Cossack Squat

Squats are key to any training program. There are numerous variations of squats that all bring different things to the table. Incorporating the Cossack squat is a great way to utilize the many benefits of squats. It essentially involves shifting most of your weight from one leg to the other as you squat.

Cossack squats target mobility and flexibility more than traditional squats. Additionally, as a unilateral movement, they help maintain muscular balance. Unilateral training has been shown to be just as effective for strength and speed as bilateral training. Unilateral movements like the Cossack squat can help to remedy and prevent muscular imbalances.

How To Do

  1. Start by standing in a very wide stance, somewhere between two and three times shoulder width.
  2. Shift your body weight to the right side. As you do, rotate your left foot so your toes point up, and the heel is on the ground.
  3. Squat deeply over your right foot with your left leg fully extended. At the bottom of the movement, your right hamstring should sit on top of your right calf.
  4. Stand back up by pushing through your right foot and return to the starting position.
  5. Repeat with the opposite leg and for as many reps in your set.

Tips From Expert

  • Use a wide stance for the exercise setup. Your legs should be wider than shoulder-width with your toes pointing out at 45 degrees.
  • Your knee should come slightly forward as your torso moves directly out to the side. This is the correct exercise position.
  • Keep your hands together with your elbows in front of you at right angles. This helps to maintain balance throughout the exercise. 
  • Allow your foot to raise up on your non-working leg as you go into the squat position. This ensures targeted muscle activation.
  • Inhale and engage your core before coming down. Exhale as you come back to the starting position.

Optimal Sets and Reps

This exercise is useful for improving coordination and mobility as much as strength. It can include weight to add a challenge or use a restricted range of motion to make it easier. Below are general volume recommendations, but adapt them into your plan based on your experience and goals.

Training Type Sets Reps
Strength Training 2–5 2–8
Hypertrophy 2–6 8–12
Endurance Training 2–4 15–25
Power Training 2–5 2–5 (Explosive)
Optimal Sets & Reps of Cossack Squat

How to Put in Your Workout Split

The Cossack squat is a great strength and mobility exercise. Cossack squats can be incorporated into several different workout splits:

  • Push Days — Include Cossack squats on push days. They should be incorporated after your heavy lifting along with your other mobility and accessory work.
  • Build It Into A Warm-Up — Incorporating this mobility movement can be utilized to warm up for basically every sport. Building injury prevention work like Cossack squats into your training is an efficient way to warm up and strengthen simultaneously. You can get training benefits and prepare to play your sport at the same time.
  • Rehab And Prehab Splits — Cossack squats can be a cornerstone of your injury rehab plan as they effectively target mobility and stability. Whether you add it after another split or as a standalone training day, it can aid stability. Easing into Cossack squats will prevent you from moving into deeper parts of the range of motion in an unstable way.

Consult your physical therapist before attempting Cossack squats if you have had injuries. They are not a beginner movement.

Start with body weight, which will be a sufficient challenge for most of your leg workouts. If mobility, flexibility, and balance are relatively easy, consider adding weight. Hold a medicine ball or kettlebell against your chest to add resistance.

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Primary Muscle Groups

Quadriceps

Muscles located at the front portion of your upper legs, below your pelvis and above your knees. Consists of four parts.

Quadriceps

The quadriceps is a group of four muscles on the front of the thigh. They start from the hip and connect to the kneecap. The four muscles are the vastus lateralis, the vastus intermedius, the vastus medialis, and the rectus femoris.

These muscles flex (bend) the hip and extend (straighten) the knee. During a front squat, the quadriceps muscles can reach 59%–81% of maximum voluntary isometric contraction. Maximum voluntary isometric contract is the greatest activation a muscle can achieve; higher percentages can lead to greater strength stimuli.

A Cossack squat would have similar quadriceps activation for the leg that is bending. Those muscles control the descent and power the ascent.

Strong quadriceps are a requirement for all sports and general everyday movements like walking or sitting. Cossack squats can build strength and enhance lower body mobility to support a variety of sports and everyday movements.

The Cossack squat primarily engages the quadriceps. As you bend the knee to squat, the quadriceps control the descent. They then contract when you push through the foot to rise back to standing.

Secondary Muscle Groups

Gluteus

Large, superficial muscles located at your buttocks just below your lower back area.

Hamstrings

Muscles located at the back of your upper leg, below your glutes and above your calves. Consists of three muscles.

Hip Adductors

Muscles located at the upper inside part of your legs between your quads and hamstrings.

Gastrocnemius

Muscles located at the back of your lower leg and consists of your calf. Starts just behind your knee and extends to your ankle.

Soleus

Muscles located behind your gastrocnemius sitting slightly deeper. Runs down your leg and connects with the gastrocnemius to make your Achilles tendon.

Upper Rectus Abdominis

Muscles located just below the lower chest and above the lower abdominals. Between your ribs and pubic bone.

Lower Rectus Abdominis

Muscles located below your upper abs and above your public bone between your ribs.

Obliques

Muscles located on the sides of your rectus abdominals. Runs on the sides of your trunk.

Iliopsoas

Muscles starting at your back, moving through your pelvis connecting just below your groin.

Gluteus

The gluteus muscles are a group of muscles on the rear of the hips: the gluteus minimus, medius, and maximus. They stabilize the pelvis and support propulsion when running, walking, and jumping. See these gluteus minimus exercises for examples of movements that utilize the glutes.

The Cossack squat requires the glutes to control the body’s descent to the bottom of the movement. Engaging the glutes prevents the body from descending too far and risking injury or toppling over. The glutes are also key to propel the hips upward to move the body back to the starting position.

Hamstrings

The semitendinosus, biceps femoris, and semimembranosus muscles comprise the hamstrings on the back of the leg. They extend from the back of the thigh to below the knee. They can rotate the hip, flex (bend) the knee, and extend (straighten) the hip.

The hamstrings are important for sporting movements like jumping and running and everyday activities like sitting down and standing up.

In a Cossack squat, the hamstrings help to control the range of motion. They also work to prevent the body from losing balance and toppling over. When standing up, the hamstrings assist in moving the body upwards.

Additionally, sufficient hamstring flexibility is key for a full range of motion in this exercise. Cossack squats require much flexibility to get into a deep single-leg squat while keeping the heel on the floor. A similar amount of flexibility is required here as in a pistol or single-leg squat.

Hip Adductors

The hip adductors are a group of five muscles that stabilize the hips. These muscles are essential for rotating the thigh inwards and towards the midline of the body. Strengthening the hip adductors is key for reducing injury risk in a variety of sports. They stabilize the hips and support good posture.

During a Cossack squat, the hip adductors stabilize the movement and help the body stand up from the squat. These muscles move the thighs towards the body’s midline when standing up.

Iliopsoas

The iliopsoas is made up of two muscles: the iliacus and the psoas major. The iliacus originates at the pelvis and attaches to the upper portion of the thigh bone. The psoas major starts at the lumbar vertebrae (spine) and connects to the thigh bone

The iliopsoas is mainly involved in hip flexion, which is powerfully engaged in sprinting's knee drive. During a Cossack squat, the iliopsoas helps stabilize the hips, helping with proper form and reducing injury risk.

Gastrocnemius & Soleus

The gastrocnemius and soleus together make what most people assume is one calf muscle at the back of your lower leg. The gastrocnemius is the most superficial and larger of the two calf muscles. The soleus is the smaller and deeper in the body of the two. The muscles work together in movements like standing on your tip toes and long jumping.

During a Cossack squat, the calf muscles control the downward movement. They also help push back up on the leg with the bent knee. Flexibility and motor control are required in these muscles to keep your whole foot on the ground throughout the movement.

Rectus Abdominis

The rectus abdominis are the six-pack muscles on the front of your stomach. They are important for movements like sit-ups and core movements. They also play a key role in movements like the Cossack squat, providing stability and maintaining good posture.

Obliques

The obliques are often thought of as the side-abs. They are located along the sides of your stomach and are utilized in movements like side planks and side crunches. During a Cossack squat, they worked with the rectus abdominis to provide core stability.

Equipment

Bodyweight

Bodyweight

Requires bodyweight resistance and additional equipment for proper execution.

Variations

Exercises that target the same primary muscle groups and require the same equipment.

Bodyweight Squat

Bodyweight Bulgarian Split Squat

High Knees

Standing Quadricep Stretch

Burpees

Jumping Jacks

Lunges

Side Lunge

Jump Squat

Jogging

Alternatives

Exercises that target the same primary muscle groups and require the different equipment.

Hack Squat

Squat To Overhead Press

Barbell Squat

Dumbbell Lunge

Front Squat

Dumbbell Split Squat

Dumbbell Walking Lunge

Leg Extension Machine

Dumbbell Bulgarian Split Squat

Leg Press

Who Should Do?

Strength & Power Athletes

Strength and power athletes, from weightlifters to sprinters and team sport athletes, can benefit from Cossack squats. They will improve the range of motion and functional mobility, which is key for sports performance. 

They also target adductor strength, which can greatly help balance and ankle mobility. Balance can help athletes who utilize single-leg movements, like baseball pitchers and basketball players. Ankle mobility can benefit athletes who often spend time in a deep squat, like baseball catchers and ice hockey goalies. 

Endurance Athletes

Improved balance and ankle mobility also aid endurance athletes and others who spend a lot of time running. Whether you are trying to run faster or finish an Ironman, improved running mechanics will help. 

This can also help athletes in sports like soccer and field hockey who cover a lot of running distance. The improved hip adductor strength and balance will help maintain good running form over long periods of running. This helps with running economy and prevents poor mechanics, which can increase injury risk. 

Who Should Not Do?

Individuals With Poor Mobility

The Cossack squat is a compound movement involving multiple joints and large ranges of motion. Poor mobility in just one area can significantly hinder the performance of the entire movement. Mobility restrictions in the hips, knees, lower back, or ankles inhibit the exercise’s effectiveness and increase injury risk. 

If you can’t coordinate the full movement properly, you may be at increased injury risk. This is due to excessive pressure on the knees, ankles, hips, or lower back. 

Individuals With Knee Pain

Squats or lunges can aggravate knee injuries, causing further pain and lengthening recovery times. People with knee pain should avoid the Cossack squat to avoid further inflammation and flaring up an injury. 

All squats can cause tension overload in the knee, worsening existing pain factors. The extra knee range of motion should give those with joint issues pause before adding Cossack squats into their routine. Consult your doctor or physical therapist before performing Cossack squats if you’ve had knee issues. 

Benefits Of The Cossack Squat

Builds Strength 

While the Cossack may not be loaded as heavily as a back squat, there is extra emphasis on the adductors. As mentioned, improved adductor strength can help with everything from better back squat strength to improved run times. Additionally, mobility improvements can help you become stronger and more stable through larger ranges of motion. 

Tones Muscles 

Muscle tone refers to how much tension a muscle can hold. While often referred to only when it is too high or too low, muscle tension can also refer to a state of preparedness. A classical work on human movement refers to tone as muscle language, which prepares an appropriate movement response. 

Improving muscle tone can improve posture and joint health through more stable tendons, muscles, and ligaments. This improved muscular communication can improve movement control, aiding performance and lowering injury risk for athletes. It can also maintain and bolster quality of life as we age. 

Improves Flexibility And Mobility 

The Cossack squat can be incorporated as an alternative to pistol squats. Like the pistol squat, it unilaterally targets hip flexibility and mobility. Unlike the pistol squat, you keep both feet on the ground, making the balance element less challenging.

Cossack squats can enable those unable to do pistol squats to get many of the same mobility benefits. The movement’s deep squat and single-leg nature effectively target both flexibility and mobility.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Cossack squat good for?

Strength and mobility are powerfully targeted with a Cossack squat. This movement will challenge your strength, mobility, flexibility, and balance. Improving these qualities will help any athlete or anyone looking to improve their fitness.

Why is the Cossack squat so hard?

The Cossack squat will challenge your coordination, mobility, and flexibility much more than most other strength movements. The ranges of motion your ankles and knees undergo are much greater than in normal squats.

What is the difference between a Cossack squat and a side lunge?

The main difference is that in a Cossack squat, both feet remain planted throughout the movement. In a properly executed Cossack squat, the range of motion is also greater.

Do cossack squats work abductors?

Cossack squats do work both the hip abductors and adductors. As the adductors work on one leg, the abductors work on the other. The side-to-side motion of a Cossack squat effectively targets the abductors.

Resources

Endomondo.com refrains from utilizing tertiary references. We uphold stringent sourcing criteria and depend on peer-reviewed studies and academic research conducted by medical associations and institutions. For more detailed insights, you can explore further by reading our editorial process.

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