If you’ve mastered basic single leg balance drills and you have good hip and knee stability in a basic step-up, then here are two drills you should consider trying.

The first is deceivingly simple but is a real challenge for most people. It requires considerable foot and ankle strength. Aim for 30-sec per side to start, then build to 60sec when you’re able.

The second is a Peterson Step-up, an exercise I learned about roughly 10-years ago from Charles Poliquin (check out his website Strength Sensei). He showed the Peterson Step-up as an advanced progression from the Poliquin Step-up, another exercise that I believe in strongly. Both are used to improve knee health and stability. Remember, between foot/ankle strength is liked strongly to knee stability, balance, glute engagement & hip stability. Needles to say, it’s important.

Typically, the Peterson Step-up is done slightly differently from what I'm showing here, but I find this variation to be more effective. I feel that my variation forces the exerciser to create more stability in the foot and ankle, and to sustain it for longer. Either way, try both methods over a few workouts and see what you like best.

And as a final bonus, here’s a split squat variation that is also designed to challenge your foot and ankle strength. It’s a similar idea to the other exercises, but you have the potential to add more load.