Setup
Stand with feet hip-width apart, holding onto a sturdy support with one hand for balance. Rise up onto the balls of your feet with heels elevated throughout the movement.
How to do it
- Lean your torso backward while simultaneously bending your knees forward over your toes.
- Keep your hips, torso, and thighs in a straight line as you descend.
- Lower until your knees are fully bent and shins are nearly parallel to the floor.
- Push through the balls of your feet to return to the starting position while maintaining the backward lean.
- Squeeze your quads hard at the top of each repetition.
Watch out for
- ✗Breaking at the hips and sitting back like a regular squat instead of maintaining a straight torso-to-thigh line.
- ✗Letting the heels touch the ground, which reduces quad tension and defeats the exercise purpose.
- ✗Leaning too far forward or keeping the torso upright instead of creating the characteristic backward angle.