What you'll gain

• Builds the glutes and inner thighs with wide-stance loading.

• Trains the squat pattern without needing a barbell or rack.

• Develops lower-body strength with home-friendly setups.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. 1

   Stand with feet wider than shoulder-width and toes turned out about 30 to 45 degrees.

2. 2

   Hold one dumbbell vertically with both hands hanging down between your legs.

3. 3

   Brace your core, lift your chest, and pull your shoulders back to set a tall posture.

4. 4

   Squat down by pushing your knees out over your toes and lowering your hips between your legs.

5. 5

   Descend until your thighs reach at least parallel to the floor with the dumbbell hanging near the floor.

6. 6

   Drive through your heels and squeeze your glutes to stand back up to the starting position.

Common Mistakes

• Letting the knees cave inward instead of pushing them out over the toes, which loads the inside of the knee.

• Rounding the lower back at the bottom, which puts the spine at risk under load.

• Squatting with feet too narrow, which turns the lift into a regular goblet squat and loses the inner-thigh focus.

• Cutting the depth short and stopping above parallel, which leaves most of the glute and adductor work on the table.

About This Exercise

The dumbbell sumo squat is a wide-stance squat with a single dumbbell held between the legs. The wide foot position with toes turned out shifts more of the work onto the glutes and inner thighs (adductors), with the quads and lower back assisting through the lift. It's a glute-focused squat that doesn't need a barbell. This clip earns a permanent slot in any lower-body program, glute specialization track, or general-population strength app. It's also a popular pick for coaches working with home-gym users who only have one heavy dumbbell — the sumo stance lets them load the legs effectively without a rack. Pair it with Romanian deadlifts and hip thrusts for a complete glute-day assortment.

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