Pistol Squats
The pistol squat is a full-depth single-leg squat with your free leg held straight out in front of you. It trains your quads and glutes hard, with your hamstrings and abs working for balance. It demands strength, ankle mobility and control. Build up by squatting to a box or holding a doorframe before trying it freestanding.
Muscles worked
The pistol squats trains the quadriceps and glutes, with hamstrings, abs helping.
Primary
Helpers
Weekly sets for quadriceps
Hard sets per week that Swole.fit plans for quadriceps, counting every exercise that trains it. Start a cycle near the growth line and climb toward the recovery limit before a deload.
How to do the pistol squats
- 01Stand on one leg with your arms reaching forward and lift the other leg slightly in front of you.
- 02Push your hips back and bend your standing knee, keeping your heel planted on the floor.
- 03Raise your free leg higher as you descend so it stays straight and clear of the floor.
- 04Lower until your hamstring meets your calf, keeping your knee tracking over your toes.
- 05Drive through your whole foot to stand back up, leaning your chest forward for balance.
Coaching cues
- Arms forward as a counterweight
- Heel down, knee over toes
- Free leg straight and high
Common mistakes
- Collapsing into the bottom and bouncing out loses control; slow the descent and use a box or support until you own the depth.
- Letting your heel lift as you sink shows limited ankle range; raise your heel on a small plate while you build mobility.
- Letting your standing knee cave inward reduces stability; keep it pointing in line with your second toe throughout the rep.
How Swole.fit programs it
Log it once and the app plans the next session for you.
- Most sets land between 8 and 15 reps, the range the plan steers compound lifts toward for size.
- Week one starts around 2 to 3 reps in reserve. Each week you train a little closer to failure, ending around 0 to 1 in reserve before a deload week.
- Once the top of the range is easy, Swole.fit suggests a harder variation or added load.
- Sets for this exercise count toward your weekly volume for every muscle it trains: a full set for the primary muscles, half a set for the helpers.
The full method, with the maths, is in how mesocycles work.
Pistol Squats alternatives
Same muscles, different tool. Swap in one of these when the equipment is taken or your joints want a change.
Log it. Let the app plan the next one.
Track your pistol squats free. Swole.fit picks the next weight, counts your weekly sets and tells you when to deload.