Training guide
A box squat is a squat to a box or bench set at the depth you want. Set the box behind you so your thighs are about level when you sit, lower under control until you touch it, or sit for a second without relaxing, then drive back up. The box makes every rep the same depth and takes the bounce out of the bottom.
In lab studies, box squats produced about the same force and power as normal squats and, done with a wide stance, the lowest spine loads of three squat styles in 12 powerlifters lifting fast. But no trial has compared them with free squats over weeks, and the load your knees lose when you sit back goes to your hips and back.
This guide shows you how to do it step by step with a 3D demo, how high to set the box for healthy and sore knees, whether to touch or sit, the goblet, dumbbell and barbell versions, speed box squats, how heavy and how many, and the warning signs.
Set a box or bench behind you, lower under control until you touch it or sit on it for a second without relaxing, then drive back up. It makes every rep the same depth and takes the bounce out of the bottom. In 8 trained men, force and power were about the same as in a normal squat.
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In 12 powerlifters lifting light to moderate weights as fast as they could, the wide-stance box squat put the least load on the spine and ankle of three squat styles. In 7 men, stopping the knees from travelling forward cut the load at the knee by about a fifth but raised the load at the hip about tenfold: the load moves, it doesn't vanish.
For a standard box squat, set the box so your thighs are about level with the floor when you sit. A higher box asks less of your knees: in studies of standing up from a chair without any weight, a higher seat lowered the load at the knee by up to 60%. Nobody has tested box height in a loaded squat.
Our knee pain when squatting guide starts kneecap pain at a high box, at about 45 degrees of knee bend, where the stress behind the kneecap was lowest in a lab study, and lowers it a notch at a time. Our back and hip guides squat to the depth where your back stays put, or just above a pinch at the front of the hip.
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In 17 men over 10 weeks, full squats grew the glutes and inner thighs more than half squats. If you start with a high box, lower it over the weeks to the depth you want to be strong at (our suggestion).
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To learn, goblet squats to a box, 3 or 4 sets of 8 to 12 (our squat guide). For strength, barbell box squats, 3 sets of 3 to 5 at your target depth (our editorial starting point, from our guide to increasing your squat), resting 2 to 3 minutes, once or twice a week. Stop each set with 2 or 3 reps to spare: going to failure adds little muscle, and people misjudge the reps they have left by about one.
A squat to a box, bench or chair set at the depth you want, then back up. With a barbell on your back, it's a back squat in a rack with a box behind you; with a dumbbell held at your chest, it's a goblet box squat; with dumbbells at your sides or a bar across the front of your shoulders, it's a squat to a bench. Standing up from a chair is the same movement without a weight.
Your thighs (quadriceps), glutes and inner thighs (adductors) lower and raise you, while your hamstrings, the muscles along your spine and your trunk hold you steady. A wider stance with your shins near upright shifts more of the work to your hips, and squatting deeper grows the glutes and inner thighs more.
The muscle studies measured EMG (electromyography: electrodes measuring how hard a muscle works over a few reps). It shows effort, not what a muscle will build.
A controlled goblet squat, as the barbell box squat's move page says. For the barbell, a rack with safety bars and some practice with the empty bar, as our squat guide teaches.
Hip shape varies a lot, so the depth that pinches one person suits another, as our hip pain when squatting guide explains: a box lets each person train at their own depth. Longer thighs need more forward lean at the same depth, and a slightly wider stance or a higher box helps. Most beginners start higher and lower the box as they learn (our suggestion).
From our move pages: the box behind you at the depth you want, sitting under control, touching the box softly rather than dropping onto it, staying braced while seated, and the safety bars set just below the box. The lowering time, the stance options and the warning against rocking are our editorial suggestions, from our squat and knee pain guides.
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The movement on the figure: Barbell box squat
Lower until you feel the box, then stand straight back up without putting your weight on it. This is how our squat guide uses a box, and how the dumbbell and barbell squats to a bench are taught on their move pages: "Touch the bench; don't sit on it." It's the easier style to learn.
Sit on the box for about a second with your trunk braced and your feet still pressing, then drive up: the barbell box squat's move page says to pause without relaxing. Starting from a stop makes the bottom of the squat harder, which is why lifters use it for strength at the bottom. In 8 trained men, force and power were still about the same as in a normal squat.
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Some powerlifting coaches go further: a box 1 to 2 inches (about 2.5 to 5 cm) below level, sitting right back and relaxing only the muscles at the front of the hips while everything else stays tight, then driving up. It's coaching practice that no study has tested, and it suits experienced lifters rather than beginners.
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Whichever style you choose, lower under control and touch softly, and don't bounce off the box or rock back and forward to get going; the move pages tell you to stay braced on the box. Nobody has measured what relaxing on the box or rocking off it does to your back.
In 8 resistance-trained men doing single reps at 60, 70 and 80% of their best squat, peak force and power were about the same in the box squat and the normal squat; the box squat was slightly higher for peak force at 70% and for peak power at 80%. Thigh, hamstring and lower back muscle activity was generally a little higher in the normal squat. It's one small lab study, and muscle activity doesn't predict growth.
In 12 male powerlifters lifting 30, 50 and 70% of their best squat as fast as they could, the powerlifting and box squats used wide stances and near-upright shins. Peak loads at the spine and ankle were highest in the traditional squat and lowest in the box squat, and the hips worked hardest in the wide-stance squat without a box. In 7 trained men, stopping the knees from passing the toes cut the load at the knee by about a fifth and raised the load at the hip about tenfold, with more forward lean.
In 17 men over 10 weeks, full squats raised the full squat maximum more than half squats (31.8% against 11.3%) and grew the glutes (6.7% against 2.2%) and the inner thighs (6.2% against 2.7%) more; the front of the thigh grew about the same. A high box forever trades away depth.
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Touch-and-go barbell box squats to a box set for each person were the squat in 10 weeks of twice-weekly free-weight training for 41 healthy women aged 40 to 60 (31 finished): squat and bench press maximums rose, and nobody was injured. Box squats were the test lift in a study of 19 women after breast cancer, chosen partly for safety and because the box sets the depth, and the strength measure in two studies of adolescent rugby players, where the box squat maximum rose by about a third or more in 12 weeks of training.
In 12 professional rugby league players, 2 box squats loaded to 85% of their best, about 15% of it from bands, improved standing broad jumps 90 seconds later, with moderate effects. That's a boost on the day, not proof that box squats make you more powerful over months.
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We found no trial comparing box squats with free squats for strength, muscle, power or injuries over weeks, no study of box height in a loaded barbell squat, and no study of what relaxing on the box or rocking off it does to the spine. Claims that box squats are the safest way to squat, or that they protect your knees, are coaching opinion.
Set the box so your thighs are about level with the floor when you sit, as the chain box squat's move page says. Powerlifting coaches often use a box 1 to 2 inches (about 2.5 to 5 cm) below that, and higher boxes for limited mobility or rehabilitation (coaching practice).
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These are studies of standing up from a seat without any weight, not loaded squats. Rising from seats set at 65 to 115% of knee height, the load at the knee nearly doubled from the highest seat to the lowest, while the load at the hip changed by less than 12%. Across 39 such studies, a higher seat lowered the load at the knee by up to 60% and at the hip by up to 50%. In 8 young adults, though, peak hip and knee loads hardly changed between very low seats and a normal chair height.
In 8 people with knee arthritis standing up and sitting down, lower seats raised the activity of the front thigh muscles. That's useful training once your knees allow it, and a reason to start higher while they're sore.
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In 10 healthy people, the stress behind the kneecap during a squat was lowest from about 45 degrees of knee bend up to straight. That's why our knee pain when squatting guide starts kneecap pain at a box that high and lowers it a notch at a time while the pain stays within its rule.
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If you start high, keep the weight the same and lower the box a step at a time over the weeks, as our knee pain when squatting guide does, until you reach the depth you want to train. An adjustable step platform makes this easy (our suggestion); whatever you use must not slide or tip.
Sitting back with your shins near upright takes load off your knees and puts it on your hips and lower back. In 18 healthy volunteers, a box squat stretched the anterior cruciate ligament (a main knee ligament) less than a seated knee extension with 10 kg, and about as much as a deep lunge. With healthy knees, letting them travel past your toes is normal, as our squat guide says.
With knee pain, our knee pain when squatting guide's rule applies: 0 to 2 out of 10 during and after is fine, and up to 5 is acceptable if your knee is back to its usual level by the next morning; keep to 3 or less for pain at one point just above or below the kneecap. If it hasn't settled, drop back one step next time (a higher box, less weight or fewer sets), not to nothing.
A pinch at the front of the hip at the bottom of the squat is a depth signal, not something to push through: set the box just above it, as our hip pain when squatting guide says.
The wide-stance box squat put the least load on the spine of three squat styles in 12 powerlifters lifting fast, and our back pain guides squat to a box at the depth where your back stays put. Rounding the lower back while lifting wasn't shown to cause back pain, though that evidence is of low quality, and nobody has studied relaxing on the box or rocking off it, so stay braced.
With back pain, our back pain when squatting guide's rule applies: up to about 5 out of 10, settling within an hour or so and no worse the next morning. Stop or shrink anything that sends pain, pins and needles or numbness further down a leg.
Sit to stand from a chair, 5 slow reps (the NHS's strength exercise), building to 2 sets of 8 (our squat technique workout); the dumbbell squat to a bench, 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 with 2 or 3 reps in reserve (its move page's dose); goblet squats to a box, 3 or 4 sets of 8 to 12 (our squat guide); the barbell squat to a bench, touching only, 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 with 2 or 3 reps in reserve (its move page's dose); then the barbell box squat, 3 sets of 3 to 5 at your target depth (our editorial starting point); and, for experienced lifters, speed box squats (below).
3D demoSit to stand from a chairBeginner · A bench or box
3D demoDumbbell squat to a benchIntermediate · A dumbbell + A bench or box
3D demoDumbbell goblet squatIntermediate · A dumbbell
3D demoBarbell squat to a benchAdvanced · A barbell + A bench or box
3D demoBarbell box squatIntermediate · A barbell
3D demoSpeed box squatAdvanced · A barbell + A band + A bench or boxThe front squat to a bench, 2 sets of 5, light, as a depth check (our front squat technique workout); box squats with bands, chains or reverse bands for experienced lifters, 3 to 5 sets of 3 to 6 with 2 or 3 reps in reserve (their move pages' doses), checking the anchors before every set; and the single-leg high box squat, lowering on one leg to a high box (its move page gives no dose). A Smith machine box squat, not shown, is the same set-up with the bar on a fixed track.
3D demoFront squat to a benchIntermediate · A barbell + A bench or box
3D demoBox squat with bandsAdvanced · A barbell + A band + A bench or box
3D demoBox squat with chainsAdvanced · A barbell + Other / check instructions + A bench or box
3D demoReverse band box squatAdvanced · A barbell + A band + A bench or box
3D demoSingle-leg high box squatIntermediate · A step + A bandLight to moderate weight with bands, sitting to the box under control and standing up as fast as you can: 6 to 8 sets of 2 or 3, at 30 to 70% of your best and no more than 24 reps in all, which is its move page's dose. That matches the power advice in the ACSM's (American College of Sports Medicine) 2026 overview of 137 reviews: moderate loads, a fast lifting phase and low volume. Rest fully between sets (our suggestion).
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Bands and chains make the bar heavier as you stand. Of 28 elite British powerlifters surveyed, 39% used bands and 57% chains, and most lifted with explosive intent. Check the anchors before every set, and control the way down, because bands pull you towards the box faster.
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Heavy banded box squats improved broad jumps 90 seconds later in professional rugby league players, and adolescent rugby players got stronger at the box squat over 12 weeks of training. No trial has shown that box squats make you faster or jump higher than other squats; our guide to jumping higher covers training for power.
One powerlifting coach's method, for experienced lifters: 8 to 12 sets of 2 at 65 to 82% of your best on that box, about a minute apart, changing the box height every 3 or 4 weeks. It's coaching practice that no study has tested.
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The box squat is a squat, not a lesser one: force and power matched a normal squat in one study. But no trial has compared them over weeks, so most lifters keep a free squat as their main lift and rotate box squats in for a few weeks at a time, as our squat strength workout does. If the box sits high, you're doing a partial squat, and half squats built less muscle than full squats.
A squat to a bench is a box squat in the touch style: you touch and go, without sitting or pausing. It's the easier one to learn, and the one our knee pain when squatting guide brings back first.
A pause squat stops at the bottom without a box, so you hold the position yourself. A box squat lets the box mark the depth and, in the sit style, take a little of the weight. Our guide to increasing your squat covers pause squats.
A goblet squat to a box is the easiest loaded box squat and a good way to learn: the dumbbell at your chest keeps you upright. Our goblet squat guide teaches it.
Lower under control over 2 to 3 seconds and touch softly; if you can't, the weight is too heavy for now.
Stay braced, sit only briefly and drive straight up. Rocking for momentum means the weight is too heavy.
Raise the box instead, as the barbell squat to a bench's move page says.
Let your knees travel forward a little and keep the bar over the middle of your feet, as our squat guide teaches.
Knees follow your toes. Think of spreading the floor apart with your feet, our squat guide's cue, and take some weight off if they keep caving.
Use a sturdy box or bench, set against the back of the rack.
Pause instead. Bouncing out of the bottom raised the shearing load at the knee in studies cited by a powerlifting review, as our knee pain when squatting guide notes.
Lower it over the weeks if depth is your goal.
Goblet squats to a box, 3 or 4 sets of 8 to 12 (our squat guide), or the barbell squat to a bench from the empty bar, 3 sets of 5, adding about 2.5 kg a session while every rep looks the same (our squat guide's barbell start).
Barbell box squats, 3 sets of 3 to 5 at your target depth, sitting briefly without relaxing, with 2 or 3 reps to spare (our editorial starting point, as in our guide to increasing your squat). Rest 2 to 3 minutes, and 3 to 5 once sets of 5 feel heavy (our squat guide). Heavier loads build strength best, in the ACSM's overview.
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The barbell squat to a bench, 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 with 2 or 3 reps in reserve (its move page's dose), resting 90 seconds to 2 minutes, as our plans rest compound sets. Count each set as a squat set for your thighs and glutes.
Stop each set with 2 or 3 reps to spare, or 3 or 4 in your first two weeks, as our plans advise. Going to failure adds little muscle, and people underestimate the reps they have left by about one.
Once or twice a week, as one of your squats. Strength rose more with two or more sessions a week in the ACSM's overview.
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Add about 2.5 kg a session while every rep looks the same (our squat guide). If you started with a high box, lower it a notch at a time and keep the weight the same, as our knee pain when squatting guide does.
There are no box squat strength standards. Powerlifting coaches find people usually box squat a little less than they free squat; judge it by your reps in reserve.
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Standing hip circles, 3 slow circles each way with each leg (its move page's dose), and knee-to-wall ankle rocks, 10 a side (its move page's dose), before you squat; the deep squat hold, 60 seconds holding a support (our squat strength workout); dumbbell Romanian deadlifts, 3 sets of 8 to 12 (our full-body gym workout), step-ups, 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 10 each side (our lower body workout at home), and glute bridges, 2 to 3 sets of 10 to 15 (our beginner lower body workout); and dead bugs, 2 sets of 5 to 8 a side (our squat strength workout), and side planks, 2 holds of 20 to 40 seconds a side (our powerlifting workout for beginners), for your trunk.
3D demoStanding hip CARsBeginner · A wall
3D demoKnee-to-wall ankle rockBeginner · A wall
3D demoDeep squat holdIntermediate · No equipment
3D demoDumbbell Romanian deadliftIntermediate · A dumbbell
3D demoStep-upBeginner · A step
3D demoGlute bridgeBeginner · No equipment
3D demoDead bugBeginner · No equipment
3D demoSide plankIntermediate · No equipmentOur box squat workout builds a 45-minute leg session around the barbell box squat. The squat technique and front squat technique workouts use a chair or bench to teach depth, our beginner lower body workout starts with sit to stand, our squat strength workout rotates box squats in every 4 to 6 weeks, and the leg day workout is where a box squat can stand in for your main squat.
A 45-minute leg session built on the box squat: barbell box squats to a set depth, then Romanian deadlifts, step-ups and core, with sets, reps and rest.
45 minIntermediate9 movesA wall, A dumbbellA 25-minute practice session for the squat: find your depth on a chair, groove the bodyweight squat with pauses, then load it with a slow goblet squat.
25 minBeginner8 movesA wall, A bench or boxA 30-minute practice session for the front squat: loosen your wrists and upper back, groove an upright squat, then find your grip and depth with a light bar.
30 minBeginner12 movesA wall, A bench or boxLearn to squat, hinge and lunge: a 25-minute beginner lower body workout with bridges, clamshells and calf raises.
25 minBeginner11 movesA wall, A bench or boxA heavy squat session for lifters past the beginner stage: heavy back squats, paused back-off sets, Bulgarian split squats, Romanian deadlifts and dead bugs.
60 minIntermediate8 movesA wall, A barbellA gym leg day: back squats, leg press, leg curls, Bulgarian split squats, leg extensions and calf raises.
55 minIntermediate9 movesA wall, A barbellThese plans use our leg day workout or squat technique workout, where a box squat can take a squat's place.
A 6-day push/pull/legs plan for experienced lifters: two push, two pull and two leg days, with sets, reps, rest and lighter weeks.
6 training days55 minAdvanced4 days a weekA 4-day upper/lower split: two upper body and two lower body gym days, each muscle trained twice a week, with sets, reps and progression.
4 training days50 minIntermediate3 days a weekA 12-week workout plan for 13 to 17 year olds: technique first, then light weights, 2 or 3 sessions a week around sport and school, at home or in a gym.
3 training days40 minBeginnerStart with a high box and follow our knee pain when squatting guide, which lowers the box a notch at a time while the knee rule above holds.
Set the box just above the pinch, as our hip pain when squatting guide says, and go deeper only as the pinch allows.
Squat to a box at the depth where your back stays put, as our back pain when squatting guide says, and keep to the back rule above.
Standing up from a chair is one of the NHS's strength exercises: aim for 5 repetitions, and the slower the better. A clinical perspective on the squat in older adults suggests box squats as a first step before the back squat, and a goblet squat to a box is the loaded step in between. Our exercise guide for older adults has more.
Breathe out through every effort and keep the weight moderate, as our breathing guide says: heavy lifts to failure with a held breath sent blood pressure to an average of 320/250 mmHg (millimetres of mercury) in 5 bodybuilders. People with controlled blood pressure can do moderate strength training with proper breathing, the American Heart Association says.
If you already squat, a box or chair behind you makes a sensible depth guide as your balance changes (our suggestion; our pregnancy strength workout squats to a chair). The NHS says strength training is fine if you already do it, and not to start new vigorous activity in pregnancy. A pregnancy charity advises against holding your breath and says pregnancy isn't the time to try lifting your heaviest weights.
If you get chest pain or pressure, feel faint or dizzy, are unusually breathless, or your heart races or beats irregularly during exercise, as our plans advise. The American Heart Association says these need immediate medical evaluation.
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For chest pain that comes on suddenly and doesn't go away, feels tight or like squeezing, or spreads to your arms, neck or jaw; a sudden, extremely painful headache, for example during a heavy squat (the NHS says a bleed on the brain may be more likely when lifting something heavy); someone who faints while exercising; palpitations that don't go away, or come with chest pain, breathlessness or feeling faint; or signs of a stroke, even if they've stopped. Don't drive yourself to A&E.
If you haven't exercised for some time or have a medical condition, speak to your GP first, as the NHS advises. Get advice before heavy lifting if your blood pressure is uncontrolled, or you have heart disease or chest pain when you're active, a pacemaker or defibrillator, diabetic eye disease, glaucoma, a hernia, recent eye or tummy surgery, or you're pregnant, as our breathing guide lists.
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Call 999 or go to A&E for loss of feeling or numbness around your genitals or bottom, new trouble peeing or controlling your bladder or bowels, changes in genital sensation during sex or problems with erections or orgasm, or pain, tingling, weakness or numbness in both legs. These are signs of cauda equina syndrome, which needs treating in hospital urgently; don't drive yourself. Back pain with chest pain is also a 999 call.
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Get advice from NHS 111 if your knee is very painful, you can't move it or put weight on it, it's badly swollen or has changed shape, or it locks, gives way or clicks painfully; painless clicking is normal. In the US, use urgent care. See a GP if knee pain doesn't improve within a few weeks.
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A pop or tearing feeling at the front of the knee during a heavy squat, then you can't straighten the knee or lift the straight leg, there's a dent above or below the kneecap, or the kneecap sits higher or lower than on the other side: go to A&E or an urgent treatment centre, or get help from NHS 111, the same day. A torn quadriceps or kneecap tendon does best when it's repaired soon, as our knee pain when squatting guide says.
Call 999 or go to A&E for severe hip pain after a fall or injury, if you can't walk or put weight on your leg, or for tingling or loss of feeling in your hip or leg after an injury.
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See a GP if you think you have a hernia. Get help from NHS 111 if you have a hernia and pain in or around it, a bloated tummy, sickness, constipation, a high temperature or sudden confusion. Call 999 or go to A&E for a femoral hernia (a lump at the top of the thigh) with very bad tummy pain, sickness, being unable to fart or poo, a high temperature or sudden confusion.
Call 999 or go to A&E if you heard a crack, or the injured part has changed shape, points at an odd angle, is numb or tingling, or has turned blue, grey or cold. Get help from NHS 111 if it's very painful, badly swollen or bruised, or you can't put weight on it.
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Muscle soreness for a day or two after a new or harder session is common and fades. Sharp pain, or pain that builds during a set or lingers into the next day, isn't: swap to an easier version, and see a clinician if it persists, as our plans advise. The NHS says to stop exercising straight away if you feel any pain or become unwell, and to get help from 111 if symptoms worry you or don't go away.
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Powerlifters made them famous, but box squats have been the squat in programmes for women aged 40 to 60, a test lift for women after breast cancer and the strength measure for teenage rugby players, and standing up from a chair is one of the NHS's strength exercises.
In 8 trained men, force and power matched a normal squat, and the box squat's spine and ankle loads were the lowest of three styles in 12 powerlifters lifting fast. It's a useful variation, not a replacement for the full squat, as our guide to increasing your squat says.
A higher seat took load off the knees in studies of standing up from a chair, and keeping the shins upright did in a squat study, which is why our knee pain guide starts there, but the hips and lower back take more. With healthy knees, deep squats with your knees past your toes are normal.
The wide-stance box squat had the lowest spine loads of three squat styles in a lab study of 12 powerlifters lifting fast. What hasn't been studied is relaxing on the box or rocking off it, which is why the move pages say stay braced.
No growth trial has tested them, but they work the same muscles as a squat. How deep you go and how hard you work matter most: full squats built more glute and inner thigh muscle than half squats.
That's a wide-stance powerlifting technique, useful when the knees are sore. For most people, letting the knees travel past the toes is normal and shares the load between the knees and hips, as our squat guide explains.
A squat to a box or bench set at the depth you want, then back up. You either touch the box lightly and stand straight up, or sit for a second without relaxing your trunk, then drive up. It makes every rep the same depth and takes the bounce out of the bottom.
Both work. Touching it marks your depth; sitting briefly takes away the bounce and makes the start harder, which powerlifters use to build strength at the bottom. Either way, never drop onto it, rock or relax.
For a standard box squat, high enough that your thighs are about level with the floor when you sit; powerlifters often use a box a little lower. With knee or hip pain, start higher (about 45 degrees of knee bend for kneecap pain) and lower it a notch at a time. In studies of standing up from a chair without a weight, a higher seat cut the load at the knee by up to 60%.
Usually a little harder at the same depth, because there's no bounce out of the bottom, and powerlifting coaches find people usually box squat a little less than they free squat. Force and power were similar in one lab study. A high box is easier; a low box with a full sit is harder.
In studies of standing up from a chair, a higher seat took load off the knees, and keeping the shins near upright did in a squat study, so our knee pain when squatting guide uses both, but the hips and back take more of the work. With healthy knees, a normal squat with your knees past your toes is fine.
The wide-stance box squat put the least load on the spine of three squat styles in 12 powerlifters lifting fast, and our back pain guides squat to a box at the depth where your back stays put. Stay braced on the box, as the move pages say: relaxing or rocking off it hasn't been studied.
Your thighs, glutes and inner thighs, with your hamstrings and back holding you steady. Sitting back with a wide stance shifts work to your hips. For the most glute growth, squat deep: full squats grew the glutes about three times as much as half squats in one trial.
They can be your main squat for a while, set at the depth you want to be strong at. No trial has compared them over weeks, so most lifters rotate them with free squats every few weeks.
There are no box squat standards. Start with a weight you could lift about 10 to 12 times, then for strength do 3 sets of 3 to 5 at your target depth, or 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12 to a bench, stopping 2 or 3 reps short. Expect a little less than your free squat, as powerlifting coaches find.
Yes. Standing up from a chair is one of the NHS's strength exercises, with 5 slow reps, and a goblet squat to a box is the next step. A clinical perspective suggests box squats as the first loaded squat for older adults.
Use a sturdy chair, bench or step that can't slide, and hold a dumbbell or kettlebell at your chest. Touch it lightly and stand straight back up; a dining chair usually puts your thighs about level when you sit, which suits learning. The dumbbell squat to a bench's move page gives 2 to 3 sets of 8 to 12.
A box squat with bands and 30 to 70% of your best, standing up as fast as you can: 6 to 8 sets of 2 or 3. Rugby players used heavy banded box squats to boost their jumps on the day, but no trial has shown that box squats make you faster than other squats.
Exercise education, not a personal prescription, and clinical review of these guides is pending. Check with a GP before starting hard training if you have a heart condition, chest pain, dizziness or breathlessness when active, and stop for sharp or increasing pain. Health disclaimer.
