5 Lunge Variations That Aren't Just "Step Back and Bend Your Knees"
Most people know one lunge: step back, bend both knees, come back up. It works, but it's only one tool in a much bigger box. In this video, Karan from Living Foundations walks through five lunge variations — starting with the classic version everyone already does, then moving into four less common patterns that train your hips, quads, and balance in noticeably different ways. Here's what each one does, and how to set it up correctly.
1. The Classic 90-90 Lunge
This is the lunge most people have seen, even if they haven't been taught it well. Set up in a side profile stance with one foot forward and one foot back. The goal is two 90-degree angles: your front knee bent to 90 degrees, your back knee bent to 90 degrees, and your torso staying upright rather than leaning back.
Coaching cues that matter here:
- Weight should be split roughly evenly between both feet — not dumped onto the front leg.
- Move straight up and straight down, like an elevator. No forward or backward drift as you rise and lower.
- Keep your feet at hip-width apart — not narrow (which throws off balance) and not wide (which changes the angle at your hips).
Benefit: Works both your quads (thighs) and your glutes fairly evenly, making it a solid foundational pattern.
2. The Poliquin Lunge (ATG Lunge)
This variation is credited to strength coach Charles Poliquin and popularized more recently by NBA performance coaches — Karan calls it the Poliquin lunge or ATG (ass-to-grass) lunge. You start the same way as the classic lunge, but instead of stopping at 90-90, you sit deeper.
The key coaching difference is in the knee path: instead of the knee moving straight down like an elevator, it travels forward and down — like an escalator. You're aiming for a position where your hamstring can comfortably rest against your calf at the bottom.
To find the right foot spacing, work from the bottom position first rather than lowering into it from standing. If your back foot is too far back, you'll feel your front heel wanting to lift off the ground — that's your signal to bring the back foot in closer until the front heel can stay down comfortably.
Benefit: This deep, forward-tracking position stretches the hip flexor of the back leg while also loading the front quad through a longer range of motion — a noticeably different stimulus than the standard 90-90.
3. The Dwyeu Lunge (Isometric Hold)
Karan learned this one from someone named Dwyeu (spelling as heard) and teaches it as an isometric hold rather than a moving rep, though it can be done with movement too.
Setup: get into your lunge position, but send the back leg much further back than feels comfortable. Bend the front knee down toward 90 degrees, bringing your shin close to vertical until it's essentially straight up and down. The back leg stays straight, and your torso and back leg should form one continuous line, hands on hips.
Karan calls this one of the most difficult glute-and-quad isometric holds around — holding it for 60 seconds is a real strength benchmark. It also doubles as a teaching drill for engaging the quads and glutes properly, an early introduction to hip hinging, and a strong finisher at the end of a workout.
Benefit: Deep isometric strength through the quads and glutes, plus a teaching tool for hip-hinge mechanics.
4. The Rear-Weighted 90-90 Lunge
From a distance, this one looks almost identical to the first lunge in the video — but the intent behind it is completely different, which changes what it trains. Instead of splitting weight evenly (roughly 50/50) between the front and back foot as in variation one, you shift 80-90% of your weight onto the back leg.
You still move up and down through the same 90-90 shape, but because so much load sits on the rear leg, the exercise shifts its emphasis toward the back leg's hip flexor — the muscle at the front of that thigh — putting it under a strong stretch-and-load effect in a lengthened position.
Benefit: Unlike the standard 90-90, which is quad-and-glute dominant, this version targets the hip flexor of the trailing leg — similar in intent to what a Cossack squat does for the hip flexor, just delivered through the lunge pattern.
5. The CC (Single-Leg) Lunge
The final variation borrows its intention from the Cossack squat (Karan calls it the "CC lunge"). A two-legged version of this movement pattern is very difficult to balance, so it's performed as a single-leg lunge instead, using the front leg for support and stability.
Benefit: Delivers a Cossack-squat-style training effect through a single-leg lunge setup, making a demanding bilateral pattern more accessible while still challenging balance and control.
Putting It Together
Chances are at least one or two of these five lunges are new to you. Try all five, and pay close attention to the specific cues for each — the foot spacing, the elevator-versus-escalator knee path, the weight distribution front-to-back. Every cue exists for a reason, and getting them right is what separates "a lunge" from a lunge that's actually doing its job.
A few practical steps to start:
- Master the classic 90-90 first — even weight, vertical knee path, hip-width stance — before layering in the others.
- Use the Poliquin/ATG lunge and the Dwyeu isometric hold when you want more hip flexor and deep-range quad work.
- Use the rear-weighted 90-90 and the CC lunge to specifically target the hip flexors and add a single-leg balance challenge.
Done with attention to form, these five variations can surface muscle sensations you haven't felt before, and at minimum will add real variety to a lower-body routine that's gotten stale.