If you want to tone and define your legs and butt, then variations of hopping, skipping and jumping are great ways to get that tight, toned and athletic look you want. Just don’t get annoyed when people keep asking you how you did it. Instead, have them do what you did…READ TOP TIPS every Thursday.
Part 1 – HOP
Single-Leg hops (as shown) are not only great for working your calves and quads, but they help to improve your balance and core stability as well. This is because you have to make sure that you are tightening your core muscles—keeping your upper body nice and tight—during this exercise. Also, being on just one foot creates a need for your body to adjust and adapt to a less stable environment. So the more you do single-leg exercises, the better your balance becomes.
How to do…
Single-leg hops – First bring one foot off of the ground as you tighten your core and make sure you are able to remain steadily balanced. To focus on your calves, do fast, short hops straight up and down as you jump; keep most of your weight on your toes and the ball of your foot. To focus more on your quads or thigh muscles, jump higher and do power hops using a greater range of motion. 
No matter which single-leg hop you choose, keep a little bend in the knee of the leg that is contacting the ground as you land; this will help to absorb the impact of your hop. Time yourself or count your reps to establish a starting point for your threshold, and set a goal to do more hops or hop for a longer duration the next time that you perform the exercise. If single-leg hops are a too advanced, that’s okay! Just put your other foot down and do two-footed hops. In the mean time you can work on your single-leg balance until you are ready for single-leg hops.
Two-footed hops – Choose an identifiable spot on the ground or create a line with a piece of tape, rope or jump rope and hop forward over the line, and then backwards. Make sure to keep a little bend at your knee the entire time in order to absorb your weight each time you land. 
Try to hop as quickly as possible in a controlled manner until you feel your muscles fatigue. Time yourself or count your reps to establish a starting point for your threshold, and set a goal to do more reps or go for a longer duration the next time that you perform the exercise. You can also hop side-to-side as a way to work your lateral muscles and train for sports like skiing. Back-and-forth, as well as side-to-side variations of hopping can also be done as an advanced version of a single-leg hop too.
HINT: To really feel the burn in your quads (thighs) keep extra bend in your knees during the entire exercise.
If you try these exercises, we want to hear from you! Let us know what you think or share your favorite variations of HOPS in our comments section.
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