Reverse V-squat

Lean securely into the shoulder pads and backrest, then place your feet on the platform. Set your foot position first, brace your abs, and get ready to move your hips and knees together.

Bend your hips and knees together as you lower slowly. Keep pressing into the platform, let your knees track toward your toes, and keep your pelvis against the pad.

Drive through your entire foot to press the platform back up. Stop short of locking your knees, and finish by staying strong through your thighs and glutes.

Make sure your thighs and glutes are working together. Even with the machine guiding your movement, brace your torso and press through your whole foot to keep the target muscles loaded.

If the weight makes your pelvis tuck or your knees cave in at the bottom, your lower back and knees take on more stress. Reduce your depth if needed, but prioritize alignment and controlled speed on the way down.

Inhale as you lower and exhale as you rise. Keeping your breathing steady makes it easier to maintain abdominal tension at the bottom.

Hack squats, pendulum squats, and V-squats move differently from machine to machine, but the principle is the same. Set your foot position in the first set, then match the same depth and tempo on every rep.