Liftworthy
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Liftworthy

Every exercise ranked by research, by lifters and by results. Find what’s S-tier for your goal, then train it.

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Explore/Quads

Pendulum Squat

MachineCompoundEasy to learn
Front
Back
Primary Secondary

Works

Quads

Also glutes

You need

Pendulum squat

How to do itPictures · 3 steps
Back padPlatform
1Start
Back padPlatform
2Bottom
Main musclesAlso working
  1. 1Shoulders under the pads, back flat
  2. 2Sink as deep as the machine allows
  3. 3Stand up without locking out hard

Most common mistake

Bouncing out of the bottom.

Watch a demo

Good for

  • Ranked #2 for quads
  • Keeps the work on the target muscle
  • Loads the muscle while it’s stretched
  • Easy to keep adding weight

Compare with

vs Hack Squatvs Safety Bar Squatvs Heels-Elevated Goblet Squat
S
For quads
#2 of 33
See the full list →
Research
95
Scored by hand
Results
Soon
From the app
How lifters rate itBe the first
S
A
B
C
D
F
Why research scores it 95
Target tensionExcellent
Loaded stretchExcellent
ProgressionExcellent
Low costStrong

Like the hack squat: a deep knee bend on a stable machine, so the quads give out before anything else.

Research behind these criteria

  • Target tension: Zabaleta-Korta et al., 2021 · Kinoshita et al., 2023
  • Loaded stretch: Maeo et al., 2021 · Maeo et al., 2023 · Pedrosa et al., 2022 · Kassiano et al., 2023
  • Progression: Plotkin et al., 2022 · Pelland et al., 2026
  • Low cost: Schoenfeld et al., 2021 · Refalo et al., 2023
How scores work

Machine taken? Swap to

  • AFront-Foot-Elevated Split SquatDumbbell
  • ASafety Bar SquatBarbell
  • AHeels-Elevated Goblet SquatDumbbell
  • SHack SquatMachine

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