by Tiffany Belle

Created on: January 30, 2009

Squats are one of the best exercises for working your legs, hips, and butt. They help to tighten and tone your legs while they firm and lift your butt. Squats are a simple exercise to do and can be done anywhere. They require no exercise equipment as they work your body by using your own body weight. Also, with squats you can control how much you want to work your body. You can go deeper for more of a workout or only squat slightly for a light workout. If you are looking for some new ways to do squats, here are some alternatives to the classic squats.

Plie Squats
Plie squats are a great way to focus more attention on slimming your inner thighs. Just like classic squats, they will still work your butt and thighs.
With a plie squat you need to take your legs out wide, pointing your toes outward. Rest your hands on your hips or inner thighs and if you wish you can hold some dumbbells to make the squat even harder. Keep your knees in line with your toes as you squat down. Push yourself back up using your heels. By taking your legs wider, you are making your inner thighs work harder.

Wall Squat
To do a wall squat you will need a stable wall that can hold your weight up against it. Stand with your back against the wall and slide your butt down until you are in a squatting position against the wall. The closer you keep your feet to the wall, the harder the wall squat will be. Stay in the squat position for several as long as you can or up until a minute. This exercise really gets your legs burning as you have to maintain the squat for longer, which engages the thigh muscles even more.

Jump Squat
The jump squat is definitely not an exercise for beginners. It takes more energy and endurance and will work out your muscles like you would not believe. Go into a classic squat position and squat down. When you come up you have to explode up by pushing off the ground with your thighs, calves, glutes and abdominals. Instead of just standing when you come up you are going straight into a jump. Bring your knees into your chest during the jump. Come down from the jump with your knees bent and go straight back into a squat with no rest and continue doing this for as many reps as you can.

One Leg Squat
The one leg squat is another advanced exercise. If you wish, you can keep something to sit on behind you like a chair or a stool just in case you lose your balance during the exercise. Stand in a classic squat position with your feet about shoulder-length apart. Lift one of your legs up, bending at the knee, making sure to keep your abdominal muscles tight. Lower yourself down, so that you are doing a squat, but do not place your lifted leg on the ground. Raise yourself back up to starting position. Do as many as you can on one leg and switch the lifted leg to work the other leg.

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