by Rachael  Schultz

The beauty of the goblet squat is that you can go heavy and go for strength or use a light weight and rack up reps for cardio or mobility, says , NASM-certified personal trainer, and general manager at <a href="https://solacenewyork.com/" id="5d610466-5323-320c-a62d-fe26db1a791c"> SOLACE New York </a> . Plus, unlike other squats, which only target your lower half, the weight-in-hand will work to torch your whole body. (An upgraded squat? Tell me more.)

How to: Grab a dumbbell or kettlebell. Stand with your feet slightly wider than hips-width apart and toes pointed slightly out. Pin your elbows to your rib cage and hold the weight right under your chin. If using a dumbbell, hold it vertically so your wrist is touching the bar and hands are cupping the top end of the weight; for a kettlebell, grip it by the horn, right-side-up. (This move was demo-d by <a href="https://www.sweat.com/" id="518ac46f-0479-3074-a0ca-8a3be4041e15"> Sweat </a> trainer <a href="https://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/a21634765/kelsey-wells-pwr-workout/" id="8cea6ff7-36c4-3d77-aaca-a5d02e1c9fab"> Kelsey Wells </a> .)

Keeping your arms close to your chest and elbows pointing down, bend your hips and knees to lower your body as far as you can slowly, over three seconds. When you're in your deepest squat, pause for two seconds, then drive through your glutes, legs, and heels to stand back up to the starting position (over about 3 seconds again). Thats one rep.

\"Goblet squats work everything-arms, shoulders, core, back, and obviously legs.\"

Reps/sets: If your goal is strength, Santucci advises aiming for three to five sets of three to five reps with a heavy weight. If youre aiming for cardiovascular fitness, do at least eight reps for four to six sets with a light weight. For mobility, hit eight to 10 reps for two to three sets at that light weight.

One form note: It's important to make sure you're hitting the true bottom of your squat. "If you only work half the range of motion, you're not getting the full capabilities of the muscle," Santucci says. That means not only are you forfeiting building the best booty possible, but you're also losing the functional training you need to, say, get up from sitting on the curb or off your meditation pillow.

Traditional squats strengthen nearly every muscle in your lower body-including your thighs, calves, glutes, and hamstrings. And when it comes to the goblet squat variation, the benefits keep on building: "Goblet squats work everything-arms, shoulders, core, back, and obviously legs, Santucci explains.

Goblet squats are not just a great move for total-body strength, but also core stabilization. By adding a weight to the front of your body, you'll challenge your core even more, since it will work to stabilize your body. And, most significantly, goblet squats really help strengthen that butt.

<h1> Make Goblet Squats Part Of Your Workout </h1>

You can add goblet squats in to pretty much any routine, no matter your goal for the day. But Santucci has two favorite ways to incorporate goblet squats into his clients workouts:

<ul><li> For warm-up: Use a super-light weight to focus on getting to the bottom of a squat, and boosting mobility. </li><li> For a strength/HIIT workout: Use a moderate-to-heavy weight for five sets of six to 10 reps. Then mix that with some burpees, rowing, <a href="https://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/a23692300/chin-up-vs-pull-up/">pullups</a> , and <a href="https://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/a20702206/how-to-pushup/">pushups</a> . </li></ul>

Additionally, you can add goblet squats to any <a href="https://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/a19982843/best-leg-exercises/" id="9fd6319c-3cd5-30ce-a018-5e92d7c35a69"> leg-day routine </a> -just incorporate it with your other fave leg and butt exercises. And if you're a big fan of squats, considering mixing things up and trying any of <a href="https://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/a19904135/types-of-squats/" id="197aacbb-0d38-3c15-aa7d-1876fa19019b"> these awesome squat variations </a> .

And for a full booty-focused routine with goblet squats, try this workout:

However you choose to work in goblet squats, your entire body (especially that booty) will thank you.

A goblet squat is like an avocado-you can add it to anything, and it'll make it even better. (Hey, you know I'm totally right.) Goblet squats are an awesome way to top off your <a href="https://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/a19920429/full-body-workout/" id="54f66db6-8ae6-3f0f-a913-1c2330fad05c"> full-body </a> or <a href="https://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/a20703896/butt-and-thigh-workout-0/" id="fc32d8dc-de27-3399-a3b6-d50cab034fa1"> leg workout </a> .

How To Do A Goblet Squat Like A Pro

Sure, holding a straight line isnt as exciting as <a href="https://www.womenshealthmag.com/fitness/a26090261/bicycle-crunches/" id="93c559a5-fea9-31d0-a61f-7f967f695850"> bicycle crunches </a> -but itll make you more functional both in the gym and out. Side planks are all about strengthening the side body and stabilizing your spine, says Cara Bonney, CSCS, a Master Trainer in Dallas. That translates to being able to lift more-whether its a barbell or a kid.

And if you think side planks are boring, well, you clearly havent tried the endless number of side plank variations.

Lay on your side with your forearm flat on the floor, bottom elbow lined up directly under your shoulder and both legs extended out in a long line. Feet can either be staggered for more stability, or stacked for more of a challenge. Engage your core and lift your hips off the floor, forming a straight line from your head to your feet. You should feel the abdominal draw in and cinch the waist feeling like a belt is lifting your waist/hips towards the ceiling, Bonney explains. Hold here for 15 to 30 seconds.

Top hand can be on side of hip (easier) or reaching up to the ceiling (harder). Keep your head in line with the spine and avoid looking down, which could compromise your cervical spine, Bonney says.

To make it easier, start with both knees bent, feet 90 degrees behind you, so youre forming a straight line from head to knees, and lift and hold. Then, one step up in difficult would be to keep the bottom leg bent but extend the top leg out, actively engaging the inner thigh as you push the top leg into the floor.

To make it harder, come into the regular side plank, but when you raise and hold, lift the top leg up and down or sweep it forward and back for more glute engagement. You can also add a challenge by dipping your hips toward the floor and back up.

The most advanced version: Start on your hand rather than your forearm, with your palm directly below your shoulder, top hand extended out toward the ceiling. Once you lift, rotate the top arm under the body, threading the needle and piking the hips slightly, then come back to neutral and repeat.

Most importantly, in all versions, avoid sinking into the shoulder-you should feel like youre pushing away from the floor at all times, Bonney says.

And stick to that 30 second max on all variations-if you want more of a burn, lower, pause, and then repeat. I would rather clients do a few shorter planks with great form than hold for minutes and start sinking into the hips and shoulders, Bonney says.

Benefits Of Side Planks

Side planks work your entire core. The core is not just the abdominals but include all trunk muscles including hips and back erector spinal muscles, Bonney explains.

It primarily uses the oblique abdominal muscles, but your gluteus medius and gluteus maximus-the side and back hip muscles-help stabilize the hip and shoulder stabilizers also keep you in alignment, Bonney says.

This is a great exercise to enhance movement in body daily life and other sports, Bonney says. It works our postural muscles-thats the spine and hips-to help us stay upright and prevent injuries, she adds.

One huge perk of this move is its super safe even for people who have back or disc injuries. While a lot of core moves involve curling your spine and putting pressure on your low back or neck (think: sit ups, bicycle crunches), side planks dont flex or compress your spine in any way. This not only reduces irritation and injury risk, but also enhances functionality since we move our body in daily life with a neutral spine position, Bonney points out.

How To Incorporate Side Planks Into Your Workout

Because its such a great and safe stabilizer, you should try and lift into side planks as many days of the week as you can-at least every time you exercise, Bonney advises.

Incorporate them at the beginning or end of a cardio day, or as a rest interval during interval training to make the most of every minute but still allow your heart rate come back to normal.

Like Bonney said, rather than holding a single side plank for a long time, opt for multiples in sets of 15 to 30 seconds. If you want a strong side burn or are working obliques today, start with the beginner side plank (knees bent), then add a couple variations in the next plank.

Her favorite way to work them into a routine: around the world planks. Start with a low plank (face down), then turn into a side plank, then flip up into a reverse plank, and then move into the other side plank. Hold each for 15 to 30 seconds, then go around the world again if your core is up for it.

Vanilla ice cream, a plain cheeseburger, that little black dress-sometimes keeping it simple is actually the most satisfying. That goes for the core move youve probably done in almost every workout class of your life: side planks.

How To Do Side Planks

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by Rachael Schultz

Articles written by the author

How To Do A Goblet Squat Like A Pro

How To Do Side Planks