Forward Step Ups with Weight

Forward step ups are a great functional exercise that mimics the every day task of going up a step, curb, or flight of stairs. Adding resistance helps increase the work required by your body, which is good for your muscles and bones.

Begin standing in front of a step or at the bottom of a flight of stairs with a weight in each hand. Open your chest and gently engage the muscles between your shoulder blades. Lengthen your spine without arching your back and stand tall, with both feet grounded on the floor.

Place your right foot in the middle of the step. Push through the right foot to step up as you lift your left knee to hip height. Stand tall on your right leg, then slowly lower the left foot back down to the ground. Step your right foot off the step and return to the starting position. Pause to make sure you are balanced, then repeat.

• Keep your eyes forward and don’t round your spine or hunch forward while you perform this exercise.
• Try to keep body weight in the heel of the stepping foot, not the toes.
• Imagine you are moving vertically, like you are in an elevator, as you step up, lengthening through the spine.