving only at the ankle.
  3. Do 10 circles one way and 10 the other, then switch feet.

Cues

  • Big, slow circles
  • Only the ankle moves

Common mistakes

  • Tiny, fast circles: make each one as large as the ankle allows.

Swap for: Single-Leg Calf Raise, Leg Swings

Build a session with Ankle Circles

Loosen: hips and knees

Cardio Lunge

Quads, Glutes

Stepping in and out of a lunge with a rhythm stretches the front of the back hip and bends the front knee deeply, while keeping your heart rate up from the first block.

How to do it

  1. Stand tall and step one foot back into a lunge until both knees are close to 90 degrees.
  2. Drive back up through the front foot, swinging your arms like a runner.
  3. Switch legs in a steady rhythm, 8 per leg.

Cues

  • Long stride
  • Torso tall

Common mistakes

  • Letting the front heel come up: put your weight through the middle of the front foot.

Swap for: Dumbbell Reverse Lunge, Band Reverse Lunge

Build a session with Cardio Lunge

Loosen: outer hips

Standing Side Leg Raise

Abductors

Raising the leg sideways moves the hip in the one direction that lunges and squats never take it.

How to do it

  1. Stand tall and hold a wall or chair with one hand.
  2. Raise the outside leg sideways with the toes facing forward.
  3. Lower under control, do 10, and switch legs.

Cues

  • Toes forward
  • Stand tall, don't lean

Common mistakes

  • Tipping the torso to the side to lift higher: a smaller lift with an upright body works better.

Swap for: Fire Hydrant, Band Standing Hip Abduction

Build a session with Standing Side Leg Raise

Switch on the glutes and quads

Clamshells get the side of the glutes working while you lie still, and slow bodyweight squats bring every leg muscle in together. Keep both easy, with several reps still in the tank.

Switch on: side glutes

Clamshell

Abductors

Opening the top knee while lying on your side isolates the glute muscles that keep your knees out over your toes.

How to do it

  1. Lie on one side, hips and knees bent, heels stacked.
  2. Keeping your feet touching, lift the top knee as high as you can without rolling your hips back.
  3. Lower slowly, do 12, then turn over.

Cues

  • Feet stay together
  • Hips stacked

Common mistakes

  • Rolling backward to open wider: keep the top hip directly over the bottom one.

Swap for: Lateral Band Walk, Band Seated Hip Abduction

Build a session with Clamshell

Switch on: whole leg

Bodyweight Squat

Quads

Ten slow squats with no weight rehearse the depth and knee path you will use under load, and tell you how loose you are today.

How to do it

  1. Stand with your feet about shoulder width and your toes slightly out.
  2. Sit down and back between your knees, reaching your arms forward for balance.
  3. Pause a moment at the bottom, stand up, and do 10 slowly.

Cues

  • Knees track the toes
  • Pause at the bottom

Common mistakes

  • Stopping halfway down: use the range you will use in your working sets.

Swap for: Goblet Squat, Band Squat

Build a session with Bodyweight Squat

Lighter sets of your first exercise

Whatever you do first, do it lighter before you do it heavy: 2 or 3 sets that climb toward your working weight with fewer reps each time. The three plans below start with a machine, a split squat and a lunge.

First exercise: machine leg day

Leg Press

Quads, Glutes

On a machine day the leg press goes first. Two or three lighter sets with a full range let the knees and hips settle into the movement.

How to do it

  1. Sit with your back against the pad and your feet shoulder width in the middle of the platform.
  2. Release the sled and lower it slowly until your knees approach your chest.
  3. Press back up just short of locking out, adding weight across the lighter sets.

Cues

  • Full depth on the light sets too
  • Hips stay down

Common mistakes

  • Bouncing out of the bottom: lower for two seconds on every rep.

Swap for: Hack Squat, Leg Extension

Build a session with Leg Press

First exercise: quads

Leg Extension

Quads

A light set or two of leg extensions warms the knees and quads directly, which helps when squats or presses feel stiff in the first set.

How to do it

  1. Sit with your knees at the edge of the seat and the pad resting on your lower shins.
  2. Straighten your knees until your legs are level, squeezing the quads.
  3. Lower slowly until your knees are bent fully again.

Cues

  • Squeeze at the top
  • Slow on the way down

Common mistakes

  • Swinging the weight up: if you need momentum, it is too heavy for a warm-up set.

Swap for: Single-Leg Leg Extension, Sissy Squat

Build a session with Leg Extension

First exercise: home or dumbbell day

Bulgarian Split Squat

Quads, Glutes

With your back foot on a bench, this split squat is the hardest single-leg move you can do with light dumbbells, and the lighter sets before it are what make the first hard set feel smooth.

How to do it

  1. Stand a long stride ahead of a bench and rest the top of your back foot on it.
  2. Lower straight down until your back knee nearly touches the floor.
  3. Drive up through the front foot. Do your lighter sets with bodyweight, then light dumbbells.

Cues

  • Straight down, not forward
  • Front foot flat

Common mistakes

  • Standing too close to the bench: move forward until your front shin stays close to vertical at the bottom.

Swap for: Dumbbell Split Squat, Dumbbell Reverse Lunge

Build a session with Bulgarian Split Squat

First exercise: lunge day

Dumbbell Reverse Lunge

Quads, Glutes

Stepping back is easier on the front knee than stepping forward, so the reverse lunge is a comfortable first lift after a warm-up.

How to do it

  1. Hold two dumbbells by your hips.
  2. Step one foot back and lower until the back knee is just off the floor.
  3. Push through the front foot to return, alternating legs or finishing one side first.

Cues

  • Step back, sink down
  • Front knee over the foot

Common mistakes

  • Taking a short step: a longer step keeps the front heel down.

Swap for: Reverse Lunge, Band Reverse Lunge

Build a session with Dumbbell Reverse Lunge

Put them together: example sessions

Each session below picks from the exercises above for one situation, with the sets, reps, rest and RIR filled in. Open one in the session builder to change a pick, price it from a recent set, and add it to RIRLift.

Session 1

Machine leg day at the gym

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets26 a week
  • Per workout~30 min
  • EquipmentLeg Extension, Leg Press

You train legs on the leg press and leg extension and want a warm-up that fits between the machines.

The bodyweight blocks take 7 minutes and need no space. Leg extensions go right after them so your knees are warm before you press, then the leg press gets its own climbing sets. Warm-up blocks stay 4 reps short of tired; the presses run at 1 to 2 reps in reserve so you recover for the next leg day.

Machine legs
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Jumping JackSeconds. 1 × 60 4 0 s
High KneesSeconds. 1 × 60 4 0 s
Butt KicksSeconds. 1 × 60 4 0 s
Ankle CirclesEach way, per foot. 1 × 10 4 0 s
Standing Side Leg RaisePer leg. 1 × 10 4 0 s
Bodyweight Squat 1 × 10 4 30 s
Leg Extension2 warm-up sets first 3 × 10–15 2 90 s
Leg Press3 warm-up sets first 4 × 8–12 2 2 min
How to run it
Do the three cardio moves back to back, then the ankle circles, side leg raises and squats, then go to the machines.
How to progress
When your leg press grows past twice the first weight you logged, add a fourth lighter set before the working sets.
Open in the session builder

Session 2

Legs at home with light dumbbells

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts2× a week
  • Working sets18 a week
  • Per workout~20 min
  • EquipmentDumbbells

You train in your living room with a chair or couch and a light pair of dumbbells.

No machine means the cardio comes from jacks and high knees, and the clamshells and lunges cover hips and glutes on the floor. Split squats with the back foot on the couch make light dumbbells hard enough; take the working sets to 1 rep in reserve because the load is low.

Home legs
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Jumping JackSeconds. 2 × 45 4 0 s
High KneesSeconds. 1 × 45 4 0 s
Cardio LungePer leg. 1 × 8 4 0 s
ClamshellPer side. 1 × 12 4 0 s
Bodyweight Squat 1 × 10 4 30 s
Bulgarian Split Squat2 warm-up sets firstPer leg. Back foot on a couch or chair. 3 × 8–15 1 90 s
How to run it
Run the warm-up as one continuous circuit, then do your lighter split squat sets with bodyweight before picking up the dumbbells.
How to progress
Add reps until you reach the top of the range on every working set, then slow the lowering to three seconds.
Open in the session builder

Session 3

Lunge and single-leg day

Open in the session builder
  • Workouts1× a week
  • Working sets13 a week
  • Per workout~30 min
  • EquipmentDumbbells

Your session is built on reverse lunges and split squats, and your hips feel tight in long strides.

More hip work here: cardio lunges and side leg raises open the stride, clamshells steady the knee, and butt kicks warm the back of the thigh. The reverse lunge gets two lighter sets because balance improves with practice more than with load.

Lunge day
ExerciseSets × repsRIRRest
Butt KicksSeconds. 1 × 60 4 0 s
High KneesSeconds. 1 × 60 4 0 s
Ankle CirclesEach way, per foot. 1 × 10 4 0 s
Cardio LungePer leg. 2 × 8 4 0 s
Standing Side Leg RaisePer leg. 1 × 10 4 0 s
ClamshellPer side. 1 × 12 4 15 s
Dumbbell Reverse Lunge2 warm-up sets firstPer leg. 3 × 8–12 2 90 s
Bulgarian Split SquatPer leg. 3 × 8–12 2 90 s
How to run it
Do the warm-up once, rest a minute, then start the reverse lunges with bodyweight before taking the dumbbells.
How to progress
Once balance feels solid, add weight to the lunges first, then reps.
Open in the session builder

Make it fit you

Questions

What is the best warm up for legs?

Three minutes of jumping jacks, high knees and butt kicks, then ankle circles, lunges, side leg raises, clamshells and slow squats. It takes about 8 minutes and needs no equipment.

What are 10 basic warm-up exercises for legs?

Jumping jacks, high knees, butt kicks, ankle circles, leg swings, lunges, side leg raises, clamshells, glute bridges and bodyweight squats.

Are 4 exercises enough for leg day?

Yes, if they cover a squat or press, a hinge, a single-leg move and a hamstring curl, and you do enough hard sets of each. The warm-up does not count toward those.

How do I loosen tight legs before working out?

Move them rather than hold stretches: a few minutes of light cardio, then lunges, leg swings and slow squats through a range that grows each rep.

Do I need to warm up before every leg workout?

Yes, but it can be short. Even 3 minutes of easy movement and two lighter sets of your first exercise make the first working set feel better.