Exercising With A Friend - Partner Leg Press
Monday, February 12, 2007
Jolie Bookspan, M.Ed, PhD, FAWM
The Partner Leg Press strengthens your legs, hips, and posture muscles, and practices balance and good body position. It can be safely done with children too.
- Partner 1 lies face up on the floor with both feet raised.
- Partner 2 is facing down holding their body straight, with Partner 1's feet on their chest or abdomen (photo 1).
- Partner 1, on the floor, bends knees to lower and pushes legs almost straight, in a leg-press action.
- Repeat leg pressing many times, trying for at least 10 presses, then switch places.
- Be careful. This one is so much fun that Partner 2 may drool on, or fall on, Partner 1 by accident (or purpose). Have fun on Valentine's Day.
- Then try the Partner Leg Press with Partner 2 face up (photo 2 below). Start by partially sitting with Partner 1's feet on your back, and "walk" your feet away for straight positioning. Do several presses, then switch places.
As you do the fun Partner Leg Press, adjust your balance and positioning for the other person. Working with a partner practices cooperation and empathy - important and often ignored aspects of health.
Why tell a loved one or child you can't spend time with them because you need to go exercise? Instead of making exercise isolating and separating, and something you have to stop your life and disrupt your family to do, make it unifying, friendly, and fun. That is health.
More:
- Fast Fitness - Plyometric Partner Bench Press for Valentine's Week
- Even when you're on your own, you don't need weights or machines to strengthen your legs. Get healthy bending during daily life strengthens legs in the same way as squats in a gym: Free Exercise and Free Back and Knee Pain Prevention - Healthy Bending and How Good Would You Look From 400 Squats a Day - Just Stop Unhealthy Bending
- More partner exercise for all athletes are in the book Healthy Martial Arts.
---
Read success stories of these methods and send your own.
See if your answers are already here - click Fitness Fixer labels, links, archives, and Index.
For personal medical questions - Replies to Medical Questions.
Limited Class space for personal feedback. Top students may earn certification through DrBookspan.com/Academy. More fun in Dr. Bookspan's Books.
Read success stories of these methods and send your own.
See if your answers are already here - click Fitness Fixer labels, links, archives, and Index.
For personal medical questions - Replies to Medical Questions.
Limited Class space for personal feedback. Top students may earn certification through DrBookspan.com/Academy. More fun in Dr. Bookspan's Books.
---
Thank you to Dr.Bookpan's students for demonstrating in these photos, © copyright.
Labels: balance, holiday, leg press, leg strength, partner exercise, strength
3 Comments:
At Friday, March 14, 2008 3:39:00 PM,
Anonymous said…
This could being done another way.
Sit on a bench or sumthing else back-to-back with your partner.
Interlock arms sitting straight with your backs pressed together.
Rise up and down, and feel the pressure on your leg muscles.
At Tuesday, March 18, 2008 2:58:00 PM,
Jolie Bookspan, M.Ed, PhD, FAWM said…
Nina, what you describe is a half-squat. Far better without the bench. No need for equipment. Both partners use their own muscles to hold their weight, rather than sitting or touching down between each raise.
The exercise in this post is a leg press. Standing on your feet changes it to a squat. The squat can be a good exercise, but has opposite joint and muscle dynamics to the leg press. In this leg press, your body is fixed, and the feet move away. In the squat, the feet are fixed and the body moves. The difference in which end is stationary creates different forces on the muscles and joints. The body needs to practice both to be good at both. I will make a post on this. My book Healthy Martial Arts describes the back-to-back squat with photos, and also the partner leg press.
At Wednesday, November 26, 2008 4:30:00 PM,
Jolie Bookspan, M.Ed, PhD, FAWM said…
Hi Nina and readers, the post went up Monday, July 14, 2008 - What Is The Difference Between A Leg Press and a Squat?
Post a Comment
<< Home