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Fundamentals

Shrimp Squat

Stand on one leg, hold the other foot behind you and lower until the rear knee lightly touches the floor. One coach calls it easier than the pistol squat, and still much harder than a squat or a lunge.

Three positions of one repetition on one leg. The standing foot stays where it is. The side view draws one arm, the one reaching forward for balance, as the sources hold the free arm; the hand that holds the rear foot is not drawn. No source gives these angles: the figure is this page's model.
Difficulty
Advanced
editorial estimate
Steps to it
3 steps
Intermediate → Advanced
Usually done on
Floor
Start with the first stepHow it is done

Prepared by Calisthenics Balkan. Not yet reviewed by a qualified coach. 4 sources

The road at a glance

A short overview with links. Every step is explained in full under Progressions.

Helps to have first

This skill

Shrimp Squat

Leads towards

No movement in the Atlas builds directly on this one yet.

01

What it is

The shrimp squat is a squat on one leg. The other leg is bent behind you and its foot is held in a hand. The two pages that describe the steps agree on where it ends: you lower until the rear knee lightly touches the floor, and then you stand up on the same leg.13

The sources do not agree on every detail. FitnessVolt says to hold the ankle with the hand on the same side; Legendary Strength says only 'one hand'. That site calls the one-hand version the single shrimp squat, an easier step before the 'double' shrimp squat, which takes more flexibility. This page covers the one-hand version.12

The pistol squat is the other well-known one-leg squat. In it the free leg is held straight out in front, which FitnessVolt says needs excellent mobility and balance, and the same page calls the shrimp squat significantly easier. Legendary Strength lists the shrimp squat as one of four different one-leg squat variations that help each other.12

All the technique sources here are coaching or exercise-database pages. None is a study, none gives joint angles, and none reports injury data. Steven Low's chart puts the shrimp squat on its own ladder with beginner, intermediate and advanced stages, but he marks that ladder as proposed and not from his book.4

Balance on one leg, lower the rear knee under control to the floor and stand up without twisting.

02

How it is done

  1. Stand on one leg and hold the rear foot

    Stand on one leg. Bend the other knee, bring that foot up behind you and hold it with a hand. FitnessVolt holds the free arm out in front for balance and keeps the shoulders pulled down and back.13

    CueChest up, core braced, free arm out for balance.3

  2. Lower on the standing leg

    Bend the standing knee and lower under control. Liftosaur asks you to guide the rear knee straight down, keep the torso upright and the heel of the standing foot planted.3

    CueStanding knee tracks over the toes.3

  3. Let the rear knee touch the floor lightly

    Both pages end the lowering when the rear knee lightly touches the floor. FitnessVolt suggests a folded mat or foam pad under it so you do not touch down hard.13

  4. Stand back up on the same leg

    Drive through the standing foot to stand, without twisting or leaning to the side (Liftosaur). Then change legs; FitnessVolt says to try for the same number of repetitions on each leg.13

03

Progressions

These steps let you record the version you do now. They are not compulsory unlocks or a repetition programme.

What to have first

  • Steps that come before it on the charts and in the articles

    In Steven Low's proposed ladder the stages before the shrimp squat are lunges and a split squat with a chair. FitnessVolt says the shrimp squat is considerably harder than squats and lunges and that you can work up to pistols via shrimp and Bulgarian split squats. Legendary Strength names the airborne lunge as an even earlier step. None of them calls any of this a requirement.124

  • Ankle and hip flexibility (named for the two-hand version)

    Legendary Strength says flexibility, especially in the ankle and the hip flexors, is what holds many people back from the two-hand version, and that most people who have trained their legs already have the strength. It says the one-hand version takes less flexibility.2

  1. Step 1Intermediate

    Hold something for balance

    Hold a post, a squat rack or a suspension handle with the free hand, and use it only as much as you need. FitnessVolt says to wean yourself off it as you get stronger. Liftosaur also suggests a shallow range until you can balance through the whole movement.

    Technical note: The picture draws one arm, the one on the support; the hand that holds the rear foot is not drawn.13

  2. Step 2Advanced

    Lower the knee to a box

    Put a low step or box behind you and lower the rear knee to it instead of the floor. FitnessVolt says a higher box means a shorter range and an easier exercise, and to move to a lower box as your form improves.

    Technical note: The sources give no box height; the picture only shows the idea of a shorter range.1

  3. Step 3AdvancedGoal

    Shrimp squat

    Standing on one leg with the other foot held behind you, lower until the rear knee lightly touches the floor and stand up again.

    Technical note: Full describes the movement, not a number of repetitions; the sources' repetition suggestions are not repeated here.13

04

Community

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05

Common mistakes

  • Dropping the rear knee onto the floor

    Liftosaur lists dropping the rear knee instead of lowering it under control as a mistake, and FitnessVolt suggests a folded mat or foam pad.13

  • The standing knee caving in

    Liftosaur lists the knee of the standing leg caving inward instead of tracking over the toes.3

  • Twisting or leaning to the side

    Liftosaur lists twisting or leaning off to the side while standing up.3

  • A wobbling knee

    FitnessVolt says it is not uncommon for the knee to wobble because the movement asks for a lot of stability, and that sideways and twisting stress on the joint can lead to knee pain. It suggests a supported version and training barefoot to make balancing easier.1

06

Variations and related skills

  • Double (advanced) shrimp squat

    Legendary Strength calls its version the double or advanced shrimp squat, with the one-hand version as the easier step before it and more flexibility needed; it does not say how the hands hold the feet. Steven Low's proposed ladder lists a '2 Hand Shrimp' after the advanced shrimp. This page does not say they are the same movement and does not describe either further.24

  • Deficit shrimp squat

    Range

    FitnessVolt stands on a four to six inch platform so the knee can go lower than the floor. It says this is more demanding without adding weight.1

  • Loaded shrimp squat

    Load

    FitnessVolt adds a weighted vest or a weight held at the side or at shoulder height, and says that with a weight you may need to do the movement without holding the rear leg.1

  • The one-leg squat with the free leg held straight out in front. FitnessVolt calls it the more demanding move and says to master the shrimp squat first.1

Related skillsBodyweight Squat

On Calisthenics Balkan

07

Sources

4 sources

What this page relies on. Titles and publishers are written as published.

The small numbers in the text point to the entries below

  1. Shrimp Squat Exercise: Target Your Legs and Core Effectively!Patrick Dale, PT, training editor · FitnessVolt · published 3 Aug 2022, modified 11 Aug 2024; read 19 Oct 2026; the one named-author source with steps, regressions, progressions and drawbacks; a commercial fitness site, no reviewer is named (research S-0231)
  2. The Double Shrimp SquatLogan Christopher · Legendary Strength · 14 Aug 2018; read 19 Oct 2026; about ten sentences, it describes the one-hand version only as the easier step before the two-hand one (research S-0232)
  3. Bodyweight Shrimp Squat - How To, Muscles Worked & Form GuideLiftosaur exercise database · no author or date; read 19 Oct 2026; short steps and three mistakes, used only where it agrees with the FitnessVolt article (research S-0233)
  4. Overcoming Gravity 2nd Edition: progression charts (public spreadsheet)Steven Low · read 19 Oct 2026; the cells of the Shrimp Squat ladder only, no technique text; the chart marks this ladder as proposed progressions that are not in the book, and the book was not read (research S-0093)

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