The Leg Day Movement Everyone Loves to Hate — Here’s Why You Should Do It

Movement spotlight: Bulgarian split squats

Everyone has movements that are their favourite, and movements that are… less favourite. For most people, Bulgarian split squats tend to be in that second category!

I used to love to hate these too, but they’ve grown on me so much that now I just love them and you’ll see me doing strength whenever they’re programmed. Bulgarian split squats will build your strength and power as a single leg squat, but they will also increase your heart rate, engage your upper body and core while challenging your balance and coordination. And if you choose heavy enough dumbbells, yes they may also make you want to shed a tear.

Movement type: 

Compound lower body single-leg squat

Targets: 

Quadriceps, glutes, hamstrings, abdominals, spinal erectors

Equipment needed: 

Bench and dumbbells

Set up: 

Sit on the edge of the bench and put one leg out straight with your heel on the ground. Keep that heel where it is and step onto that foot – that’s roughly where your front foot position should be. Keep that foot there and place the top of the other foot onto the bench behind you. Position your back foot so only the top of your laces are touching the bench.

Movement focus: 

Front leg – your back leg is there to help you balance but the focus is on pushing up away from the ground with your front leg focusing on driving through your heel.

Tips to remember: 

Keep your chest up as you come down, embrace the burn and remember to breathe.

Why I love them: 

Express trip straight into the pain cave. Bulgarians are great for improving:

Improves hip stability — forces the glutes and deep hip stabilisers to work harder because each leg is loaded independently.

Reduces muscle imbalances — single-leg training exposes and corrects left–right differences that often lead to injuries.

Enhances ankle mobility & control — the front foot must stabilise through a full range of motion, improving joint integrity over time.

Strengthens the VMO — fantastic for building that inner quad muscle that supports patella tracking and protects the knee.

Boosts balance & coordination — challenges proprioception far more than bilateral squats, leading to better movement quality in everyday life and training.

Glute activation through the roof — especially the glute med, which plays a huge role in preventing knee collapse (valgus).

Great for lower-back-friendly leg strength — because the spine stays more upright, people with back issues often tolerate BSS much better than heavy back squats.

Carries over to running & change of direction — single-leg strength directly improves stride power and stability during sport.

Targets multiple muscle groups at once — quads, glutes, hamstrings, calves, and core all fire hard, making it unbelievably efficient for busy people.

Easy to load progressively — dumbbells, kettlebells, barbell, tempo work, pauses, deficit… perfect for long-term progression.

You might find Bulgarian splits squats grow on you too… come tell me about it next time Coach Ben has them programmed, and you can also tell me about other movements you love to hate and why it’s thrusters 😂.

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