Well, I cant do those other two, but I can knock out a bunch of pistol squats.
Lets talk about what goes into one, and what progressions will get you there.
What is a pistol squat?
With the leg still out in front of you, not touching the ground, stand back up.
(This makes the balance easier, but requires a bit more strength to stand up.)
Its more impressive that way.
Some people, seeing this description, will go oh, like this?
and just bust one out.
For a select few of us, this is an easy move.
But for most of the population, its really hard!
It takes strength, balance, and mobility to do a pistol squat well.
Quad strength
Lets cover the most obvious thing first.
You need strong quadsmeaning your quadriceps, the group of muscles on the front of your thigh.
Say you weigh 200 pounds.
When you do a pistol, youre askingoneleg to take on thefull200 pounds.
So if you want to do pistols, you need strong legs.
At an absolute minimum, you should be able to barbell squat your own bodyweight.
The stronger your legs are, the easier pistols will be.
How to work up to it: Build your leg strength with thequad exercisesof your choice.
Barbell squats are great, but Id especially recommend single-leg quad work.
Moving your body up and down requires strength mainly from your quads, as we discussed.
Adductorstrength (in your inner thigh muscles) to assist the quads and to counterbalance the abductors.
Hold dumbbells in your hands for step-ups, or rack a kettlebell on your shoulder for the box pistols.
Its also a skill you might improve very quickly.
Once youre stable standing up, try moving around and bending your knee.
Notice how you have to move your butt back and chest forward to stay balanced as your knee bends.
This will become very important.
Want one more tip?
(And no,you wont ruin your knees by putting your knees over your toes.)
The most common thing preventing people from getting into a deep squat is ankle mobility.
For your butt to get low, your shins have to tilt forward.
As you descend into a pistol squat position, take note of whether you feel resistance anywhere else.
Depending on your body proportions, you may need to stretch or build strength in other areas.
Technique
Finally, we come to the truth that skilled movements take practice.
Ultimately, theres no one-size-fits-all answer to how to get your first pistol squat.
Some people have the strength but are missing the mobility, or vice versa.
Figure out what youre missing, and eliminate your weak points.
And if you arent sure what your weak point is, just work on everything.
Youll get there soon enough.
