The squat to stand is a bodyweight mobility drill that folds to the toes, pulls the hips down into a deep squat and stands to an overhead reach to open the hips and ankles. It is not a set of squats: your hands hold your toes through the bottom, so the arms pull the chest up and the elbows push the knees out into ranges an unassisted squat never reaches. It is the unloaded version of thetoe touch squat-to-stand with medicine ball overhead reach. Coaches put it in the warm-up before squatting.
What Muscles Does the Squat to Stand Work?
- Primary: Gluteus maximus, hamstrings, quadriceps
- Secondary: Adductors (inner thigh), soleus, erector spinae
- Tertiary: Lower trapezius, latissimus dorsi, rectus abdominis
How Do You Set Up for the Squat to Stand?
Stand barefoot or in flat shoes on a firm floor with your feet a little wider than your hips and your toes turned out slightly. Stand tall, pull your ribs down over your pelvis, and let your arms hang. Keeping your knees straight, fold at the hips and reach down until your fingers hook under your toes. Take the slack out of that grip.
How Do You Perform the Squat to Stand?
- Hold under your toes with straight legs and let the hamstrings take the stretch for a breath.
- Pull your hips down into a deep squat while your hands stay on your toes and your heels stay flat.
- Lift your chest until your back is flat and your shoulders are above your hips; that upright bottom is the position you came for.
- Push your knees out with your elbows and hold the bottom for two slow breaths.
- Reach both arms overhead and stand up, keeping the chest tall and the ribs down as the hips rise.
- Return to standing tall, drop the arms, and fold again for the next rep.
What Are the Key Form Cues?
- Heels welded to the floor: the depth has to come from the ankles and hips, not from rolling onto your toes.
- Grip first, then sink: hooking the toes before the knees bend is what makes the arms able to pull the chest up.
- Feel the hamstrings in the straight-leg fold and the inner thighs in the bottom of the squat.
- Use the elbows against the knees to widen the bottom position a little further each rep.
- Breathe out at the bottom and let the hips settle another inch as you do.
What Are the Most Common Mistakes?
- Rushing the rep: this is a range drill, so a fast bounce skips the positions you are trying to open, and each rep should take several seconds.
- Bending the knees during the fold: the hamstrings never stretch and the drill becomes a squat with an extra step, so keep the legs straight until your fingers are under your toes.
- Letting the heels rise in the bottom: the weight tips onto the toes and the ankles stop working, so shorten the depth until the heels stay down.
- Rounding the upper back at the bottom: the chest collapses and the thoracic spine takes the position instead of the hips, so pull up on the toes to lift the chest.
- Reaching overhead by arching the low back: the ribs flare, so keep them stacked and take a smaller reach.
What Are the Best Squat to Stand Variations?
- Heel-elevated squat to stand: a small plate under the heels lets tight ankles reach the bottom.
- Toe touch squat-to-stand with overhead reach: adding a light ball gives the top position something to hold.
- Squat to stand with a hold: three breaths at the bottom of each rep instead of one.
- Half-kneeling squat to stand: one knee down through the fold, opening one hip at a time.
- Squat to stand holding a PVC pipe overhead: the pipe keeps the arms honest through the stand.
How Do You Progress the Squat to Stand?
- Keep this drill unloaded: progress the range, not the weight, by sinking an inch lower each session while the heels stay flat.
- Build from 5 reps to 10 per round.
- Add a second round later in the warm-up once one round no longer changes how the bottom feels.
- Slow each rep to five seconds and hold the bottom for three breaths.
How Should You Program the Squat to Stand?
Run the squat to stand in the warm-up, after a few minutes of general movement and before your first squat or lunge. It is light enough for every training day, and daily if you sit a lot. Do 1 to 2 rounds of 5 to 10 slow reps with no real rest between rounds. Follow it with a bodyweight squat so the range you just opened gets used under your own weight.