Barbell Back Squat
Squat, barbell, quadriceps and glutes
The barbell back squat is the classic lower body lift: you carry a bar across your upper back, sit down between your hips and stand back up. It trains the quadriceps and glutes hard, with the hamstrings, adductors and trunk working to hold you steady. It suits anyone who already squats well with their own body weight and wants stronger legs.
Setting up
- Set the bar in a rack at about the height of your armpits and step under it so it rests on the upper back, below the bony top of the neck.
- Grip the bar with the hands just outside the shoulders and squeeze the shoulder blades together to make a shelf for it.
- Walk it out two or three steps and stand with the feet about shoulder width apart, toes turned out a little.
- Start with the empty bar or a light load you can move smoothly, and add weight only while every rep looks the same.
How to do a barbell back squat
- Take a big breath into the belly and brace as if someone were about to push you.
- Send the hips back and down as the knees bend, letting the knees travel out over the toes.
- Keep the chest up and lower until the thighs are about level with the floor, or as low as the lower back stays flat.
- Drive up through the whole foot, letting the chest and hips rise together.
- Stand tall at the top and take a breath before the next rep.
Breathing. Breathe in and brace before you go down, hold it through the bottom, and breathe out as you pass the hardest part on the way up.
Muscles worked
- Mainly
- Quadriceps and glutes
- Also
- Adductors, hamstrings, lower back and abdominals
Common mistakes
- Knees caving in on the way up. It moves the load from the hips onto the knees, so push the knees out over the toes the whole way and lighten the bar until they stay there.
- Heels lifting off the floor. It tips you forward and off balance, so sit the hips further back, keep the weight over the middle of the foot and squat only as deep as the heels stay down.
- Hips shooting up first so the chest drops. Then the lower back does the lifting, so lead with the chest, keep the bar moving straight up and use a load you can stand up with in one piece.
- Rounding the lower back at the bottom. It takes the work off the legs and puts it on the back, so stop just above the point where the back starts to round and let depth come with practice.
Guide
Guide
