Stop Doing Inner Thigh Lunges Like This (Knee Safety Guide)

Most leg workouts are obsessed with the front and back of the legs—quads and hamstrings. But if you ignore the adductors (the muscles running down the inside of your leg), you are leaving massive stability and aesthetic gains on the table. This is where inner thigh lunges come into play.

Also known as lateral or side lunges, this movement is deceptive. It looks easy, but it requires a level of hip mobility and coordination that most gym-goers lack. Do it right, and you bulletproof your knees while sculpting the legs. Do it wrong, and you're looking at a groin strain or a tweaked meniscus.

Key Takeaways: The Cheat Sheet

• Primary Focus: Targets the adductors (inner thigh), glutes, and quads.
• Movement Plane: Unlike standard lunges, this moves in the frontal plane (side-to-side), improving athletic agility.
• Safety Cue: Keep the heel of the lunging foot glued to the floor. If it lifts, your stance is too narrow.
• Hip Hinge: Push your hips back, not just down. Think about closing a car door with your butt.
• Progression: Master bodyweight depth before adding dumbbells or kettlebells.

Why Your Leg Day Needs Lateral Movement

We live life mostly moving forward. We walk forward, run forward, and sit facing forward. Consequently, most standard gym lifts (squats, forward lunges) occur in the sagittal plane.

Ignoring lateral movement creates an imbalance. Weak adductors lead to poor knee tracking during squats and run the risk of injury during sports that require sudden direction changes. Incorporating lunges for inner thighs fixes this by strengthening the muscles that pull the legs toward the body's midline.

How to Execute the Perfect Inner Thigh Lunge

Forget the speed. This move is about depth and control. Here is the biomechanical breakdown to ensure you are targeting the muscle, not the joint.

1. The Stance Setup

Start standing tall with feet together or hip-width apart. Take a substantial step out to the side. This step needs to be wide—wider than you think. If the step is too shallow, your knee will shoot past your toes, placing shear stress on the joint.

2. The Hip Hinge (Crucial Step)

As you land on the lunging foot, absorb the force by pushing your hips back immediately. Keep your trailing leg (the straight leg) completely locked out. Both feet should remain flat on the floor, toes pointing forward or slightly out.

3. The Descent

Lower your hips until your thigh is parallel to the floor. Your torso will lean forward slightly to counterbalance—that is fine. Just keep your spine neutral and chest proud. The knee of the working leg should track over the second and third toe, never collapsing inward.

4. The Drive

Push violently off the bent leg to return to the starting position. This "push" is where the magic happens. You aren't just standing up; you are driving the floor away from you.

Common Mistakes That Kill Progress

I see these errors constantly, even among experienced lifters. Fix these, and you will feel the difference instantly.

The "Heel Pop"

If the heel of your lunging foot peels off the floor, you have lost the chain of power. It usually means your ankle mobility is tight, or your stance is too narrow. Keep the foot flat to engage the glute and protect the knee.

The Knee Cave (Valgus)

When you descend, does your knee wobble inward toward your big toe? This is dangerous. It puts immense stress on the ACL. Fight to keep the knee pushed outward, aligned with your foot.

Rounding the Lower Back

Because this move requires flexibility, many people round their spine to get "lower." Depth achieved by rounding your back is fake depth. Maintain a flat back; if you can't go parallel yet, stop where your mobility limits you.

My Training Log: Real Talk

I want to be transparent about my history with this movement. I avoided inner thigh lunges for years because they felt awkward. I felt strong in a squat rack, but the second I lunged sideways, I felt like a baby giraffe.

The specific "unpolished" reality of this move is the groin pinch. When I first started adding load (holding a dumbbell goblet-style), I went too deep, too fast, without warming up my adductors. It wasn't an injury, but it was that terrifying "zip" feeling near the pelvic bone that makes you freeze.

Another detail manuals don't tell you: Shoe choice matters more here than in a squat. I once tried these in soft, cushioned running shoes. When I pushed off laterally to return to center, my foot actually slid inside the shoe, and the foam sole rolled over. It destroyed my stability. Now, I only do these in flat-soled shoes (like Converse or Metcons) or simply in socks so I can grip the floor with my toes. If you feel your foot sliding inside your sneaker, you're losing power.

Conclusion

Inner thigh lunges are not just a vanity exercise for toning; they are a prerequisite for healthy hips and knees. They expose your weak points immediately. Start with body weight, focus on keeping that heel down, and respect the range of motion your body allows today. Your squats and deadlifts will thank you for the extra stability later.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do inner thigh lunges burn fat specifically in that area?

No exercise can spot-reduce fat. While this move strengthens and builds the adductor muscles, creating a firmer appearance, fat loss occurs systemically through a caloric deficit. You cannot "crunch" or "lunge" away fat deposits in one specific area.

Why do my knees click when I do side lunges?

Painless clicking is often just gas escaping the joint or tendons snapping over bony prominences. However, if the clicking comes with pain, it's often due to the knee collapsing inward (valgus) or the hips not sitting back far enough. Check your form and reduce the range of motion.

Should I do these before or after heavy squats?

It depends on the goal. If used as a warm-up (bodyweight only) to open the hips, do them before squats. If you are doing them for hypertrophy (muscle growth) with heavy weights, do them after your main compound lifts (squats/deadlifts) so your core and legs aren't fatigued for the heavy lifting.