Legs · Smith Machine
Smith Lateral Step-up
How to do the smith lateral step-up, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Smith Machine
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Logged as
- Weighted reps
- Movement
- Lunge
- Mechanic
- Compound
How to do it
Set the Smith bar across your upper back and stand beside a box or step. Plant your near foot on top of the box and drive through that heel to step up sideways until your standing leg is straight. Lower yourself back down under control along the same path, then finish your reps and switch sides.
- 1The glute and quad of the working leg driving you up onto the box
- 2Your knee tracking over your toes as you stand
- 3Control on the way down rather than dropping back to the floor
Common mistakes
- Don't push off the floor with your trailing leg or hop up
- Avoid letting the working knee collapse inward
- Don't lean your torso toward the box; keep it tall
Muscles worked
The smith lateral step-up mainly works the quads and glutes, with the hamstrings and calves assisting.
- QuadsPrimary
- GlutesPrimary
- HamstringsSupport
- CalvesSupport
- Lower BackMinor
- Upper AbsMinor
- ObliquesMinor
- AdductorsMinor
Kovo programs the smith lateral step-up 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.