Quads exercise
Goblet SquatHow to do it, with form in numbers
- Also works
- Adductors, Abs
- Equipment
- Dumbbell
- Level
- Beginner
How to do it
How do you do the Goblet Squat?
- Hold one dumbbell upright against your chest, hands cupping the top end.
- Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, toes turned out slightly.
- Sit down between your heels until your hips drop just below your knees.
- Keep your elbows tucked and your chest tall at the bottom.
- Push through your whole foot to stand back up.
Cues
- Keep the weight glued to your chest.
- Knees follow your toes.
- Chest up, sit straight down.
Common mistakes
- Letting the dumbbell drift forward, away from your body.
- Letting the knees cave in on the way up.
- Rising onto your toes at the bottom.
Form in detail
What does good form look like?
Starting position
One dumbbell held upright (long axis vertical) in front of the chest. Both palms cup the underside of the top head, thumbs and fingers wrapped round the handle, so the top head sits at about collarbone level and the dumbbell touches the sternum. Elbows point down and stay close to the ribs. Heels about shoulder-width apart, toes turned out a little, whole foot flat. Stand tall, chest up, shoulders down, eyes forward.
The movement
Hips and knees bend together and the body sinks almost straight down between the heels. The dumbbell stays in contact with the chest and moves in a vertical line over the mid-foot. Because the load sits in front, the trunk stays more upright than in a back squat, much like a front squat. The knees travel forward and slightly out over the 2nd–3rd toes. At the bottom the elbows sit just inside the knees. On the way up, push the floor away and let hips and shoulders rise at the same rate.
End position
The rep turns round when the hips are just below the knees (hip crease a little below the top of the knee). The trunk is a little more upright than the parent back squat (trunk parallel to the shin, about 35–45° [3]) because the load is in front.
Tempo
2 s down, 0.3 s pause at the bottom, 1 s up, 0.5 s stand.
Form in numbers
What are the angles and distances?
| Measure | Target | Good range | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stance, heel to heel | 1.0 × shoulder width | 0.8–1.2 × (hip to just past shoulder width) | [1][2] |
| Toe-out, each foot | 15° | 5–25° | [3] |
| Dumbbell top head height | collarbone level | sternum notch to 5 cm below | [1][2] |
| Depth: hip crease vs top of knee | 3 cm below | 0–8 cm below | [1][2] |
The targets our 3D demo was built to, from the references below. Bodies differ, so treat the ranges as a guide for your own build.
For coaches
Use this demo in your clients’ programs
The Goblet Squat is in Trainaq’s exercise library. Add it to a workout, and your client sees this demo in the free Trainaq app above the sets they log.
Sources
