How to do the Dumbbell Reverse Lunge
Step by step
- Hold a dumbbell in each hand, standing tall with feet hip-width apart.
- Step one foot back and lower until both knees bend to about 90 degrees.
- Keep your torso upright and let the back knee lower toward the floor.
- Drive through your front heel to stand back up.
- Return to standing and repeat, alternating or finishing one side at a time.
The thing people get wrong
Push up through the front heel, not the back toes. Stepping back (rather than forward) keeps the load on the front leg and is easier on the knee.
Coaching cue
Step straight back, not out to the side, so your front knee stays lined up over your foot.
Make it easier or harder
- Easier: Do it without weights until every step back feels steady.
- Harder: Pause for two seconds at the bottom before driving up.
Muscles worked
- Primary: Quads, Glutes
- Secondary: Hamstrings, Core
What to do instead
Same job, different movement — useful if you don't have the equipment or it doesn't feel right today.
Daily Coach builds this into a real weekly plan. It picks the exercises for your equipment and experience, swaps around injuries you tell it about, and tracks what you actually lifted.