Step-down

A compound exercise for the quads, with help from the glutes. Equipment: plyo box or step.

Orbit

Drag to rotate

WorksQuadsGlutes

Drag to turn the figure. The highlighted muscles are the ones doing the work.

How to do it

Setup: Stand on a box on one leg, the other foot hanging off the side.
Bend the standing knee to tap the heel down
Stand back up without pushing off

Muscles worked

Step-down: 3D figure mid-rep with the quads highlighted

Quads · main
Glutes

Equipment

Plyo box or step

Alternatives

Exercises that train the same main muscles. See all step-down alternatives.

Dumbbell lateral lungeDumbbells
Lateral lungeNo equipment
Side-to-side squatNo equipment
Barbell rear-foot-raised split squatBarbell, Squat rack and Flat bench
Barbell reverse lungeBarbell and Squat rack
Barbell reverse lungeBarbell and Squat rack

More quads exercises

Trap bar deadliftTrap bar
Back squatBarbell and Squat rack
Front squatBarbell and Squat rack
Box squatBarbell, Squat rack and Plyo box or step
Smith machine squatSmith machine
Hack squatHack squat machine

Put the step-down in a plan that adapts

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