**Getting Started with Your Workout: A Beginner's Guide to Squats and Deadlifts**

As a beginner or intermediate gym-goer, it's essential to start with exercises that work multiple muscle groups at once. One of the most effective exercises for building strength is the squat. Squats are a compound exercise that target the quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, and core muscles. To get started, warm up by doing 10 reps with just the bar, which will help you develop the necessary energy and focus to complete the exercise properly.

Once you've warmed up, it's time to add weight to the bar. Start with a light weight and gradually increase it as you become stronger. The goal for most people is to complete 8-10 reps with the added weight. If you're just starting out, you may want to start with 5 pounds and increase the weight in increments of 5-10 pounds. Make sure to focus on proper form and technique throughout the exercise.

To perform a squat, stand up straight and take a split stance with your feet shoulder-width apart. Hold the bar on your back and turn your toes slightly outwards. Keep your elbows down and engage your core muscles to support your lower back. The first movement should be hips back, followed by pushing through your heels to lower yourself down into a squatting position. From there, push through your toes to return to standing. Remember to control the movement and don't drop down too quickly.

**Deadlifts: A Single-Leg Variation**

After completing your squats, it's time to move on to deadlifts. Deadlifts are another compound exercise that target multiple muscle groups, including the quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, and back muscles. To start, hold a kettlebell or dumbbell in one hand and balance on the opposite foot. Soften your knee and begin to reach towards the toe of the foot that's on the floor.

As you lift, focus on keeping your chest up and your hips hinging forward. The stretch in the back of your leg will come from the hamstrings and glutes working together. You don't need to go all the way down to the toe – just far enough to feel the stretch. Remember to keep your core engaged and your shoulders back throughout the exercise.

**Walking Lunges: A Finishing Touch**

Finally, it's time to add some cardio to your workout with walking lunges. This exercise targets the quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes, while also improving balance and coordination. To start, hold a kettlebell or dumbbell (or use body weight) and take a step forward with one foot. Bend both knees and keep your front knee in line with your toes.

As you walk through the lunge position, remember to keep your back straight and your chest up. Engage your core muscles to support your lower back and push through your heels to return to standing. Repeat on the other leg, alternating sides with each rep. Aim for 20-25 reps per set and repeat for three to four sets.

**Tips and Variations**

Remember to always prioritize proper form and technique throughout your workout. If you're new to squats or deadlifts, it's better to start with lighter weights and gradually increase the load as you become stronger. It's also essential to listen to your body and rest when needed – injuries can happen if you push yourself too hard.

In addition to these exercises, consider incorporating other single-leg variations into your routine. For example, try single-leg presses or single-leg leg raises to target specific muscle groups and improve balance and coordination.

**Getting in the Zone**

Whether you're a beginner or intermediate gym-goer, it's essential to find a workout routine that works for you. Consider working with a personal trainer or taking online classes to learn proper form and technique. With patience and dedication, you can achieve your fitness goals and start feeling the benefits of exercise. Don't forget to subscribe to my channel, Sarah Grace SG Training Zone, for more workout tips and advice!

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enhey sarah grace sg training zone i'm here at my gym beyond fitness and health in holland dale beach florida i wanted to bring to you guys today a video on leg workouts and i have several but it never seems to be enough all my subscribers seem to really love them and want to take them to the gym so i wanted to get in a little bit more with you guys on a workout that you can actually take with you to the gym now this would be geared towards somebody who's somewhat more of a beginner or intermediate and they're doing one leg training workout a week so the first exercise we want to start with are squats and i usually always start with squats because they do take a lot of energy and a lot of focus muscle strength to get through them properly so i have the bar loaded i suggest you warm up with just the bar that's your first set you can do about 10 reps with just the bar so you guys can go ahead and do that so i have the bar loaded with weight i suggest that you go through the first set with the bar just empty by itself and if your goal is basically which for most people a good starting goal on squats is anywhere from 10 to 15 reps okay so if that's your goal then you want your warm up to be about 10 reps with the bar then you're going to put weight on and you're going to go for another 8 to 10 reps then what you want to do is go up in increments of say 10 pounds or 15 pounds depending on how strong you are maybe somebody starting out they're gonna start with five pounds and go up in increments of five pounds so you have to kind of gauge where you're strong and what you can handle so really quick i'll demonstrate you want to take the bar off the rack in a split stance like i am so all you have to do is stand up and step back so you want to try to kind of waste as little energy as possible once you've got the bar on your back and then what you're going to do is put your feet just outside of shoulder width turn the toes slightly out and keep your elbows down so that weight is sitting directly on your back first movement should be hips back and then you begin to bend push your knees out and come up you want to go down slowly and fire up not just dropping down you want to control the movement i can get down pretty low into the hole and some people may not be able to do that that's okay you go with what your body allows you to do so once you've done your your squats you can take a little break and go on to the next exercise all right our next exercise is a deadlift now as you know deadlifts can be done with a bar they can be done with dumbbells there's a lot of different ways i'm going to demonstrate them to you with single leg today it's a good kind of mixture for the squat since we did the squat with both legs we go on to the dead left with a single leg all right so you're holding a kettlebell or a dumbbell you may even want to do this with body weight you have to use your best judgment so you're going to hold the kettlebell in one hand balance on the opposite foot what i want you to do is soften the knee and then begin to reach towards that toe of the foot that's on the floor so what happens is my hips are hinging and pushing back i'm not squatting and bending my knee my knee is soft my hips hinge and i reach towards the toe you should feel a stretch in the back of your leg and your hamstring is working i'm going to demonstrate for you one more time you want to soften the knee reach towards the toe you don't have to go all the way to the toe again it's going to depend on your flexibility i don't want to see this chest should be up back should be arched hip should go back okay so on this one you can do three to four sets 10 to 15 reps use your judgment call on that go ahead get it done so push pause and then come back all right so now that you've done your deadlifts we're going to do walking lunges everyone loves walking lunges and knows them they're awesome okay i have weights you can do it with body weight or withholding the weight and you're basically just going to take your step bend both knees come back feet together and so on and so forth now make sure that when you bend your knees you have think of having a straight line from your shoulder to your hip to your knee so you're not so spread out that you're that you're like this and you're not so close that you're like that you want that front foot to be planted straight line down allow your knee to slightly come out over the toe put all the weight in the quad chest is up shoulders are back okay you're going to do 20 to 25 again three to four uh sets of those so get to it make sure you leave your comments questions and subscribe to my channel sarah grace sg training zone get in the zone youhey sarah grace sg training zone i'm here at my gym beyond fitness and health in holland dale beach florida i wanted to bring to you guys today a video on leg workouts and i have several but it never seems to be enough all my subscribers seem to really love them and want to take them to the gym so i wanted to get in a little bit more with you guys on a workout that you can actually take with you to the gym now this would be geared towards somebody who's somewhat more of a beginner or intermediate and they're doing one leg training workout a week so the first exercise we want to start with are squats and i usually always start with squats because they do take a lot of energy and a lot of focus muscle strength to get through them properly so i have the bar loaded i suggest you warm up with just the bar that's your first set you can do about 10 reps with just the bar so you guys can go ahead and do that so i have the bar loaded with weight i suggest that you go through the first set with the bar just empty by itself and if your goal is basically which for most people a good starting goal on squats is anywhere from 10 to 15 reps okay so if that's your goal then you want your warm up to be about 10 reps with the bar then you're going to put weight on and you're going to go for another 8 to 10 reps then what you want to do is go up in increments of say 10 pounds or 15 pounds depending on how strong you are maybe somebody starting out they're gonna start with five pounds and go up in increments of five pounds so you have to kind of gauge where you're strong and what you can handle so really quick i'll demonstrate you want to take the bar off the rack in a split stance like i am so all you have to do is stand up and step back so you want to try to kind of waste as little energy as possible once you've got the bar on your back and then what you're going to do is put your feet just outside of shoulder width turn the toes slightly out and keep your elbows down so that weight is sitting directly on your back first movement should be hips back and then you begin to bend push your knees out and come up you want to go down slowly and fire up not just dropping down you want to control the movement i can get down pretty low into the hole and some people may not be able to do that that's okay you go with what your body allows you to do so once you've done your your squats you can take a little break and go on to the next exercise all right our next exercise is a deadlift now as you know deadlifts can be done with a bar they can be done with dumbbells there's a lot of different ways i'm going to demonstrate them to you with single leg today it's a good kind of mixture for the squat since we did the squat with both legs we go on to the dead left with a single leg all right so you're holding a kettlebell or a dumbbell you may even want to do this with body weight you have to use your best judgment so you're going to hold the kettlebell in one hand balance on the opposite foot what i want you to do is soften the knee and then begin to reach towards that toe of the foot that's on the floor so what happens is my hips are hinging and pushing back i'm not squatting and bending my knee my knee is soft my hips hinge and i reach towards the toe you should feel a stretch in the back of your leg and your hamstring is working i'm going to demonstrate for you one more time you want to soften the knee reach towards the toe you don't have to go all the way to the toe again it's going to depend on your flexibility i don't want to see this chest should be up back should be arched hip should go back okay so on this one you can do three to four sets 10 to 15 reps use your judgment call on that go ahead get it done so push pause and then come back all right so now that you've done your deadlifts we're going to do walking lunges everyone loves walking lunges and knows them they're awesome okay i have weights you can do it with body weight or withholding the weight and you're basically just going to take your step bend both knees come back feet together and so on and so forth now make sure that when you bend your knees you have think of having a straight line from your shoulder to your hip to your knee so you're not so spread out that you're that you're like this and you're not so close that you're like that you want that front foot to be planted straight line down allow your knee to slightly come out over the toe put all the weight in the quad chest is up shoulders are back okay you're going to do 20 to 25 again three to four uh sets of those so get to it make sure you leave your comments questions and subscribe to my channel sarah grace sg training zone get in the zone you\n"