Bulgarian Split Squat

Muscles worked by the Bulgarian Split Squat

Primary

GlutesGluteus MaximusQuadsQuadriceps Femoris

Secondary

HamstringsHamstring Muscles

Also called: glute, glutes, gluteus maximus, buttocks, butt, quad.

Equipment

Dumbbell

Also called: db, dumbell, hex dumbbell, rubber dumbbell, hand weight.

How to do the Bulgarian Split Squat

1. Stand in front of a bench, place one foot behind you on the bench.
2. Hold dumbbells at your sides.
3. Lower your body until your front thigh is parallel to the floor.
4. Push through your front heel to stand back up.
5. Repeat on both sides.

Form tips

• Keep most of your weight on the front leg.
• Track your front knee over your toes without letting it cave inward.
• Square your hips forward and avoid rotating toward the bench.

At a glance

Bulgarian Split Squat in German & Spanish

Descriptions, instructions and tips ship in all three languages in the JSON.

Related exercises

• Barbell Back Squat
• Bodyweight Squat
• Box Squat
• Dumbbell Front Squat
• Dumbbell Split Squat
• Front Squat
• Goblet Squat
• Hack Squat

Exercise data (JSON)

The record below is exactly what exercises.json ships for this exercise — names, descriptions, instructions and tips in English, German and Spanish.

{
  "id": "bulgarian-split-squat",
  "name_en": "Bulgarian Split Squat",
  "name_de": "Bulgarische Kniebeuge",
  "name_es": "Sentadilla Búlgara",
  "description_en": "A single-leg squat variation with the rear foot elevated.",
  "description_de": "Eine einbeinige Kniebeugevariante mit erhöhtem hinteren Fuß.",
  "description_es": "Una variante de sentadilla unilateral con el pie trasero elevado.",
  "category": "strength",
  "force_type": "push",
  "mechanic": "compound",
  "difficulty": "intermediate",
  "equipment": "dumbbell",
  "body_part": "upper_legs",
  "primary_muscles": [
    "gluteus_maximus",
    "quadriceps"
  ],
  "secondary_muscles": [
    "hamstrings"
  ],
  "goals": [
    "hypertrophy",
    "strength"
  ],
  "tags": [
    "leg_day",
    "shoulder_safe",
    "lower_back_safe",
    "no_axial_load",
    "requires_bench"
  ],
  "variation_group": "squat",
  "is_unilateral": true,
  "is_bodyweight": false,
  "instructions_en": [
    "Stand in front of a bench, place one foot behind you on the bench.",
    "Hold dumbbells at your sides.",
    "Lower your body until your front thigh is parallel to the floor.",
    "Push through your front heel to stand back up.",
    "Repeat on both sides."
  ],
  "instructions_de": [
    "Steh vor einer Bank und lege einen Fuß hinter dir auf die Bank.",
    "Halte Kurzhanteln an den Seiten.",
    "Senke den Körper, bis der vordere Oberschenkel parallel zum Boden ist.",
    "Drücke durch die Ferse des vorderen Fußes, um aufzustehen.",
    "Wiederhole auf beiden Seiten."
  ],
  "instructions_es": [
    "Colócate de pie frente a un banco y apoya un pie detrás sobre el banco.",
    "Sujeta mancuernas a los lados.",
    "Baja el cuerpo hasta que el muslo delantero quede paralelo al suelo.",
    "Empuja con el talón delantero para volver a la posición de pie.",
    "Repite en ambos lados."
  ],
  "tips_en": [
    "Keep most of your weight on the front leg.",
    "Track your front knee over your toes without letting it cave inward.",
    "Square your hips forward and avoid rotating toward the bench."
  ],
  "tips_de": [
    "Wähle den Abstand zur Bank so, dass du stabil stehst.",
    "Lass das vordere Knie nicht nach innen kippen.",
    "Beginne mit dem schwächeren Bein und gleiche die Wiederholungszahl an."
  ],
  "tips_es": [
    "Mantén casi todo el peso sobre la pierna adelantada.",
    "Ajusta la distancia al banco hasta que la zancada sea estable.",
    "Completa todas las repeticiones con una pierna antes de cambiar."
  ],
  "met": 6.0,
  "images": {
    "flat": {
      "start": "images/flat/bulgarian-split-squat-start.webp",
      "peak": "images/flat/bulgarian-split-squat-peak.webp"
    }
  }
}

Fetch just this exercise

const { exercises } = await fetch(
  "https://exercise-dataset.com/exercises.json"
).then(r => r.json());
const ex = exercises.find(e => e.id === "bulgarian-split-squat");

Free for personal and commercial in-app use with attribution (“Exercise data by RepDB”) — see the license and ready-made attribution snippets. Redistributing the data as a dataset or API is not permitted.