Lunge with a twist!

I like lunges as part of a dynamic warm up and even as part of a body-weight circuit for training purposes. My balance and flexibility isn't great, so I find that not only does a lunge provide a good dynamic exercise, it also helps me develop better balance too. Adding dumbells increases the resistance element, and adding a twist or even swinging arms can be great for dynamic warm up. But which way do you twist, over the front leg or away from it? you can do either, but there are some important considerations.

I was watching a short video about a range of different lunges (forwards, backwards, to the side and at 45 degrees) used to warm up before running. Someone raised a question about the impact of adding a twist for clients with an ACL injury history. Apparently twisting to the same side as the forward leg places the least amount of stress on ACL. Worth knowing if you have someone with an old ACL injury and they either come with an issue that shows up because they are doing a forward lunge with a twist, or if you recommend the exercise for some reason.

All this assumes that you can perform the twisting lunge without losing control or balance. If you can't do that, then better to learn how to do a simple forward lunge without falling over first before progressing to the more challenging twist. Otherwise you might be adding stress through poor control.