How to Find Your Best Squat Stance (Quadruped Squat Screen Guide)

A guide to finding the best squat stance for your anatomy

Squats are a king of strength training exercises, but figuring out the best squat stance for your body can be confusing. Should your feet be shoulder-width apart? Pointed straight or angled out? 🧐 Here’s a simple squat tip: there’s no one-size-fits-all stance. Everyone’s hip anatomy and squat mobility are different ¹.

In this short guide, we’ll walk you through a quick and easy test – the Quadruped Squatting Screen – to help you find your ideal squat stance. By the end, you’ll know how to position your feet for better squat form and comfort. Let’s get squatting! 💪

Why Your Squat Stance Matters 🤔

Having the right squat stance can make a huge difference in your squat form, depth, and even comfort. Stand too narrow or too wide for your body, and you might feel pinching in your hips, struggle to hit depth, or have your back rounding at the bottom (the dreaded “butt wink”). Remember, no two squats look the same – we all have unique hip structures, leg lengths, and flexibility. That’s why your best stance might be different from your gym buddy’s. Finding a stance that fits your anatomy will let you squat deeper and more safely, building strength with less risk of pain or injury.

Don’t force an arbitrary foot placement. Instead, find the stance width and foot angle where you feel strongest and can squat with good form.

The Quadruped Squatting Screen (Rock-Back Test) 🏋️‍♂️

One of the easiest ways to find your optimal stance is using a Quadruped Squatting Screen, also known as a rock-back test. This simple drill checks your hip mobility in a squat-like position ². It basically lets your body “tell you” whether you prefer a narrower or wider squat stance.

Step by step guide to find your best squat stance:

1. Get on all fours (quadruped position): Kneel down with hands under shoulders and knees under hips. Feet should be shoulder-width apart and knees slightly outside of the feet. Keep your spine neutral (flat back).
2. Rock back towards your heels: Slowly push your hips back as if you’re sitting into an imaginary squat. Go as far back as you can without rounding your lower back ³. This mimics dropping into a deep squat, but with the floor supporting your torso.
3. Observe your hips and back: Pay attention to how it feels. Do you hit a point where your hips pinch or your pelvis tucks under (lower back starts to round)? Note when that happens. The point where you start to feel discomfort is the maximum squat depth with this knee/stance width.
4. Now widen the knees and put the feet more narrow: This simulates a wider squat stance or a more toe out position. Repeat the rock-back. Can you sit back further this time? Many people find they can go deeper with a slightly wider position ⁴. If wider felt better, try even a bit wider – or if it felt worse, try a bit narrower.
5. Get on your forearms: To make this test simulate the squat even more so, you can be on your forearms rather than your hands. This mimics the forward torso angle during the squat.
6. Find your sweet spot: Continue tweaking until you discover the knee/stance width where you can rock back the deepest comfortably, without your back rounding or hip pain. This position likely corresponds to your best squat stance when you stand up! Mark where your knees and feet are – that’s about how far apart your feet should be and your toe angle for squats.

👉 What did we just learn? If bringing your knees out lets you sit back deeper before your pelvis tips, a wider stance or a more toe out position will probably allow you to squat deeper without butt wink ⁵. If you could rock back fully with knees under hips (no early rounding), you might do well with a narrower or shoulder-width stance. The goal is to hit depth comfortably. Each person’s hips are built a bit differently, so this test helps personalize your stance to you.

Stand Up and Test Your Stance 🔍

Once you’ve found that magic knee spacing in quadruped, it’s time to stand up and put it into practice. Place your feet with the distance you found in the test and point your toes out at an angle that would allow you to reach the same knee width as when you were on all fours while having your knees track in line with your toes (knees pointing same direction as feet ⁶).

Now do a few bodyweight squats in this stance:

• Check your depth and form: Can you break parallel (hips below knee level) without your lower back rounding? Does the squat feel more “open” at the hips? You should feel stable and able to keep your chest up.
• Compare comfort: How do your hips and knees feel in this stance versus others you’ve tried? Ideally, this stance should feel natural. If something still feels off (too tight, wobbly, or strained), adjust slightly (width or toe angle) and try again.

Don’t overcomplicate it. As strength coach Greg Nuckols advises, simply play around with your stance and see what allows the best combination of depth and comfort ⁷. Try squatting with an inch narrower or wider than your initial guess, and listen to your body. The right stance will usually “feel” strong and balanced when you hit the bottom of a squat. Stick with the width that gives you the deepest squat (good depth) while still feeling comfortable and stable.

Wrapping Up & Next Steps 🎯

Finding your ideal squat stance is a game-changer for your training. With this quick quadruped rock-back screen, you’ve got a tool to dial in your foot placement for better squats. Remember, the best squat stance is the one that lets you squat with solid form – there’s no universal perfect stance, so kudos for taking the time to discover yours! Now that you’ve sorted out your stance, keep practicing, stay patient, and don’t be afraid to adjust as your mobility and experience improve. With the right stance and solid form, you’ll be on your way to crushing your fitness goals. Now drop into that squat and stand back up stronger! 🏆🔥