Legs · Bodyweight
Side to Side Quick Step
How to do the side to side quick step, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Logged as
- time
- Movement
- Lunge
- Mechanic
- Compound
How to do it
Stand in an athletic stance with knees slightly bent and weight on the balls of your feet. Quickly shuffle one foot out to the side and back, alternating directions in a fast lateral step while keeping your hips low and core braced. Keep the rhythm quick for the set duration.
- 1Quick, light push-off through the outside of each foot
- 2Your calves and outer hips driving the lateral steps
- 3A low, balanced stance the whole time
Common mistakes
- Standing tall and letting your hips rise
- Crossing your feet or tangling your steps
- Landing heavy instead of staying light and fast
Muscles worked
The side to side quick step mainly works the glutes and calves, with the quads, adductors, lower abs, obliques, hamstrings, hip flexors, and tibialis anterior assisting.
- GlutesPrimary
- CalvesPrimary
- QuadsSupport
- AdductorsSupport
- Lower AbsSupport
- ObliquesSupport
- HamstringsSupport
- Hip FlexorsSupport
- Tibialis AnteriorSupport
- Lower BackMinor
- Upper AbsMinor
Kovo programs the side to side quick step 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 glutes exercises
- How to do the agility ladder drill
- How to do the airdyne bike
- How to do the arc trainer
- How to do the assault bike
- How to do the medicine ball atlas stone lift
- How to do the b stance hip thrust
Last reviewed June 2026.