Pistol — Heavy Counterweight + Heel Elevated

Squat · reps · unilateral The first full-depth pistol: two assists — a weight held forward, and a raised heel.

The movement

A full-depth single-leg squat — hamstring to calf — with two assists: a counterweight held forward (shifting your balance point forward) and the working heel raised on a small wedge (covering ankle mobility). The body goes all the way down with no box to catch it. Both assists are reduced in the levels that follow.

Set-up — pick your wedge and weight, and keep them

  • Heel on a stable wedge 5–8 cm tall (book, board, plate) — covers any ankle-mobility gap so the heel can stay down. → feel the heel stay loaded, never lifting.
  • Counterweight ~5–8 kg held with arms extended forward (dumbbell, kettlebell, loaded backpack, water container — the mass matters, not the object). → feel it pull you forward into the foot as you descend.
  • Free leg forward, off the floor; torso upright; gaze forward.

The rep — rehearse it before you do it

  • Descend in 2–3 s: knee bends, hips travel back, torso leans forward, the counterweight reaches further out, free leg stays up. → feel the quadriceps (front-thigh) and glute (buttock muscle) control the full descent.
  • Bottom: hamstring near or on the calf; hold 1 s, balanced, no bounce.
  • Drive up through the whole foot; the heel stays on the wedge throughout.
  • Switch sides after all reps on one side.

Breathing

Inhale on the descent, exhale on the drive up. A brief brace at the bottom is fine; if breathing turns loud or ragged, the set is over.

Watch for

  • Heel coming off the wedge → the wedge exists to prevent this; if it still lifts, raise the wedge or do more ankle work first.
  • Bouncing at the bottom → a controlled pause proves you own the depth.
  • Throwing the counterweight to muscle up → it assists balance, not the lift; it moves smoothly with the body.
  • Free leg dropping → hip flexor fatigue; set is over.

Within the level

  • Harder: lower wedge / lighter counterweight (toward the next level); slower descent; longer pause.
  • Easier: taller wedge; heavier counterweight; a fingertip on a side support for balance.

Dose

Set your wedge and counterweight, test a clean max per side at that setting, then practice at half of the weaker side rounded down, capped at 5 reps per set, same count both sides, weaker side first, spread through the day. Keep the wedge and weight fixed across max tests and daily sets; reduce them deliberately, then re-test.