Deep squats don’t make leg muscles bigger than shallow squats if you do the same number of reps and same weight—muscle growth is about total work, not how deep you go.

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Pro

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Against

Evidence from Studies

Supporting (1)

58

Community contributions welcome

58

Full Squats Enhance Performance and Body Composition, but Not Hypertrophy, Compared to Half Squats in Elite Young Tennis Players

Randomized Controlled Trial

Human

2025 Nov 13

Both types of squats made the players’ legs bigger, but full squats didn’t make them bigger than half squats — so if you’re doing the same amount of work, it doesn’t matter which one you pick for building leg muscle.

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Source Study

Full Squats Enhance Performance and Body Composition, but Not Hypertrophy, Compared to Half Squats in Elite Young Tennis Players

Score: 58

DOI: 10.3390/jfmk10040440

Similar Assertions

Whether young tennis players do deep or shallow squats, their leg muscles grow just as big—as long as they do the same number of reps and weights.

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Even though deep squats move your legs through a bigger range, they don’t make your muscles bigger than shallow squats—if you’re doing the same number of reps and weights.

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Deep squats help young tennis players lose more body fat than shallow squats—even when they do the same number of reps and weights—possibly because they work harder and burn more energy.

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For young tennis players, doing deep squats instead of shallow ones for 8 weeks makes them faster and stronger when pushing off the ground, and helps them lose body fat—without making their leg muscles bigger than shallow squats do.

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Deep squats make young tennis players explode off the ground faster than shallow squats—after 8 weeks, they get about 20% faster at pushing heavy weights quickly, while shallow squats only help by 10%.

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