Legs · Bodyweight
Squat and Knee
How to do the squat and knee, the muscles it works, and the mistakes to avoid. Pulled straight from the Kovo app's exercise library.
- Equipment
- Bodyweight
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Logged as
- Reps
- Movement
- Squat
- Mechanic
- Compound
How to do it
Stand with feet shoulder-width apart and lower into a bodyweight squat, pushing your hips back and keeping your chest up. As you stand, drive one knee up toward your chest, balancing on the standing leg. Lower the foot, squat again, and alternate the knee drive each rep.
- 1Quads and glutes driving you out of the squat
- 2Hip flexor pulling the knee high on the standing leg
- 3A tight core keeping you balanced on one foot
Common mistakes
- Letting the knees cave in or heels lift during the squat
- Rounding your back as you stand and lift the knee
- Rushing the knee drive and losing your balance
Muscles worked
The squat and knee mainly works the quads and glutes, with the hamstrings, hip flexors, lower abs, and calves assisting.
- QuadsPrimary
- GlutesPrimary
- HamstringsSupport
- Hip FlexorsSupport
- Lower AbsSupport
- CalvesSupport
- Lower BackMinor
- Upper AbsMinor
- ObliquesMinor
- AdductorsMinor
- Tibialis AnteriorMinor
Kovo programs the squat and knee 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.