How to do the Chair Squat
Step by step
- Stand in front of a sturdy chair with feet about shoulder-width apart.
- Push your hips back and bend your knees, lowering toward the seat.
- Lightly tap the chair with your hips - do not flop down onto it.
- Keep your chest tall and your weight in your whole foot.
- Stand back up without rocking or using your hands to push off.
The thing people get wrong
Control the sit-down; the tap should be gentle. If standing is hard, it is fine to briefly rest on the chair between reps.
Coaching cue
Reach your hips back toward the seat first, before your knees start bending.
Stay safe
Use a sturdy chair that will not slide or tip, and back it against a wall if you are unsure.
Make it easier or harder
- Easier: Use a higher seat, or push off your thighs with your hands to stand.
- Harder: Use a lower chair and take three seconds to lower.
Muscles worked
- Primary: Quads, Glutes
What to do instead
Same job, different movement — useful if you don't have the equipment or it doesn't feel right today.
Daily Coach builds this into a real weekly plan. It picks the exercises for your equipment and experience, swaps around injuries you tell it about, and tracks what you actually lifted.