5 Strength Exercises Every 40-Year-Old Man Should Do Regularly For Strong Legs

You may not know it, but at 40, certain phenomena that we would have done without point the tip of their nose.

The muscle mass decreases naturallytestosterone levels fall, recovery is no longer the same, we tend to store fat more easily…the Hess as the young people say!

However, we can always show the rest of the world that age is just a number and the following 5 exercises will help you maximize your muscle gains!

Beyond that, the moves we picked will help you feel more athletic, fitter in your daily life of pope/grandfather.

Because hey…what good is strength if you can’t move your body properly?

With these 5 exercises, get ready to gain mobility and energy, to lead a more active life.

Today’s selection is dedicated to the lower body. However, do not miss the list of 5 exercises for the upper body here: 5 exercises that all men over 40 should do regularly for a muscular upper body.

1) Kettlebell deadlift

The deadlift is a scary move, one may want to stop doing it as one gets older especially with existing injuries.

But it’s not inevitable, we can continue to do it safely, whether at the barbell, dumbbells, with a sandbag or kettlebells.

start with choose a kettlebell with a challenging load24 or 42 kg depending on your level.

You will then need to understand the “hinge”, a rotational movement of the hips specific to the deadlift.

To visualize the latter, imagine a chest of drawers open behind you, which you must close with your buttocks without bending your knees (your knees are slightly bent, but the angle does not move).

As your glutes move back towards this soil, your chest descends towards the floor to naturally accompany the movement.

Master this movement pattern first before getting the kettlebell.

For execution:

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, toes forward, and place your kettlebell between your feet, Bend your knees slightly and do your “hinge” to reach for the kettlebell with both hands (if your mobility doesn’t allow you to reach it, bend your knees a bit more), pull your shoulders back and down, engage your core and while keeping your back neutral and your chest proudly arched, inhale, Push now on your heels (try to separate the floor with both feet) to bring your hips forward and stand up, while keeping the kettlebell close to your body, Squeeze your glutes hard at the top and fully extend your hips, Bring the kettlebell down, everything in controlwith this hip hinge movement (hips back, back neutral),

Attentionon a deadlift: everyone has their mobility!

Don’t try to go lower than your hips allow, or your back will round out and you’ll lose tension (usually you lose neutrality in your spine when the load passes your knees).

It’s really important to understand that this is not a squat, your hips are pointed back and not down in a deadlift.

2) Dumbbell Thrusters

I put this exercise on the short list for legs, but it’s actually a exercise for the whole body.

Functional movement par excellence, particularly appreciated by crossfitters (among the most fit beings on this planet), you can practice it with the load of your choice (bar, kettlebells, dumbbells, sandbag, etc.).

Dumbbells are the most practical choice, however.

Execution :

Standing, feet in a classic squat position, a little wider than the hips, do a power clean to bring your dumbbells to your shoulders. The hands are placed slightly outside the shoulders and the elbows high, they form a 90° angle with the body (which never varies during the movement). Now engage a front squat by sending your hips back and go under the parallel to the floor, which means that your hips will go under your knees. From this low position, explode up the load with your legs by fully extending your hips and contracting your glutes hard. Then in a fluid movementpress the load above your head while exhaling. The load is then above your head, your arms straight and your elbows locked, inhale deeply and maintain the intra-abdominal pressure until the next exhale.

Start with a low weight with which you can hardly complete 10 repetitions.

Don’t forget that this is a movement that involves the whole body, it is very demanding!

To learn more, read our guide to thrusters.

3) Squat en suspension

Can we really talk about leg exercises without talking about squats? I do not believe !

We will, however, mention a little-known variant.

For people over 40, it can be difficult to go deep on a squat, getting the hips under the knees.

Often the hips are stiff, pain occurs in the knees, the lower back creaks, etc.

That’s why an assisted variant can be a big help, like here with a TRX!

Execution :

Grab the straps of the TXR facing the anchor point of the latter, Simply sit down, as low as possible (within the limit of your mobility), opening your knees well outwards, Come back up now without pulling excessively on the TRX, Repeat.

To progress and involve the cardio, you can dynamically come up for a jump squat, always with the TRX in your hands!

4) Side lunges

Here’s a move you’re not doing enough of: move sideways!

We often move in the same plane (sagittal) and not enough from side to side (lateral plane).

Moreover, over time, the adductors can become very stiff… one day, you decide to move this crate of wine on the ground with your foot and… CLAC!

Prevention is better than cure, bodyweight side lunges are an easy way to do this.

This exercise resets the counters to zero, strengthen the adductors (in addition to the buttocks and thighs) and open the hips.

Execution :

Standing, toes pointing in front of you, take a big step to the right side so that your left leg is straight, Send your hips back (again this fundamental concept of hinge) to transfer the weight of your body and sit on the right leg, Bring back by pushing hard on the right foot against the ground and change sides.

You need to keep your torso straight and your gaze forward as you perform your lunges in control.

Go as low as your mobility allows. Start at bodyweight, then include the kettlebell.

To take it a step further, move on to Cossack squats.

5) Bear crawl

We end with what is arguably one of the most overlooked bodyweight exercises…what a pity!

The bear crawl trains your whole body, from the legs to the shoulders, including your abdominal strap and your core!

It consists of walk very close to the groundon your 4 legs, like an animal and requires coordination between the trunk and the limbs of the body.

For execution:

On all fours on the ground, knees under the hips and wrists under the shoulders, Raise your knees a few centimeters off the ground, keeping your back very neutral (no arched or round back), Engage your abs and move your right hand forward same time as the left knee, keeping your knees very close to the ground and your back straight, Continue this time by advancing the left hand and the right knee.

The idea is really to take small steps.

If you don’t have a lot of space, you can take three steps forward and three steps back, simply reversing the movement.

You can also do it from the side or add a load that you drag behind you.

If it’s too complicated, just hold the posture isometrically, without moving.

It’s time to get started!

So much for these 5 exercises, you can do them at home with as little equipment as a kettlebell and/or a pair of dumbbells.

For example, a simple session could be:

1-2 sets of bodyweight squats followed by 3 sets of thruster work (perfect for targeting quads and glutes): 10 reps to muscle failure, 3 sets of deadlift work with a kettlebell or / two dumbbells (to work the hamstrings) 8-10 reps close to failure, 3 sets of 10 reps each leg of bodyweight side lunges focusing on a controlled movement, 2 * 30 m bear crawl to finish and involve the abdominals! Updated by Quentin on: 07/13/2023

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