Home » Barbell Squat Guide
The barbell squat is a challenging and rewarding strength training exercise rich in benefits. The energy, stability, and technique it requires to produce a response by the body that is second to none.
You need to call on several muscle groups ranging from your neck to ankles to do the squat. This yields one of the greatest calorie-burning results due to the large amount of energy needed by such a complex movement.
Let’s uncover the best tips and techniques to maximize your results using this super exercise!
How to do
- Place your hands on either side of the bar’s center line. Be sure it is an equal distance from your neck’s contact point.
- Step under the bar and fit the muscles just under the base of your neck up against the bar.
- With both feet under your hips, stand up to lift the bar off of the resting hooks. Then carefully walk back a few feet to get clear of the rack.
- Pinch your shoulder blades together and stand with your feet slightly outside hip width with toes and knees turned slightly outward.
- Engage your core before lifting.
- Maintaining this posture, sit down on your heels while allowing your torso to move forward.
- Upon reaching a parallel knee and hip position, push through your heels and extend your knees and hips back to the starting standing position.
- Exhale as you move upward through this lifting phase of the movement.
Tip From Expert
- Program a warm-up of a pectoralis major/minor and deltoid stretch, light shoulder blade squeezing, and glute and hamstring activation. You'll want to prepare your body for the setup postures previously mentioned.
- Place the bar just below the base of the neck. This is to take pressure off your lower back.
- When descending into the squat movement, slide your hips backward to decrease strain on the knee. Allow the torso to move forward in a deeper squat, and utilize your core muscles better to lift the load.
- Stretch your calves if you notice heel raising.
- Keep your chest up during the movement’s descent.
Optimal Sets and Reps
The barbell squat is a great movement, but volume and reps vary depending on what result you are aiming for.
| Training Type | Sets | Reps |
|---|---|---|
| Strength Training | 3–5 | 6–8 |
| Hypertrophy | 3–6 | 8–12 |
| Endurance Training | 2–3 | 15–20 |
| Power Training | 1–3 | 1–5 |
How to put in your workout split
The barbell squat is the perfect full-body exercise. For strength, endurance, and muscle building, several different workout splits can be used:
- Push/Pull — Include barbell squats on your push days. They should be the primary movement with one or two light isolation exercises for volume.
- Total Body —If your program is designed to work your full body every day, barbell squats should be programmed at most twice per week. One day should be for training the squat with challenging resistance while other high-resistance days feature a single leg or split stance exercise for variability.
- Single Muscle Group — If your routine features just one muscle group per day, you will likely be limited in leg day weekly frequency. The barbell squat should be programmed on those days for high volume in terms of set number.
Light loads and lower volumes should be considered for splits with three or more weekly leg days such as the total body. Those with just a few weekly leg days may feature higher loads and volumes.
Primary Muscle Groups
Gluteus
Large, superficial muscles located at your buttocks just below your lower back area.
Quadriceps
Muscles located at the front portion of your upper legs, below your pelvis and above your knees. Consists of four parts.
Quadriceps
The quadriceps straighten the knee once in the squat position. An important member of this group, the vastus medialis oblique, is highly dependent on weight-bearing exercises like the barbell squat. Strength size gains in the quads help ease daily activities such as climbing stairs and stepping up on surfaces.
Gluteus
To finish the squat, the gluteus muscle group is crucial in both core stability and upward movement. They may be the most powerful muscles used during the exercise. It is smart to target them aside from squatting to enhance performance. Take a look at differing activation levels of some common exercises.
Secondary Muscle Groups
Hip Abductors
Muscles located between your lower back and perineum. Consists of three muscle groups.
Hamstrings
Muscles located at the back of your upper leg, below your glutes and above your calves. Consists of three muscles.
Erector Spinae
Muscles that span the entire length of your spine on either side.
Hamstrings
The hamstrings assist the gluteus muscles in hip extension. Strength improvements in the hamstrings will increase your ability to finish your repetition, however their effort throughout all points of the movement.
Erector Spinae
As with the glute muscles, the erector spinae muscles will stabilize the lower spine during the squat.
Hip Abductors
The hip abductors prevent the collapse of the knees and excessive trunk lean. Maximizing the muscle action of the quads and glutes can help your squat. Be sure to feature these muscles elsewhere in your routine.
Equipment
Barbell
Squat Rack
Squat Rack
This provides a stable and safe platform for powerlifting. Ensure the safety rails are firmly set in place.
Barbell
Excellent piece of equipment for a range of powerlifting and bilateral exercises. Make sure you use safety clips when lifting.
Alternatives
Exercises that target the same primary muscle groups and require the different equipment.
Hack Squat
Who Should Do?
Athletes And Individuals Interested In Performance
The barbell squat is the best way to improve lower body strength and explosive leg extension.
The squat can produce competitive advantages for those involved in athletics. The speed, agility, and stability gains can significantly improve an athlete’s ability.
Squatting can also be helpful for injury prevention and rehab due to the functional strength it serves to the hip, knee, and ankle joints.
Rehab Participants
People who have suffered any type of incident that causes loss of movement function can benefit greatly from having the barbell squat as part of their training routine.
This would likely be well into the rehab program since they have rehabilitated the muscle but now need to integrate it back into the movement chain the body needs it for.
Squatting is used in everyday movements such as sitting down on a toilet or getting up from a low chair.
Older Individuals
Two common complications that can arise with age are sarcopenia and osteopenia. Respectively, these are described as gradual loss of muscle and bone mineral density, and they can be either separate issues or related as bone density is influenced by muscle force.
The barbell squat can be effective in fighting these due to strong weight-bearing and muscle-force characteristics. Older individuals monitoring their muscle and bone health, or those who are concerned with functional strength as they age should consider the barbell squat.
Who Should Not Do?
People With Joint Pain
Pain during any type of movement is serious so the barbell squat is certainly ill-advised when pain is present.
Strength is not largely required to squat but the full body functional nature of the exercise requires that it be meant for the generally healthy individual.
The presence of pain should be addressed with a corrective exercise solution to minimize the dysfunction. Be sure to see a trained professional to determine the best plan for you.
Individuals With Poor Mobility
The barbell squat involves simultaneous movement through three of the body’s seven major joints. Lack of movement in just one area can significantly hamper the performance of the other joints.
Movement challenges across the hips, knees, or ankles not only inhibit the exercise’s effectiveness but can create injury potential.
If you can’t coordinate full movement across these lower body joints you may be at risk of injury due to the excessive pressure placed on the knees or lower back.
Those With Low Core Strength
The foundation behind the strength and mobility that produces the squat movement is undoubtedly the stability that must come from your core strength.
If you are not strong enough in your core, you will not be able to stabilize the weight on the barbell to allow the legs and hips to move the way they need to.
Furthermore, your injury risk is at its highest since your torso and all structures near it cannot afford to be mobile. They need to be strong and stable.
Benefits Of The Barbell Squat
Strengthens Lower Body Muscles
The greatest benefits of the barbell squat are the strength improvements it provides to the muscles of the legs and injury prevention.
The quads, glutes, and hamstrings are the primary movers during the upward motion of the squat. The calves are a secondary mover that creates plantar flexion of the ankle upon return to standing.
Improves Athleticism
When you think about athleticism, you imagine quick, fast, coordinated, and powerful movements. These elements are what constitute the agility, change of direction, explosiveness, and deceleration seen in athletic activity.
Squatting is always one of the most useful tools for being more athletic. This is due to the large muscles in the lower body that allow for directional changes necessary for agility and power.
Improves Joint Health And Bone Density
The strength and physical performance benefits of the squat are by far the most apparent and easiest to realize. Internally, there is also great value to be enjoyed by consistently performing the barbell squat.
The applied pressure placed onto the bones and joints of the body is a natural stimulus required to keep your joints strong.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much should a beginner barbell squat?
As a beginner, you should begin by squatting an amount of weight that you can perform up to ten times with a moderate level of struggle.
Are barbell squats worth it?
Barbell squats are worth doing as almost no other exercise strengthens and conditions the entire body the way they do.
How many squats a day to make a difference?
It is more efficient to think of this as a question of squats per workout. With that said, and depending on goals, 3 to 5 sets of 5 to 15 reps would cover all objectives. For strengthening, complete less than 20 reps. Endurance requires closer to 45 and up per session.
Why is the barbell squat unique?
This is a very unique exercise because of its full body requirement and high strength potential.
Do I have to do the barbell squat if my legs are strong already?
Yes, you should. The barbell squat is useful for calorie burn, core strength, sports performance, and rehab.
Why is the barbell squat always called a full-body exercise?
This is because the requirement to stabilize the bar on your upper back and move through a sitting and standing range involves many muscles from shoulders to ankles for proper control of the movement.
Resources
- Parinyathip Thongduang, Uraiwan Chatchawan, Rungthip Puntumetakul, Yamauchi, J. and Punnee Peungsuwan (2022). Quadriceps Electromyographic Activity in Closed and Open Kinetic-Chain Exercises with Hip-Adductor Co-Contraction in Sedentary Women.International journal of environmental research and public health/International journal of environmental research and public health, [online] 19(19), pp.12929–12929. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191912929.
- Khaiyat, O.A. and Norris, J. (2018). Electromyographic activity of selected trunk, core, and thigh muscles in commonly used exercises for ACL rehabilitation.Journal of physical therapy science, [online] 30(4), pp.642–648. doi:https://doi.org/10.1589/jpts.30.642.
- Martinez, S.C., Coons, J.M. and Mehls, K.D. (2022). Effect of external load on muscle activation during the barbell back squat.EJSS/European journal of sport science, [online] 23(6), pp.975–982. doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/17461391.2022.2081093.
- Sung, H.-R., Oh, S.-J., Ryu, J.-N. and Cha, Y.-J. (2021). Muscle activities of lower extremity and erector spinae muscles according to ankle joint position during squat exercise.Journal of back and musculoskeletal rehabilitation, [online] 34(4), pp.671–676. doi:https://doi.org/10.3233/bmr-191807.
- Coratella, G., Tornatore, G., Caccavale, F., Longo, S., Esposito, F. and Emiliano Cè (2021). The Activation of Gluteal, Thigh, and Lower Back Muscles in Different Squat Variations Performed by Competitive Bodybuilders: Implications for Resistance Training.International journal of environmental research and public health/International journal of environmental research and public health, [online] 18(2), pp.772–772. doi:https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18020772.
- Schoenfeld, B.J., Contreras, B., Krieger, J., Grgic, J., Delcastillo, K., Belliard, R. and Alto, A. (2019). Resistance Training Volume Enhances Muscle Hypertrophy but Not Strength in Trained Men.Medicine and science in sports and exercise, [online] 51(1), pp.94–103. doi:https://doi.org/10.1249/mss.0000000000001764.
- Wagner, P., Chapurlat, R., Ecochard, R. and Szulc, P. (2018). Low Muscle Strength and Mass Is Associated With the Accelerated Decline of Bone Microarchitecture at the Distal Radius in Older Men: the Prospective STRAMBO Study.Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, 33(9), pp.1630–1640. doi:https://doi.org/10.1002/jbmr.3456.
- Case, M.J., Knudson, D.V. and Downey, D.L. (2020). Barbell Squat Relative Strength as an Identifier for Lower Extremity Injury in Collegiate Athletes.Journal of strength and conditioning research, [online] 34(5), pp.1249–1253. doi:https://doi.org/10.1519/jsc.0000000000003554.
- Watson, S.L., Weeks, B.K., Weis, L.J., Harding, A.T., Horan, S.A. and Beck, B.R. (2017). High-Intensity Resistance and Impact Training Improves Bone Mineral Density and Physical Function in Postmenopausal Women with Osteopenia and Osteoporosis: the LIFTMOR Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, 33(2), pp.211–220. doi:https://doi.org/10.1002/jbmr.3284.
