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Sumo Squats

The bodyweight sumo squat drops you straight down between a wide stance with toes turned out, shifting extra work onto the inner thighs and glutes. Maddy uses it to build comfortable depth for beginners whose narrow-stance squats feel cramped at the hips. 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

GoalSets × RepsRest
Strength4 × 5-6 slow reps (3-s descent)90-120 s
Muscle3 × 9-12 reps60-90 s
Endurance2-3 × 18-27 reps30-45 s

Rep ranges per Helms 2014 · Schoenfeld 2016.

Level — Beginner

Beginner; stance width and toe angle are personal — adjust until the knees track cleanly and depth feels free.

Proper form — 5 cues

  1. Set your feet well outside shoulder width with toes turned out about 30 degrees.
  2. Sit straight down between your heels — not back like a narrow squat.
  3. Push the knees out so they track over the middle toes all the way down.
  4. Keep the torso tall with hands clasped at the chest.
  5. Press through the whole foot and squeeze the inner thighs and glutes as you stand.

Breathing: Inhale on the way down, exhale as you drive the floor away and stand.

The 3 mistakes Maddy corrects most

Knees drifting inward on the way up.. The cave undoes the wide-stance mechanics, strains the knees, and switches off the inner-thigh work the stance exists for. Fix: Slow the ascent and push the knees toward the little toes; if they still cave, reduce depth for a few sessions.
Leaning the chest forward as depth increases.. The forward fold turns the sumo squat into a hinge and moves the challenge from legs to lower back. Fix: Hold the hands at the chest as a counterbalance and think 'grow tall as you sink'.
Heels lifting off the floor at the bottom.. Floating heels shift load onto the toes and knees and make the bottom position unstable. Fix: Widen the stance slightly or reduce depth until the heels stay glued; ankle mobility work expands the range over time.

Common questions

What do sumo squats work that regular squats don't?

The wide, turned-out stance lengthens the adductors — the inner-thigh muscles — so they contribute more on every rep, and many people find the glutes easier to feel as well. Regular squats still train the legs comprehensively; the sumo stance is a targeting tool, not a replacement. Maddy typically alternates stances across the week so both patterns stay strong.

Are sumo squats good for beginners?

Excellent, actually. The wide base is more stable, the upright torso is easier to maintain, and hips that feel pinched in a narrow squat often open up immediately with the turned-out stance. Most beginners reach a deeper, cleaner bottom position sumo-style within their first session, then carry that depth back to the conventional stance.

How do I progress bodyweight sumo squats?

In order: slow the descent to three seconds, add a two-second pause at the bottom, then increase reps toward the top of your range. When 15 paused reps are comfortable, hold a single dumbbell at your chest goblet-style — that is the dumbbell sumo squat already in Maddy's library — and restart the ladder at lower reps.

Related exercises

Easier: Squats  ·  Harder: Dumbbell Sumo Squat

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