Fine-tune your Bulgarian split squat to savor the pain, optimize your form, and never get bored again.

Brandon Hyatt, MS, CSCS
Dec. 04, 2024

For decades, the Bulgarian split squat has been regarded as one of the most grueling and painful exercises— for good reason. Thanks to the rear elevated foot, the exercise's extensive range of motion makes each rep long and intense. You’ve either tried it and abandoned it for these reasons, or you’ve embraced it as a staple in your program.

They’re a fantastic and effective exercise for muscle strength, hypertrophy, stability, and mobility. The following tips won’t make them any less grueling. Still, by setting up correctly, discovering your favorite variation, and being intentional about which muscles you want to emphasize, you’ll want to do them weekly!

Set Up Correctly

If you set your front foot up too far, your range of motion will be severely limited, and it will feel awkward. If you set your front foot up too close, your front heel may pop off the floor, causing you to feel a lot of pressure in your front knee. These are two standard set-up mistakes that can lead to many people walking away from this exercise.

A great setup tip is to begin by sitting on the bench or on the surface where your rear foot will go. Next, extend your front leg with your heel on the floor and your toes up. Lastly, stand up with your front heel remaining exactly where it was seated and place your rear foot on the bench.

This will start you in a neutral position, where you can easily make any further adjustments. Observe where your front foot is on the floor or place a plate right in front of your toes to remember where to put your foot after each set. 

Choose your Favorite Variation

When thinking of Bulgarian split squats, what usually comes to mind is holding a pair of dumbbells. However, the exercise has many loading options and varieties, such as free weights and machines. Some creative variations can make the exercise feel better if you’ve only done it with dumbbells. 

• Smith machine: Back squat, front squat, and zercher squat loading positions
• Landmine
• Squat rack: Back squat, safety bar, front squat, and zercher squat loading positions
• Hold a bench or rack with one arm for balance and hold a heavy dumbbell in the other hand
• Hammer Strength - ground base squat lunge plate loaded machine

Choose Your Muscles to Emphasize

You can make micro-adjustments in your starting position to customize the movement to your needs and ability. For example, if you want to feel it more in your quads, you can have a more upright trunk and flex your knee more. If you want to feel it more in your glutes, you can lean your trunk more forward and maintain an upright shin.

You can make further adjustments with the squat loading position. For example, if you want to feel it more in the glutes, you will want to create more joint torque in the hips by loading the weight more in the back (back squat position, for example). If you want to feel it more in the quads, you will want to create more joint torque in the knee by loading the weight more in the front (front squat or goblet squat position, for example).

Final Note

Bulgarian split squats should be a part of everyone’s program because they are practical and offer many variations. They can be great as a primary workout lift, especially if you’re looking for a lift that doesn’t load up as much as a typical squat or deadlift since it is mainly unilateral.  Ensure you set up correctly, choose a fun and needs-based variation, and emphasize the muscles you want to train. Don’t skip out on this exercise!