Part of these sets

This exercise rarely works alone. It appears in the following routines, where it is sequenced alongside the others that support it.

What it works

Primary muscles

Quadriceps
Gluteus maximus

Also involved

Hamstrings and calves, controlling the shin over the foot
Trunk extensors, holding the chest up through the forward lean

Equipment: A firm dining chair. Avoid a soft sofa, which changes the exercise entirely.

How to do it

1
Sit towards the front half of a firm chair, feet flat and hip width apart, heels drawn back underneath your knees.
2
Fold your arms across your chest if you can. If not, rest your fingertips on your thighs and use as little push as you can manage.
3
Lean your chest forward over your knees. People leave this part out, and without it standing up takes far more strength than it should.
4
Push evenly through both feet and stand up tall, squeezing the glutes at the top.
5
Reach the hips back and lower over three seconds, touching the seat lightly rather than dropping onto it. The slow descent builds most of the strength.

How much to do

10 repetitions for falls prevention, or 3 sets of 8 to 10 slow repetitions as knee strength work

Several times a day for falls prevention, or 2 to 3 times a week for strength

Discomfort up to about four out of ten during the exercise is acceptable provided it settles within 24 hours. Sorer the next morning means the dose was too high, so reduce it rather than abandoning it.

Stop and get assessed if

Stop and get assessed if the knee locks, gives way or swells after these sessions, or if you feel light headed on standing, which is a blood pressure question rather than a strength one. Being unable to rise from a chair at all without pushing off deserves an assessment in its own right.

Common mistakes

Pushing off the arms out of habit: The arms take load away from precisely the muscles you are trying to build, so the exercise stops being training and becomes transport. Hover the hands, then fold them, and if you genuinely need help use one finger on each thigh and make that the thing you progress.
Staying upright instead of leaning forward: Standing up is a forward transfer of weight before it is a lift. Staying upright asks the quadriceps to do the whole job from a poor angle, which is why many people conclude they are too weak when they are simply out of position.
Dropping back into the chair: The lowering phase is half the exercise and the half that builds control on stairs and kerbs. Falling into the seat trains nothing and jars the back.
Using a seat that is too low or too soft: A low or squashy seat multiplies the difficulty and hides your real progress. Use a firm dining chair, and raise the seat with a cushion if you need it easier, which is a legitimate regression rather than cheating.
Knees collapsing inwards on the way up: That inward collapse increases stress across the kneecap and usually means the hip muscles are lagging behind. Keep each knee tracking over the middle of the foot and add side lying hip work alongside.

Making it harder

Slow the descent to five seconds. Tempo is the cheapest way to add difficulty and the kindest to a sore knee.
Lower the seat gradually, or use a lower step, which increases the range the quadriceps work through.
Hold a weight against your chest: a dumbbell, a bag of rice, a full kettle. Progress the load rather than the repetition count.
Single leg sit to stand from a normal chair. Twenty controlled repetitions each side is the standard used when testing readiness to return to running.

Making it easier

Raise the seat with a firm cushion or use a higher chair. Higher is easier, and it is the right place to start if ten repetitions is not currently possible.
Push off the arms of the chair and reduce how much you push over the following weeks, rather than removing the help all at once.
Do fewer repetitions more often. Five at a time, six times a day, adds up to far more than ten once.

Sit to Stand