Squat to Chair Exercise
Builds functional lower-body strength and controlled squat mechanics for transfers and daily tasks.
How to Do the Exercise
Setup
Stand in front of a stable chair with feet about hip- to shoulder-width apart. Position the chair so you can reach it with a comfortable squat depth.
How to perform it
Push the hips slightly back and bend the hips and knees to lower toward the chair. Lightly touch the chair without dropping into it, then press through the feet to return to standing.
Dosage
3 sets, 8–12 repetitions, Tempo 3-1-2, Rest 60–90 seconds
What to Focus On
Key cues
- Sit the hips back toward the chair
- Keep the knees tracking with the feet
- Touch the chair lightly rather than dropping onto it
- Stand tall at the top
Why use it
Builds functional lower-body strength and controlled squat mechanics for transfers and daily tasks.
When to use it
Useful when progressing from supported chair transfers or mini squats into independent functional squatting.
Common mistakes
- Dropping quickly onto the chair
- Letting the knees collapse inward
- Using a chair height or depth that changes movement quality
Know When to Progress or Scale Back
Use your movement quality and symptom response to decide whether the current version still fits.
Progress when
- The current chair height and depth remain smooth and controlled
- You can complete the full set without using the chair for momentum
- Symptoms settle appropriately afterward
Scale back if
- You drop onto the chair or need the arms to stand
- The knees buckle or movement quality deteriorates
- Pain or swelling remains meaningfully worse afterward
Was This the Right Challenge Today?
Use the same three signals that matter inside Therapeutic Edge recovery plans: how challenging the exercise felt, how well you controlled it, and how your body responded afterward.
Answer after the exercise and, when possible, after you know your later or next-day response. This checks one exercise today; it does not change or save a rehab plan.
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