Archer squat
2 sets of 10-12 reps per side, holding the bottom 10 s each rep. 1 min rest.
- Slot
- Mobility
- Focus
- Mobility
- Time
- 12 min
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Injury risk
- Low
- Intervals
- 2 rounds, 1:00 rest
- Equipment
- Floor space
How to do it
Stand with your feet wide, toes slightly out. Shift your weight to one side and bend that knee while the other leg stays straight with the heel down. Keep your chest up, hold the bottom for 10 seconds, then shift across to the other side. Do 10-12 reps per side, rest 1 minute, then do a second set. For more stretch, let the toes of the straight leg point up (a Cossack squat). Hold onto something for balance if needed.
Who it’s for
Wide stems, big drop knees and anything that asks you to load one leg while the other stays straight. It builds range and strength in the same rep, which is why it earns its twelve minutes.
Common mistakes
- Heel of the straight leg lifting. Keep it down. The moment it lifts you’re getting range from your ankle instead of your hip.
- Chest collapsing forward. Stay upright. Folding forward turns it into a hamstring stretch and takes the load off the working leg.
- Rushing the ten seconds. The hold at the bottom is where the range comes from.
- Going as wide as possible on day one. Start narrower than you think and widen over weeks.
How to progress
Turn the toes of the straight leg up for a Cossack squat, which adds calf and hamstring range. Once two sets of twelve are comfortable, hold a light weight at your chest, which counterbalances you and lets you sit deeper.
When it fits
The training periods this exercise fits into in Blok Sessions.
- Base Lots of easy climbing, good movement and aerobic fitness.
- Endurance Climb longer before you pump out, by moving efficiently.
- Deload Train less, let your fingers recover, keep moving.
Related blocks
Start with a ready-made block
A six-week strength plan with a deload, as a file for the app, and seven short emails on how to run it.