Dragon Squat Lunge Progressions

Progressions

1. 01

   Cross Leg Lunge

   • Place your rear foot behind you in a position where your knee can touch just behind the heel of your front leg
   • Cross your rear foot approximately one foot width to the opposite side behind you
   • Keep your torso relatively upright, leaning forward only as much as needed for counterbalance
   • Lower down by bending your front knee while keeping most of your weight on the front leg
   • Touch your rear knee down just outside the heel of your standing foot
   • Keep your standing leg knee stable and tracking properly without rotating
   • Return to the standing position without turning or twisting your torso
2. 02

   Cross Leg Skater

   • Place your rear foot behind you and cross it approximately one foot width to the opposite side
   • Lift your rear foot off the floor and keep it floating throughout the movement
   • Reach with your floating knee to touch just outside the heel of your standing foot
   • Keep most of your weight and control on your standing leg
   • Try to return to standing without using your rear foot for support
   • Allow light contact with your rear foot only if needed for balance
   • Maintain a forward lean of your torso to counterbalance the reaching movement
3. 03

   Cross Leg Skater Reaching

   • Start with your rear foot floating behind you and crossed to the opposite side
   • Reach with your knee further down and forward across your standing leg
   • Aim to touch outside the toes of your standing leg instead of just the heel
   • Allow your quadricep to glide along the outside of your standing thigh
   • Lean your torso forward and across to counterbalance the reaching knee
   • Keep your torso on the inside of your reaching leg while your arms reach across
   • Let your torso fold down sideways as you reach deeper into the position
4. 04

   Cross Leg Skater To Dragon Extension

   • Set up with your rear foot floating behind you and crossed to the opposite side
   • Reach your knee across and down toward the outside of your standing leg toes
   • Once in the crossed position, extend your knee as far as possible
   • Coil deeply into the position by folding your torso to the inside of your standing leg
   • Reach your hands from the inside of your standing leg around to the outside of your knee and thigh
   • Try to bring your extending foot toward where your hands are positioned
   • Reverse the entire process slowly and with control to return to standing
5. 05

   Band-Assisted Dragon Squat

   

   Bands

   • Set up your band above you, slightly in front and to the outside of your standing leg
   • Hold the band with your top arm or both arms for assistance
   • Keep your trail leg extended throughout the entire movement
   • Start on one leg with your arms reaching forward
   • Bring your trail leg across in a big circle while bending your standing leg
   • Fold your torso to the inside of your standing leg as you descend
   • Use the band assistance to control the movement and help return to standing
6. 06

   Floor and Resistance Band Assisted Dragon Squat

   

   Bands

   • Use a lighter resistance band compared to heavier assistance methods
   • Control most of the movement without relying heavily on the band support
   • Use your bottom hand for minimal floor assistance when needed
   • Apply your hand to the floor like a sideways push-up to guide your descent
   • Use floor assistance only in the deepest bottom position
   • Gradually reduce band usage as you gain strength and control
   • Focus on using assistance only when absolutely necessary
7. 07

   Deep Negative Dragon Squat

   • Perform only the lowering portion of the movement without assistance
   • Fold deeply and reach to get your hip as close to the floor as possible
   • Focus on a slow, controlled descent to maximize the eccentric phase
   • Once at the bottom, place your hands on the floor to assist standing back up
   • Stand up normally using both legs to exit the position safely
   • Concentrate on perfecting the lowering movement pattern
   • Build strength in the eccentric portion before attempting the full movement
8. 08

   Floor Assisted Dragon Squat

   • Perform the fully unassisted lowering movement with control
   • Use minimal hand assistance only in the bottom position when needed
   • Place your hands on the floor to help find the optimal deepest position
   • Use floor support to initiate the upward movement from the bottom
   • Remove hand assistance as soon as you leave the floor level
   • Focus on using your hands only for the hardest part of the movement
   • Gradually reduce floor assistance until you can perform it completely independently
9. 09

   Dragon Squat

   • Start on one leg with your trail leg extended
   • Bring your trail leg across in a large circle while descending on your standing leg
   • Fold your torso to the inside of your standing leg to counterbalance
   • Reach the deepest position possible while maintaining control
   • Reverse the movement pattern with control to return to standing position
   • Keep your trail leg extended throughout the entire range of motion

Common mistakes

• Bending the trail leg during the movement
• Standing knee caving inward under rotational load
• Not folding the torso enough for counterbalance
• Moving too fast without control