Intermediate

Gorilla Shuffle

The gorilla, or ape, shuffle holds you in a deep squat while you travel sideways by posting the hands and swinging the hips over them. It builds squat-position strength and mobility in the quads and hips while the shoulders take a share of your weight each time you plant. The rhythmic side-to-side travel also raises the heart rate quickly, so it works equally well as a mobility drill or a low-impact conditioning burst.

Equipment
Body Weight
Body part
Quads, Shoulder
Type
Cardio, Functional
Browse by movement
Squat
Muscles worked
Target
Rectus Femoris, Vastus Lateralis
Secondary
Gluteus Maximus, Gluteus Medius, Deltoid Anterior, Adductor Longus, Adductor Magnus
Tertiary
Abdominal External Oblique, Triceps Brachii Lateral Head

How to do it

  1. 1

    Drop into a deep squat with the feet a little wider than the hips and chest tall.

  2. 2

    Plant both hands on the floor to the left of your body.

  3. 3

    Push into the hands and hop both feet toward the hands, shifting your weight left.

  4. 4

    Land softly back in the deep squat with the hands lifting to reset.

  5. 5

    Continue traveling to the left for several reps, then reverse to the right.

  6. 6

    Keep the chest lifted and the heels down as much as your mobility allows.

Tips

  • Post the hands firmly so the shoulders share the load and the hips can swing over.
  • Land the feet softly to keep the movement low-impact.
  • Keep the squat deep the whole time rather than standing between reps.
  • Widen the stance if your heels lift, and work the depth over time.

Variations

Common mistakes

  • The hands get planted so far out to the side that the hips have nothing to swing over, and the drill turns into a sideways foot-hop with the arms only steadying you. Post them about a forearm's length outside the lead foot.
  • Wrists complain quickly when the palms slap down flat with the fingers pointing sideways. Turn the fingers toward your direction of travel, spread them, and grip the floor as you push.
  • Elbows snap to a hard lock on each post, so the shoulder catches your bodyweight through a straight joint. Keep a small bend and let the shoulder muscles take the plant.
  • As the hands reach out, the chest folds toward the floor and the low back rounds at the bottom of the squat, which is where it handles load worst. Reach with the arms and keep the sternum up.
  • One direction gets all the work because the room runs out and you walk back instead of shuffling back, leaving one shoulder and one hip much better at the pattern than the other.

Frequently asked

How many gorilla shuffles should you do when you are new to the exercise?
Three or four sets of six to eight shuffles in each direction is plenty to start, with a minute of standing rest between sets. Count travel instead if space is tight: 20 to 30 seconds of continuous shuffling per set works out about the same. Your squat depth, not your lungs, usually ends the set, so stop when the hips start rising between plants. Once you can hold a clean deep position for a full 30 seconds, add a set before you add speed.
How do I make the gorilla shuffle easier or harder?
To make it easier, put the hands on a low step so you do not have to squat as deep, widen the feet, and step them across instead of hopping. Working in a shallower squat and lowering it over weeks beats bouncing in a depth your ankles cannot hold. To make it harder, travel further before you turn around, slow the tempo so the hands carry your weight longer on each plant, or add a knee tap or a push-up at the moment both hands are down.
What is the gorilla shuffle good for, and when should I skip it?
It trains three things at once: strength in the bottom of a squat, shoulders that can take weight from odd angles, and a heart rate that climbs with no hard landings. That makes it a useful opener before lifting or a low-impact conditioning block. It is a poor choice if your wrists hurt under bodyweight, since every plant loads them near full extension, or if a knee objects to deep flexion. It also builds little maximal strength, because the load never goes past your own body, so keep squatting if strength is the goal.

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