“Weight on the heels” is a common cue that you’ll often hear coaches yelling at lifters in the squat, but is staying on your heels really the perfect squat technique? This cue can be useful, but it’s also the cause of a major misconception about how to lift.

I’ve heard plenty of coaches argue that most of your weight should be on the heels during a squat. From my experience that doesn’t make sense.

We have the best balance when our weight is evenly distributed between the ball of the foot and the heel. This is why we also talk about an active tripod foot (the three major points of contact being the heel, big toe and little toe.

Having said that, most lifters don’t fall back on their ass. If they’re going to lose their balance forward or backward, ninety-nine times out of a hundred they’ll tip forward and shift their weight toward the toes.

As far as I can tell, the fact that shifting the weight forward is so common is why the “weight on your heels” cue is so popular. But just remember, your goal is even weight distribution through the foot, and not to sit back on the heel with the majority of your weight.