Are you looking for a simple lower-body exercise that will give you super results? Say hello to step-ups! That’s right, just climbing up a step and coming back down fires up your leg and glute muscles in ways that can outshine classic lower body exercises like lunges and squats.

While it might seem like climbing the occasional flight of stairs is a good way to add step-ups to your daily exercise routine, it’s even better to do step-ups at the gym. That way, you can focus on form and add resistance to make your step-ups more targeted and effective. In this blog, we’ll discuss what step-ups are, the muscles they work, their benefits, and how to do step-ups at our Thornton gym.

What Are Step-Ups at the Gym?

Step-ups are a one-leg-at-a-time exercise that combines elements of strength training, cardiovascular exercise, and balance training. To perform a step-up, stand in front of a sturdy, knee-height surface like a bench or step. Place your right foot on the elevated surface and push through your right leg to lift your body up, bringing your left foot off the floor to be level with the step. Then, step down slowly with your left foot and bring your right foot back down to the floor. That’s one “step.” You can use your bodyweight for this exercise or hold kettlebells or dumbbells to add resistance.

What Muscles Do Step-Ups at the Gym Work?

The main muscles worked during step-ups are your quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings, and calves. Other muscles that get involved are your stabilizer muscles, core, abductors, and hip flexors.

In addition to toning and strengthening your legs and bottom, step-ups also build support for your knee joints, hip joints, core, and back.

What Are the Benefits of Step-Ups at the Gym?

As many stairs as you’ve climbed in your lifetime, you’ve probably never thought of the many perks that come from this basic movement. Consider the following benefits you can get from adding step-ups to your workout at the gym.

Improve Balance and Muscle Symmetry

Since step-ups are a unilateral (one leg at a time) exercise, you’ll see big improvements in your balance and the symmetry of your lower body muscles. Working one leg at a time prevents your dominant side from overcompensating for your weaker side, as might happen during two-legged exercises like squats.

Enhance Stabilization

Step-ups and other single-leg exercises make you use your core and lower back muscles as stabilizers during the movement. You’ll get in a sneaky core workout and enhance your overall stabilization for other exercises, as well as movements in your daily life.

Boost Your Strength for Squats and Deadlifts

If you’d like to make new gains in your squats and deadlifts, your solution could be found in step-ups. In addition to improving your leg strength, step-ups also address muscle and strength imbalances that might be holding you back in your deadlift game.

Use Minimal or No Weights

No weights? No worries! Single-leg exercises like step-ups require less weight to challenge your muscles. As a matter of fact, because you’re using one leg at a time during step-ups, stepping without any weights at all is similar to performing a two-legged exercise like squats while holding your entire weight in dumbbells.

Protect Your Lower Back

Step-ups replicate squats, but as previously mentioned, you can use a lot less weight. That means step-ups can save stress on your back while still providing the same (or better) benefits as squats. Since you’re working one leg at a time with step-ups, any weight you’re holding is specifically targeting those muscles, so you won’t need to hold the same amount of weight as you would when you’re squatting with both legs.

Develop Power and Speed in Your Lower Body

If you’d like to improve your 5K time or dunking prowess on the basketball court, step-ups are perfect for the job. Step-ups will increase your leg power in a way that makes you run faster and jump higher.

Adjust for Any Level

This exercise is beneficial for people of all fitness levels and can be made more challenging as you get stronger. For example, step-ups can be adjusted by adding more or less weight, and also by changing the height of the elevated surface you use during the workout.

Build Glute Strength Better than Squats

Your glutes are made up of three muscles – the gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, and gluteus minimus. Step-ups target all three of these muscles. Plus, research has shown that step-ups are better at working the gluteus maximus and medius than regular squats. The maximus is your largest glute muscle, while your medius is the side glute muscle that stabilizes your knees and hips when you move forward (i.e., walk, bike, and run).

Target Your Hamstrings Better than Squats

Your hamstrings are the four muscles that run down the back of your thighs. They play an important part in moving your knees, hips, and thighs. They also work with your glutes as part of your overall lower-body strength. During a step-up, stepping back down is a great way to target your hamstrings, and works them better than regular two-legged squats.

Make Climbing Stairs Much Easier

Your quadriceps are the muscles in front of your thighs. When your knee straightens during a step-up, your quads fire, making it an excellent move for building these muscles and helping you climb stairs easier. They’ll even help you during those hikes in the nearby mountains! If you’d like to challenge your quads even more, make your step higher.

How Do I Do Step-Ups at the Gym?

To perform step-ups, stand in front of a platform that’s about knee-high. Your step shouldn’t be higher than mid-thigh, or you’ll risk putting strain on your lower back.

Place your right foot onto the step. Your foot should be flat on the step and your knee should be at about a 90-degree angle. Keep your head up, shoulders back, and torso upright.
Brace your core and press through your right heel to step up, straightening your right leg and bringing yourself to a standing position onto the step.
Touch the step with your left foot and then drop it back down onto the ground. Continue to keep your shoulders back and head up.
Repeat the movement, exhaling as you lift, and inhaling as you lower. Do about 8-12 reps on the right leg, and then switch legs.

To make this exercise easier, you can return both feet to the ground in between each step. To make this exercise more challenging, you can hold a set of barbells or kettlebells as you complete the exercise. Start with something lightweight (3-8 pounds) and then increase to heavier weights (10-20 pounds).

Step-Up Variations at the Gym

There are many ways to add variety to step-up workouts at the gym if you’re trying to make the exercise more challenging or target specific muscles. For example:

Low-box step-ups — A lower step will put more emphasis on your quads. Also, a lower step can allow you to increase the speed of your movement and incorporate more cardio into your workout.
Lateral step-ups — Standing next to the platform and stepping sideways will activate your glutes more than a standard step-up.
High-box step-ups — A higher step height will work your hamstrings and glutes more than a traditional step-up.

AFAC Gym Is Here for Every Step of Your Workout Journey

The best gym in the Thornton, Colorado, area to support you as you step up your workout game is Adventure Fitness Athletic Club. Our personal trainers will be happy to assist you with step-ups and any other exercises you’d like to try at our gym.

If you’re not a member of AFAC gym, please feel free to give us a call or stop by to learn more about our full collection of professional workout equipment, as well as our daily group classes. You can also contact our gym owner, Susan, at 720-849-0245 or susan@adventurefitness.club for assistance.

To read more articles from Adventure Fitness Athletic Club, check out our Adventure Corner blogs by clicking here.