Bodyweight Squat
A foundational lower-body exercise that lowers the hips by bending the knees and hips, then stands back up, using only body weight.
Overview
The bodyweight squat is a fundamental movement pattern that trains the legs and hips. Standing with the feet about shoulder-width apart, the exerciser sits the hips back and down as if lowering into a chair, then drives back up to standing.
Keeping the chest up, the heels down and the knees tracking over the toes keeps the movement balanced and controlled.
How to do it
- 1Stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart, toes slightly out.
- 2Brace your midsection and keep your chest up.
- 3Bend your knees and push your hips back to lower down.
- 4Descend to a comfortable depth with your heels flat.
- 5Drive up through your feet to return to standing.
Key points
- Keep your heels flat on the floor throughout.
- Let your knees track in line with your toes.
- Keep your chest up and your back in a neutral line.
Where it’s used
Sports that use bodyweight squat:
Fitness
Strength and general fitness training — the foundation that supports every other sport.
Calisthenics
Bodyweight strength training — push-ups, pull-ups, dips and progressions you can do almost anywhere.
Functional Fitness
Varied, whole-body training built around everyday movement patterns like squatting, lifting and carrying.
Related techniques
Push-Up
A bodyweight exercise that lowers and raises the body by bending and straightening the arms while holding a rigid plank line.
Plank
A static core exercise that holds the body in a straight line supported on the forearms and toes.
Deadlift
A strength exercise that lifts a loaded barbell from the floor to a standing position by extending the hips and knees together.
Explore across the knowledge base
Follow the threads that connect Bodyweight Squat to the rest of SocialSportHub.
Movement patterns
- SquatA knee-dominant pattern: bending the hips, knees and ankles to lower and rise while keeping the torso upright — the foundation of lower-body strength.
- JumpThe plyometric pattern of projecting the body off the ground through explosive triple extension and controlling the landing — the core expression of lower-body power.
- HingeA hip-dominant pattern: bend forward at the hips with a flat back, minimal knee bend, then drive the hips tall — powers pulling from the floor and jumping.
- PivotA rotation of the body about one planted foot, reorienting the trunk and hips around a vertical axis without travelling to a new location.
- LungeA split-stance, single-leg-emphasis pattern: stepping or dropping into a staggered stance and pushing back up to build single-leg strength, balance and stability.
Disciplines
- SnatchThe snatch is one of the two Olympic weightlifting lifts, taking the barbell from the platform to overhead in one continuous movement.
- Clean and JerkThe clean and jerk is one of the two Olympic weightlifting lifts, raising the bar to the shoulders and then driving it overhead in two phases.
- ÉpéeÉpée is a fencing weapon with point-only touches valid anywhere on the body and no right-of-way, so both fencers can score at once.
Exercises
- SquatA foundational lower-body movement where you bend at the hips and knees to lower down and stand back up.
- Hip thrustA loaded hip-extension exercise with your upper back on a bench and a weight across the hips.
- Tricep dipA pushing exercise where you lower and raise your body using your arms on parallel bars or a bench.
- Hip hingeThe foundational bending-at-the-hips pattern that underpins deadlifts, swings and picking things up.
- Bench pressA pressing exercise lying on a bench, lowering a weight to the chest and pushing it back up.
Lifestyle
- No equipmentActivities and workouts you can do with little or no gear, using mostly your own body.
- EveningUsing the evening to be active after work, whether to unwind or fit in a proper session.
- 20 minutesTwenty minutes is enough for a solid, focused workout — a proper run, an interval session or a full-body circuit.
- At homeMovement you can do in your living room — from bodyweight strength to yoga — with little or no equipment.
- 30 minutesA half-hour is enough for a proper, well-rounded session across many sports and workouts.
Skills
- BlockingThe skill of using the hands or body to stop or slow an opponent’s attack.
- Running formThe skill of running with efficient, relaxed and balanced movement.
- ThrowingThe skill of propelling the ball accurately and with control using the arm.
- Returning serveThe skill of reading and playing back an opponent’s serve to stay in the rally.
- BreaststrokeA swimming stroke using a symmetrical arm sweep and a frog-like kick, with the head lifting to breathe.
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How this page is maintained
- Content type
- Technique
- Provenance
- Tier A — evergreen educational
- Verified external sources
- 0
- Content updated
- 2026-07-09
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