How long should you hold the Cossack squat hold when you are new to the exercise?

Start with 2 to 3 rounds of a 15 to 20 second hold per side, resting fully between sides. Add five seconds to the hold once you can keep the bent-leg heel flat and the chest tall for the whole time, rather than adding more rounds first.

How do I make the Cossack squat hold easier or harder?

To make it easier, narrow your stance and hold a doorframe or rack upright for balance so you can focus on the stretch alone. To make it harder, hold a light plate or dumbbell at your chest, widen the stance further, or extend the hold time before adding load.

What is the Cossack squat hold good for and when is it not the right choice?

It builds strength and control at the outer edge of hip mobility, useful for lifters, martial artists, and anyone whose hips feel stiff moving side to side. It is a poor first move for someone with a current groin strain or very limited hip mobility, who should build range gradually before loading a static hold at end range.

Intermediate

Cossack Squat Hold

Parking at the bottom of a Cossack squat turns a dynamic drill into a loaded stretch for the straight leg's adductors while the bent leg's quad and glute hold you in place. The long hold builds strength at end range, exposes and improves side-to-side hip mobility, and teaches your body to own deep positions it usually rushes through. It is a potent low-tech tool for anyone chasing better hips and durable groins.

Equipment: Body Weight
Body part: Glutes, Thighs
Type: Balance, Strength
Browse by muscle: Adductor Magnus, Adductor Longus
Browse by movement: Squat

How to do it

1
Stand in a wide stance with your feet roughly double shoulder width.
2
Shift your weight to one side and sit down over that bent leg.
3
Keep the opposite leg straight with the toes lifted as it extends into a stretch.
4
Sink as deep as your mobility allows while keeping the bent-leg heel planted.
5
Hold the bottom position with a tall chest and a braced core for the set time.
6
Push back to center under control, then repeat the hold on the other side.

Tips

Keep the heel of the bent leg down; let the straight leg's foot rotate up.
Only descend as far as you can hold without your lower back rounding hard.
Hold a light plate at your chest as a counterbalance if you tip backward.

Variations

Common mistakes

The chest folds forward over the bent knee as fatigue sets in, which quietly shortens the hold and turns a groin stretch into a squat.
The straight leg's knee bends to fake extra depth, robbing the adductors of the length they are supposed to hold under tension.
Bouncing at the bottom to sink an inch lower defeats the point of a hold, which is to own the position under control rather than touch a new low for an instant.
Holding the breath through the entire set spikes tension in the neck and shoulders that has nothing to do with the hips this move trains.

Frequently asked

How long should you hold the Cossack squat hold when you are new to the exercise?: Start with 2 to 3 rounds of a 15 to 20 second hold per side, resting fully between sides. Add five seconds to the hold once you can keep the bent-leg heel flat and the chest tall for the whole time, rather than adding more rounds first.
How do I make the Cossack squat hold easier or harder?: To make it easier, narrow your stance and hold a doorframe or rack upright for balance so you can focus on the stretch alone. To make it harder, hold a light plate or dumbbell at your chest, widen the stance further, or extend the hold time before adding load.
What is the Cossack squat hold good for and when is it not the right choice?: It builds strength and control at the outer edge of hip mobility, useful for lifters, martial artists, and anyone whose hips feel stiff moving side to side. It is a poor first move for someone with a current groin strain or very limited hip mobility, who should build range gradually before loading a static hold at end range.

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