The sissy squat is a quad train that’s hit it massive of late.

Its inventory has soared as a result of it trains all of the muscle mass in your quads in a totally lengthened place—one thing most different quad workouts, together with the front and back squat, don’t. And this implies it’s uniquely efficient for rounding out your quad growth. 

On this article, you’ll be taught what the sissy squat is, its advantages, which muscle mass it really works, the right way to do it with correct kind, the most effective sissy squat alternate options, and extra.

What Is a Sissy Squat?

The sissy squat is a body weight train that primarily trains the quadriceps.

Usually, you carry out the sissy squat by holding onto one thing sturdy, then flexing your glutes and bending your knees, permitting your physique to lean backward, your knees to trace over your toes, and your heels to come back off the bottom. 

You proceed to decrease your self till your knees are absolutely bent, then straighten your knees to face again up.

You may as well carry out the sissy squat utilizing a sissy squat machine (or “sissy squat bench”). which is a bit of apparatus that locks your toes and shins in place, permitting you to carry out the train with better stability.

Whereas performing a sissy squat with a sissy squat machine will be extra snug, it prevents you from absolutely lengthening the quads whereas performing the train, which suggests it most likely isn’t fairly as efficient for constructing muscle because the common sissy squat. Moreover, most industrial gyms don’t have a sissy squat machine.

For these causes, most individuals favor the common sissy squat, in order that’s the variation we’ll give attention to on this article.

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Sissy Squat: Advantages

4 muscle mass make up the quadriceps: the vastus lateralis, vastus medialis, vastus intermedius, and rectus femoris.

Right here’s how they appear:


sissy squat quad muscles

The three “vastus” muscle mass connect to the femur (thigh bone) and knee and are accountable for “extending” (straightening) the knee. Conversely, the rectus femoris attaches on the hip and knee, which suggests it extends the knee and “flexes” the hips (brings your knees nearer to your chest).

Thus, to completely stretch the vastus lateralis, vastus medialis, and vastus intermedius, you will need to absolutely bend your knee. Nevertheless, to completely stretch the rectus femoris, you will need to absolutely bend your knee whereas “extending” your hips (pushing your hips ahead to create a straight line between your torso and thighs).

Most leg workouts, together with the entrance, again, and Bulgarian cut up squat, contain bending the knees whereas extending the hips, however few contain bending the knees whereas the hips stay prolonged. 

This implies most leg workouts practice the vastus muscle mass in a totally stretched place however don’t practice the rectus femoris when absolutely lengthened. That is important as a result of research present that coaching your muscle mass in a stretched place is necessary for maximizing development.

In different phrases, most leg workouts successfully practice the vastus muscle mass, however most don’t optimally stimulate the rectus femoris.

The sissy squat is totally different. It entails squatting together with your hips absolutely prolonged, making it splendid for emphasizing the rectus femoris and rounding out your quad growth.

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Sissy Squat: Muscular tissues Labored

The sissy squat train trains all 4 muscle mass of the quadriceps:

  • Vastus medialis
  • Vastus lateralis
  • Vastus intermedius
  • Rectus femoris

Right here’s how they appear in your physique:


Sissy squats

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Sissy Squat: Type

One of the simplest ways to be taught the right way to do a sissy squat is to separate the train into three elements: arrange, descend, ascend. 

1. Set Up

Stand together with your toes shoulder-width aside and a sturdy object (comparable to a squat rack) 1-to-2 toes out of your dominant aspect. Seize the thing together with your dominant hand between hip and chest peak. 

2. Descend

Flex your glutes as laborious as potential, then bend your knees and permit them to maneuver ahead over your toes. As you descend, let your physique lean backward and your heels come off the ground. 

Proceed descending so far as you comfortably can or till your glutes are 6-to-12 inches out of your heels. 

3. Ascend

Reverse the motion and return to the beginning place by pushing your toes into the ground and straightening your knees. It is a mirror picture of what you probably did in the course of the “descent.” 

As you ascend, guarantee your hips stay absolutely prolonged in order that your physique varieties a straight line out of your head to your knees.

Right here’s the way it ought to look if you put all of it collectively:

sissy squat

The Finest Sissy Squat Alternate options

1. Kneeling Sissy Squat


sissy squat demo

The kneeling sissy squat is a wonderful variation when you’re new to sissy squatting as a result of it means that you can strengthen the identical muscle mass because the common sissy squat from a kneeling place, which provides you a extra steady base and minimizes the steadiness required to carry out the train. 

2. Banded Sissy Squat

sissy squat

Within the banded sissy squat, you stand on one finish of a resistance band and wrap the opposite finish behind your neck. This lets you progressively overload the sissy squat when the body weight sissy squat turns into too simple, which is significant for gaining muscle and energy.

3. Smith Machine Sissy Squat


sissy squat

The Smith machine sissy squat requires much less steadiness and coordination than the common sissy squat, making it a workable variation for many who discover the common model unstable or awkward.

Utilizing a Smith machine additionally makes including weight to the sissy squat extra easy, which is useful for superior weightlifters who discover the body weight model too simple. 

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4. Weighted Sissy Squat


weighted sissy squat

The principle good thing about the weighted sissy squat over the body weight sissy squat is that it means that you can elevate progressively extra weight over time, which is necessary for gaining muscle and energy. That stated, the weighted sissy squat is troublesome to do accurately, which suggests it isn’t splendid for everybody, particularly new weightlifters.