Legs · Bodyweight
Curtsy Lunge
How to do the curtsy lunge, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Logged as
- Weighted reps
- Movement
- Lunge
- Mechanic
- Compound
How to do it
Step one leg back and across behind you, lowering into a lunge while keeping your chest tall and hips controlled. Drive through the front heel to stand back up, then repeat on the other side.
- 1Front-leg glute and quad drive, with the outer hip working to keep the knee tracking well.
Common mistakes
- Letting the front knee cave inward, losing balance by stepping too narrow, or twisting through the hips.
Muscles worked
The curtsy lunge mainly works the glutes and quads, with the hamstrings, calves, and adductors assisting.
- GlutesPrimary
- QuadsPrimary
- HamstringsSupport
- CalvesSupport
- AdductorsSupport
- Lower BackMinor
- Upper AbsMinor
Kovo programs the curtsy lunge for you and tracks it every session.
The AI builds your whole program, drops the right lifts into each workout, and adjusts your weights as you get stronger. Free on iOS and Android.
More glutes exercises
- How to do the barbell hip thrust
- How to do the cable kickbacks
- How to do the barbell deadlift
- How to do the resistance band glute bridges
- How to do the machine hip abduction
- How to do the leverage machine hip thrust
Last reviewed April 2026.