If you ask people who lift what the most important exercise to perform is, you’ll hear barbell squats at the top of a lot of their lists.
No doubt, the squat is an important exercise to perform in a workout. Squats are a fundamental movement pattern, and it is important to master the exercise and maintain proficiency in its execution throughout life as best you can.
There are also a ton of benefits to using a barbell as the main source of resistance for the exercise. It allows you to train the movement with as much weight as you effectively can. It is easy to progress with the exercise by increasing the weight on the bar. And you train nearly every muscle in the body when performing the exercise.
With that said, the squat requires excellent form to avoid injury. It is also a technically demanding exercise which can lead to muscle soreness. And, due to the nature of the joints involved, it is very important that you speak to a doctor prior to adding squats to your workout routines.
In this article, we will discuss proper barbell squat form, what muscles the exercise works, how to add it into your workout routines, and list several variations of squats that can be suitable for those who are not ready to tackle the barbell squat.
How to Perform Squats
Barbell squats are typically performed in a power rack. Setting up the rack prior to performing the exercise can help ensure your safety and provide routes to bail on the exercise should you reach a point of mechanical failure.
As with any compound exercise, it is recommended that you have a spotter when performing the exercise to ensure your safety. That said, squat spotting is also very technical, and it is recommended that you know educate yourself on proper squat spotting and ensure your spotter understands how to spot you during the exercise.
- Position the bar within the rack slightly below your shoulder height. You should have to duck under the bar to begin the exercise, however you should not have to exert a significant amount of energy to lift the bar out of the rack.
- Load the bar with the desired weight for the exercise. Squats have a wide rep range. The rep range you target will dictate how much weight you put on the bar. Regardless, as you load the barbell, ensure you balance the weight you add on each side to avoid the barbell from tipping off of the rack.
- Once the weight has been added, duck under the barbell and place the bar on your trap muscles. Grasp the barbell at a comfortable width and a firm grip, engaging your lats as you push your elbows back.
- Take a deep breath and brace your core. Looking straight ahead (preferably without any visual distractions in front of you such as a mirror), unrack the bar and take two (or as few steps as necessary) back to the middle of the power rack.
- Assume a comfortable width stance (usually slightly wider than shoulder width) with your toes slightly pointed outward.
- The bar should be in line with the midpoint of your foot and the bar path should be straight down throughout the rest of the movement.
- Bend forward through the hips, and while maintaining a straight back, control your descent to a parallel position.
- Once at parallel, drive through your hips to straighten your legs and lift your torso back to the starting position.
- Exhale and begin the next repetition.
- Repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
The squat, as mentioned, can be incredibly technically demanding. This means it asks a lot of your central nervous system to perform the precise movements necessary to perform the exercise and remain injury free.
For this reason, it is generally recommended that you master the squat movement pattern without a barbell before beginning to perform the barbell back squat. And, even after you have mastered the bodyweight squat, to begin learning the barbell back squat with nothing but the bar.
It is also highly recommended to work with someone such as a strength coach or personal trainer when learning how to perform the barbell back squat to ensure proper mechanics.
What Muscles Are Worked When Performing Squats?
The barbell back squat is a complete body strength building exercise. It is primarily used to increase the strength and muscle size of the muscles of the legs. This includes the quads first and foremost. The hamstrings and glutes are also heavily involved in performing the squat.
Additionally, the muscles of the hips, the stabilizing muscles of the abdomen and low back, and even the lats and traps as they remain engaged through contact with the bar are indirectly worked.
How to Add Barbell Squats to Your Workout Routine
The squat is a cornerstone of nearly any workout routine. As a fundamental movement pattern, and one of the most technically demanding exercises you can do, it will also likely be the first exercise you perform in your workouts regardless of workout split.
For those who perform full body workouts, it will usually be the first exercise of your workout.
If you perform upper/lower workouts, it will typically be the first exercise of your lower body workout.
Push/Pull/Leg workouts are the same. They will be the first exercise performed during a leg workout.
And for those who perform bro-splits, it will likely be the first exercise performed during your leg day.
The rep and set range is pretty wide for the barbell squat. It can be used to build max strength in the 1-5 rep range. Or, it can be used to maximize muscle growth with rep ranges that fall between 6-12. Some may perform higher rep ranges for muscular endurance, but usually they will opt for a different variation that doesn’t use a barbell.
Rest for the barbell back squat will usually be between 3-5 minutes long in between sets. The heavier the weight you use, the longer you will likely want to rest.
Squat Variations
Listed below are a number of squat variations. I have done my best to list them from easiest to hardest. If the barbell back squat seems like it is too advanced for you at this time, perhaps one of the variations listed will help you begin squatting.
- Bodyweight Squat
- Resistance Band Squat
- Dumbbell Goblet Squat
- Kettlebell Goblet Squat
- Machine Hack Squat
- Machine Belt Squats
- Front Squat
- Safety Bar Squats
- Overhead Squats
Conclusion
Squats are an exercise that anyone who is healthy enough to perform should look to add to their workout routine.
The barbell squat is a squat variation that can be used to build maximum strength and muscle growth. However, not everyone should use the barbell variation and there are plenty of squat variations one can perform to ensure they maintain their ability to perform the movement pattern throughout life.
So, if you have any questions about the barbell back squat or any of the other variations listed within this article, please drop a comment down below and I would be happy to answer it.