When it comes to building strength and improving movement, both single leg and double leg training have a place in our small group sessions, one on one personal training, and active rehab programs at AIM Athletic. At the muscular level, your body doesn’t actually register whether you’re using both legs or just one. Muscles respond to mechanical tension and stretch, not the specific exercise you're doing. So in a vacuum, there’s really no inherent difference between the two. What matters is how the exercise applies force and stretch to the tissue, and how that fits within your goals and biomechanics.
That said, single leg training does bring some unique advantages that are hard to ignore. For members dealing with low back discomfort, unilateral movements like step ups, split squats, or single leg deadlifts often reduce the amount of stress on the spine. This has to do with how the pelvis moves during single leg work. The bones of the pelvis can move more freely relative to the sacrum when you're on one leg, which can help minimize compressive or shearing forces in the lower back. That makes single leg work especially useful during active rehab or for anyone trying to manage or avoid back tension.
Single leg exercises also challenge your joints to move more independently and in a more coordinated way. When you train on one leg, the hip, knee, and ankle all have to stabilize and adjust in real time. With bilateral training, both sides are often locked into moving together, which can limit the variability and adaptability of the joints. Since we rarely move through daily life in a perfectly even stance, training this way carries over really well to real world movement. Whether it’s walking, going up stairs, or shifting weight from one side to the other, you’re usually moving one leg at a time.
There’s also something called the bilateral deficit. This refers to the idea that the combined force produced when both legs work together can actually be less than the force each leg can produce on its own, added together. So when you focus on one leg at a time, you might actually be able to produce more force and build strength more effectively. That’s one of the reasons we include single leg movements in so many of our programs. Whether your goal is better performance or rebuilding strength after an injury, this approach helps create better balance, more stability, and more control across all movement patterns.
In the end, both styles of training have their place. We use a mix of single and double leg work depending on what each member needs. By understanding what each method offers, we can help you move better, feel stronger, and get the most out of every session.
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