The single-leg balance reach has you stand on one leg, hands on your hips, and move the free leg out to the side and back without letting the standing hip shift or drop. It is a balance drill before it is a strength exercise: the outer glute of the standing leg keeps your pelvis level, which is the same job it has in every lunge and step-up. That makes it a sensible warm-up before single-leg work, and a way in for anyone whose balance is what holds their lunges back.
How to do it
- Stand on one leg, hands on your hips, standing knee soft and toes pointing straight ahead.
- Move the free leg slowly out to the side and back, keeping both hips at the same height.
- Finish all reps on one leg before you switch.
Common mistakes
- Reaching further than you can control, so the standing hip shifts out or the torso leans away.
- Letting the standing foot turn out or its arch collapse to rescue your balance.
What it trains
- Glutes
- hold the standing hip level — the outer glute is what stops the pelvis dropping toward the free leg
- Quads
- keep the standing knee softly bent and steady for the whole set
- Abductors
- move the free leg out to the side — the part that looks like the exercise and is the easy half
- Feet and toes
- make the constant small corrections that keep you balanced over the standing foot
- Core
- keeps the torso upright so the movement comes from the hip, not from leaning away
Variations and alternatives
Common questions
How far out to the side should my leg go?
Only as far as you can go without the standing hip shifting or the torso leaning the other way. For most people that is surprisingly little at first — a small reach with a level pelvis trains the right thing, a big one with a tilted pelvis only looks better. Let the distance grow as your balance does.
Do I log both legs?
No — log the reps of one leg, and do the same number on the other. Ten reaches each side is a set of ten, not twenty. Adding both sides together would make every session look twice as good and throw off the target reps StackUp suggests next.
How do I make it harder once it is easy?
Slow the leg down and pause at the far end, then take away what helps you: stand on a folded mat, or do a few reps with your eyes closed and a wall within reach. StackUp progresses this one by target reps, so it will ask for more once you top your rep range — but for a balance drill, a harder version usually beats a longer set.
Why does the standing hip burn when the other leg is the one moving?
Because the standing leg is doing the work. Every time the free leg moves out, the outer glute on the standing side has to hold the pelvis level against it, while the moving leg only carries its own weight. That burn is the exercise doing what it is for.
In StackUp. Logged as reps per set. Add weight if you use a belt or a dumbbell and StackUp progresses it like any other lift. Get the app.
Legs
