Legs · Bodyweight
Squat
How to do the squat, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Logged as
- Weighted reps
- Movement
- Squat
- Mechanic
- Compound
See it in motion
How to do it
Stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Lower your body as if sitting back into a chair, keeping chest up and knees over toes. Push through heels to return to starting position.
- 1Sit back and down, feeling your quads and glutes engage
- 2Keep your weight balanced through your heels and mid-foot
- 3Maintain a neutral spine and brace your core throughout the movement
Common mistakes
- Avoid letting your knees cave in toward each other
- Don't round your lower back at the bottom
- Avoid lifting your heels off the floor
Muscles worked
The 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 squat 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 quads exercises
- How to do the barbell squat
- How to do the split squat
- How to do the step-up
- How to do the lunge
- How to do the bulgarian split squat
- How to do the dumbbell bulgarian split squat
Last reviewed April 2026.