Sissy Squat — bottom hold
Loads the quad and the knee in full flexion — the position a deep landing, a lunge for a ball or a low turn puts it in
How to do it well
The set-up and the rep in full, then the cues the app shows on the exercise card — the short version, for the moment you are standing in front of the bar.
Set-up
Stand with the feet hip width, holding a post or rack with one hand, and rise onto the balls of the feet.
The rep
Push the knees forward and lean the body back as one line from knees to head, keeping the hips straight rather than sitting back. Lower over five seconds until the knees are deeply bent, only as far as you can hold. Hold for twenty seconds, then squeeze the quads to drive back up to standing.
On the exercise card
- Knees travel forward, hips stay open
- Only as deep as you can hold
- Squeeze the quads the whole way back up
- Tempo
- 5s to lower
What goes wrong, and the fix
| What goes wrong | The fix |
|---|---|
| Sitting the hips back | That makes it a squat. The hips stay straight and the knees go forward. |
| Going deeper than you can hold | Only as deep as you can stay still at the bottom. |
| Letting go of the support | Hold on. Balance is not the point of the exercise. |
Make it easier, or harder
- Easier
- A shorter range, or a sissy-squat pad behind the calves.
- Harder
- A light plate at the chest, or a longer hold.
How Train Smart prescribes it
The sets and reps below are the authored starting point. The actual weight you see is calculated from your own last top set and the week you are in within your four-week block.
A deep landing, a lunge for a ball and a low turn all put the knee into full bend, a position most training avoids. The bodybuilding and bodyweight programs both hold this to build strength there.
| Program | Session | Sets × reps | Load |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bodybuilding | Legs — Quads, Hams, Glutes, Calves | 2 × 20s hold | BW / light plate |
| Bodyweight Athlete | Athletic Power + Core | 2 × 20s hold | BW / light plate |
What it trains, and who trains it
- Muscles worked
- Quads
- Region
- Lower body
- Classified as
- Mobility
- Prescribed in
- bodybuilding · bodyweight training
If you cannot do this one
Rack taken, kit missing, or it does not suit you. These are the swaps the app offers, matched by movement pattern and body region — each with the reason it is a fair substitute.
| Alternative | Why it works as a swap |
|---|---|
| Back Squat | Max lower-body strength under the bar |
| Front Squat | More upright — quad + core emphasis, great for cleans/sprinters |
| Goblet Squat | Easy to load, joint-friendly, great depth |
| Box Squat | Controls depth, easier on the knees, builds drive out of the hole |
| Pause Back Squat | 2s pause at the bottom — kills the bounce, real strength out of the hole for collisions |
| Tempo Front Squat | 3s down — quad eccentric for jumpers + sprinters |
This exercise, in a program that knows why it is there
Train Smart puts this movement in the right session, at the right point in your block, at a weight calculated for you — and swaps it automatically if you do not have the kit.
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