Battle of the Giants: Squats or Lunges?

Key Differences, Muscles Worked, and the Benefits of Each

Squats and lunges are two of the fundamental exercises for building strength and muscle mass in the lower body, more precisely glutes and legs. They are often used in strength training, rehabilitation, and functional fitness programs. While both exercises target similar muscle groups, they differ in movement patterns, benefits, and how they engage stabilizing muscles. Understanding these differences can help you choose the right exercise for your goals and improve overall leg strength.

Broadly speaking, we could say that this heavyweight fight develops like this:

Round 1 (Build muscle mass and power using weights)

Winner: Squats

Round 2 (Improve balance, stability, coordination, agility, and endurance)

Winner: Lunges

In this fight, then, we declare a draw. Let's now look at each of these exercises in more detail.

Squats

How to perform a squat correctly

• Starting position: Stand with your feet slightly wider than hip-width apart and your toes pointing slightly outward.

  
  

• Lowering phase: Engage your abs, keep your torso upright, inhale and push your hips back as if you were sitting in a chair while bending your knees. Bend until your thighs are almost parallel to the floor, or as low as your mobility or flexibility allows.

  
  

• Ascending phase: Exhale and press into the floor with your feet, engage your glutes, and return to the starting position by straightening your legs and keeping your back neutral.

Proper technique

• Keep your torso upright without arching your back.

• Don't let your knees bend inward.

• Keep your weight evenly distributed between both feet.

• Avoid both knee dominance (bending your knees too far without moving your hips back) and hip dominance (moving your hips too far back without bending enough your knees)

Muscles worked in squats

• Primary muscles: quads, hamstrings, gluteus maximus

• Secondary muscles: core (abs, psoas, back), adductors, and calves.

Lunges

Lunges

How to perform a lunge correctly

• Starting position: Stand with your feet hip-width apart.

  
  

• Step forward: Take a long step forward with one foot, keeping your torso upright.

  
  

• Lowering phase: Lower your hips until your front knee forms a 90-degree angle and rests over the ankle of your front foot. Your back leg can be bent to a slight angle of 120 degrees (easier) or 90 degrees (harder, with the knee just a few inches off the floor).

  
  

• Ascending phase: Exhale, press your front foot into the floor and use your thigh strength to return to the starting position.

Proper technique

• Keep your torso upright, without leaning forward or backward.

• Keep your abs engaged to maintain balance.

• Avoid letting your front knee extend beyond your toes (this depends on an individual’s legs length and certain other conditions like strength and flexibility).

• Keep your back foot in line with that side of your hip, avoiding opening or closing it too much, and with your toes pointing forward.

Muscles worked in a lunge

• Primary muscles: quadriceps, hamstrings, gluteus maximus

• Secondary muscles: calves, abdominals, erectors, hip abductors and adductors

Benefits of Squats over Lunges

• Can be performed using a heavy weight load: squats allow for progressive overload using weights, making them ideal for strength training.

• Because of the previous point, it increases lower body strength: Squats are great for building strength and muscle mass in the quads, hamstrings, and glutes.

• Improves athletic performance: Squats help improve jump height and length, sprint speed, and overall power.

• Easier for beginners: Since both legs work together, balance is not much of a challenge compared to lunges.

Benefits of Lunges over Squats

• Improves balance and coordination: Since they are a unilateral exercise, they challenge stability and coordination.

• Improves muscle symmetry: Lunges target each leg individually, helping to correct muscle imbalances.

• Increases functional strength: The movement mimics daily activities like walking and climbing stairs.

• Activates more stabilizing muscles: The requirement to balance on one leg engages the abdominals, back erectors, and other smaller stabilizing muscles.

Variations

Some Squat Variations

Goblet squat: Hold a dumbbell or kettlebell at chest level to increase core, hip and leg muscle engagement.

Sumo squat: A wider stance that engages the inner thighs and glutes.

Jump squat: An explosive variation that increases power and cardiovascular endurance.

Pistol squat: A challenging single-leg squat that requires advanced strength and mobility.

Some Lunge Variations

Reverse lunge: taking a step backward instead of forward, which reduces stress on the knee.

Walking lunge: a dynamic version that improves endurance and coordination, as well as core engagement.

Jump lunge: an explosive plyometric movement that improves power and agility.

Side lunge: targets the inner and outer thighs while improving lateral movement.

Curtsy lunge: engages the glutes and adductors by stepping diagonally behind the supporting leg.

Both squats and lunges offer unique benefits, and the choice depends on your goals. If you want to develop maximum strength and power, squats may be the best choice. If you are looking to improve balance, correct muscle imbalances or increase functional mobility, lunges are a great choice. For optimal lower body development, it is ideal to incorporate both techniques into your workout routine.