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Exercise library · Quads

Back squat

Squat pattern for the quads with a barbell.

How to do it

1 of 3

Bar across your upper back

  1. Starting position

    Place the bar across your upper back, grip it outside your shoulders, and stand with your feet about shoulder-width apart.

  2. The movement

    Bend your hips and knees, lower with a steady back, and stand by pressing your whole feet into the floor.

Most common mistake

Don't let your knees cave in, keep them pointing in the same direction as your toes throughout the movement.

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Muscle group
Quads
Equipment
Barbell
Where
Gym
Logged as
Weight × reps

Muscles worked

Your quads (front of the thighs) and glutes do the main work, straightening the knee and hip, with help from the adductors on your inner thighs. Your hamstrings work too, but far less than in, say, the Romanian deadlift. Your back and abs keep your trunk steady under the bar. Depth changes the emphasis: the deeper you go, the more your glutes and adductors have to do. A wider stance also gives the adductors more work, and the more upright your torso, the more lands on your quads.

Common mistakes

  • Keeping your knees behind your toes. Blocking them makes your upper body tip far forward and loads your back more. Knees passing the toes is normal in a deep squat, so let them travel as far as they need to, in line with your toes.
  • Losing your brace. Breathing out on the way down softens your trunk and lets the bar pull you forward. Take a big breath and brace before each rep, and breathe out once you are past the hardest part.
  • Hips rising first. If your hips shoot up faster than your chest, the squat turns into a good morning. Let your hips and chest rise together, and lower the weight if it keeps happening.

Variations and alternatives

  • Goblet squat: a dumbbell held at your chest. The easiest way to learn the movement.
  • Front squat: the bar on the front of your shoulders, with a more upright torso and more work for the quads.
  • Box squat: a box behind you gives the same depth every rep, handy while learning how deep to go.
  • Leg press: a machine with your back against a pad, for heavy leg work without a bar on your back.

Sets and reps

The squat suits every goal. For strength, many do 3 to 6 reps over 3 to 5 sets with several minutes' rest, the idea behind 5x5. To build muscle, 6 to 12 reps works well. Sets of 12 to 20 work too, but they are gruelling and form tends to slip, so leave some margin. The guide to sets and reps explains how to choose.

Keep the same depth every rep so your numbers stay comparable. Add weight in small steps, such as 2.5 kg, once every set is done with good form. That is the heart of progressive overload. Do heavy sets in a rack with the safety bars set just below your lowest point.

Also called

  • squat
  • skivstångsknäböj

Swap for

Taken, or missing the equipment? The same movement with something else.

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