Legs · Dumbbell
Dumbbell Single Leg Squat
How to do the dumbbell single leg squat, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Dumbbell
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Logged as
- Weighted reps
- Movement
- Squat
- Mechanic
- Compound
How to do it
Hold a dumbbell in each hand and stand on one leg with the other foot lifted off the floor. Push your hips back and bend your standing knee to lower until your thigh is about parallel to the ground, keeping your chest up and the free leg in front. Drive through your heel to return to standing, then complete your reps and switch legs.
- 1Feel the quad, glute, and hamstring of the working leg as you lower and
- 2rise
- 3Keep your knee aligned over your toes and chest lifted
- 4Control the descent rather than dropping into the bottom
Common mistakes
- Avoid collapsing at the knee or letting it move inward
- Don't use momentum to bounce out of the bottom
- Avoid rounding your back; hinge slightly to sit back
Muscles worked
The dumbbell single leg squat mainly works the quads and glutes, with the hamstrings, lower back, and calves assisting.
- QuadsPrimary
- GlutesPrimary
- HamstringsSupport
- Lower BackSupport
- CalvesSupport
- Upper AbsMinor
Kovo programs the dumbbell single leg squat for you and tracks it every session.
We build your whole program, drop the right lifts into each workout, and adjust your weights as you get stronger. Free on iOS and Android.
More quads exercises
- How to do the resistance band squat
- How to do the resistance band squat to press
- How to do the resistance band thruster
- How to do the resistance band squat walk
- How to do the barbell squat
- How to do the barbell bulgarian split squat
Last reviewed June 2026.