Home · Exercise Library · Back · Squats

Squats

The bodyweight squat bends the hips, knees and ankles to lower you toward the floor and stand back up — the most fundamental lower-body movement in training and in life. Mastering it builds the quads, glutes and trunk while laying the pattern every loaded squat, lunge and jump is built on. Coached by Maddy (NASM-CPT) — these are the exact form cues he gives on every client's first week.

Muscles worked

Quads · quadriceps Glutes · gluteus maximus Hamstrings Inner thighs · adductor magnus Lower back · erector spinae

Sets & reps by goal

Goal	Sets × Reps	Rest
Strength	4 × 3–6 (slow 3 s descents, or add load)	2–3 min
Muscle	3–4 × 9–12	60–90 s
Endurance	3 × 18–27	45–60 s

Rep ranges per Helms 2014 · Schoenfeld 2016.

Level — Beginner

The foundational beginner movement — and endlessly progressable through tempo, depth, range and load.

Proper form — 5 cues

Stand with feet shoulder-width, toes turned out 10–20 degrees
Start by pushing the hips back, then bend the knees
Descend until the thighs reach at least parallel
Keep heels down and knees tracking over the second toe
Drive the floor away to stand tall, hips finishing fully open

Breathing: Inhale on the way down, exhale driving up through the heels.

The 3 mistakes Maddy corrects most

Knees caving toward each other on the way up. The inward collapse is the squat's most common fault and loads the knee in the line it tolerates worst under fatigue. Fix: Think 'spread the floor' with your feet, and slow the rep — a mirror or a quick phone recording makes the fix stick.

Heels lifting as depth increases. Rising heels betray limited ankle range and tip the weight onto the toes and knees. Fix: Shorten the depth to where heels stay down, widen the stance slightly, and work ankle mobility separately.

Cutting depth high while calling it parallel. Quarter squats skip the range where the glutes work most and inflate rep counts with easy partials. Fix: Squat to a box or bench that puts the thighs at true parallel until the depth calibrates itself.

Common questions

How many bodyweight squats should a beginner start with?

Three sets of eight to twelve controlled reps, two or three times a week, is a productive and recoverable start. The number matters less than the standard: thighs to parallel, heels down, knees tracking straight. When twelve smooth reps feel easy, slow the descent or move toward loaded variations.

Are deep squats bad for your knees?

For healthy knees, squatting deep with good control is a normal, trainable movement — depth itself is not the villain. Problems come from depth without control: caving knees, lifting heels, bouncing out of the bottom. Build range gradually and let pain-free control decide your depth, not arbitrary rules.

Why can't I squat without leaning far forward?

Usually a mobility bottleneck — stiff ankles force the hips backward to keep balance, dragging the chest down. Try elevating the heels on a small plate or wedge; if the posture instantly improves, ankle range is your project. Longer thighs relative to torso also produce natural lean, which is fine.

Related exercises

Easier: Chair Squats · Harder: Jumping Squats

Chair Squat (Modified)Quads · Glutes Squat to Knee to Elbow TouchQuads · Glutes Squat WalkQuads · Glutes Sumo SquatsQuads · Glutes Dumbbell Sumo SquatQuads · Glutes

Browse: All back exercises · All glutes exercises · All quads exercises · All bodyweight exercises · Squats standards — men · Squats standards — women · Full exercise library

This is one exercise. Your plan is the other 99%.

Maddy hand-builds training around your exact body — schedule, recovery, injuries, food culture. It starts with a 3-minute scan.

Start My Body Scan → 11 questions · 3 min · free · no card yet