The Definitive Guide

By Greg Nuckols

TableofContents
HowtoSquat:TheDefinitiveGuide
SuperBasicPhysics
Force
Moment
Anatomy
Spine
Pelvis
Femur
TibiaandFibula
IntervertebralJoints
Hip
Knee
Ankle
SpinalErectors
The"Core"
GluteusMaximus
Hamstrings
AdductorMagnus
Quadriceps
Calves
Biomechanics
Planes
BasicDemandsintheSquat
BiarticularMuscles
Squatting:TheSetup
Barplacement
Handposition
Wristposition
Elbowposition
Walkout
Stancewidth
FootAngle
Bracing
Creatingfullbodytension
SetupChecklist:
TheDescent
CuingtheDescent
SpeedofDescent
Depth
TheAscent
Initiating

TheStickingPoint
DiagnosingWeaknesses
1)Quads
2)Core
3)Hips
CommonQuestionsandIssues
Aresquatssafe?
WhatdoIdoaboutbuttwink?
Whydopeople'ssquatformsvarysomuch?
Caneveryonesquatasstograss?
ShouldIhaveaverticalbarpath?
Isawidestancesquateasier?
WhereshouldIfocusmyeyes?
WhatshouldIdoaboutelbowpain?
HowshouldIsquatifIwanttobuildmyquads?
CanIsticksolelywithsquatstomaximizelegdevelopment?
WhatshouldIdoaboutkneeorbackpain?
Mykneesarecavingin.Isthatbad?Ifso,howdoIfixit?
Thebarisuncomfortableonmyshoulders.
TheweightisshiftingforwardandI'mlosingmybalance.
WhatshouldIdoabouttightankles?
HowdoIcorrecttheweightshiftingtooneside?
DoIhavetosquatbelowparallel?
Isitokayifmykneesgopastmytoes?
Willsquatsmakemebetteratothersports?
BarPosition
Shouldyouhighbarsquat,lowbarsquat,orfrontsquat?
Equipment
BulletPoints
Sources

Mostpeopleshouldsquat.
Doyouwantbiggerlegs?You'dbehardpressedtofinda
betterexercisethanthesquat.Doyouwanttobecomemoreathleticwhiledecreasing
yourinjuryriskonthefieldorthecourt?Squatsshouldprobablybeatthecoreofyour
trainingprogram.
Andofcourse,doyouwanttogetstronger?Ifso,therearefewexercisesthatcanbuild
ortestheadtotoestrengthaswellasthesquat(I'dputdeadliftsonthesamelevel,with
pushpressclosebehind).
Ofcourse,Iprobablydon'tneedtotellyouanyofthat.Ifyousoughtoutorhappened
uponthisguide,youprobablyalreadyknowthatthesquatisprettyawesome.You're
primarilyinterestedinimprovingyoursquat,squattingheavierweights,orbuildinga
setoflegsthatwouldgetanodofaffirmationfromTomPlatz.
Ifso,you'reinluck.
Squatscomeinallshapesandsizes,andcanbeusedforavarietyoftraininggoals.This
guideisgoingtobreakdownthemovementindepth,teachyouhowtooptimizeyour
squattechnique,andteachyouhowtostartmaximizingyoursquattraining.
Ifyou'renewhere,youmaybeaskingyourself,"whoisthisguy,andwhyshouldIcare
whathehastosayaboutsquatting?"

Fairquestions!I'macoachanddrugfreepowerlifter.I'vebeentrainingfor11years
andcoachingfor8.I'vesquatted650lbswithoutkneewrapsat220lbsand750lbswith
kneewrapsat242lbsincompetition.The750lbsquatwasanalltimedrugfreeworld
recordacrossallfederations.I'vecoachedliftersatallexperiencelevels,teaching
hundredsofnewliftershowtosquatononeendofthespectrum,andtrainingseveral
600lbsquattersand3xbodyweightsquattersontheotherendofthespectrum.I'vealso
learnedfromsomeofthebestsquattersintheworldlikeChadWesleySmithandMax
Aita.Thisiscombinedwithathoroughunderstandingofthebiomechanicsofthelift.
Checkthereferencelistattheendofthearticleit'stoughtomakeitthroughthatmuch

scientificliteraturewithoutpickingupafewtidbitsalongtheway(whichlargelymatch
mypersonalexperiencesasanathleteandcoach,I'llnote).

Idon'tsayanyofthattotootmyownhorn.IjustwantyoutoknowI'mnotjustsome
randominternetdudeopiningaboutthesquat.I'dneverclaimthateverythingIsayis
rightjustbecauseIsquatalot,andI'mentirelyopentochangingmyviewsasIgain
moreexperience,talktomorehighlevelathletesandcoaches,andasnewscientific
evidenceispublished.

SuperBasicPhysics
Thereareafewsimpletermsweneedtounderstandthatdescribehowourmuscles
interactwithourbonestoproducethemovementsthat(hopefully)resultina
goodlookingsquat.
Force

Thefirstisforce.Forceistheproductofmassandacceleration,typicallycalculatedin
2
Newtons(oneNewtonistheforceittakestoacceleratea1kgmassatarateof1m/sec
).

Mostimportantforourpurposeshere,forceis
linear:
itdescribesthingsthatarebeing
pulledorpushedinastraightline.
So,let'ssayyouhavea300kgbaronyourback.The300kgbarrepresentsthemass
componentofforce.Ifyouweren'tsupportingthebar,itwouldacceleratedownwardat
2
2
9.8m/sec
(duetogravity),sothebarisexerting300kgx9.8m/sec
=2940Nofforce

uponyourbody.Thedirectionoftheforceisthedirectionthatgravityispulling:
straightdown.Similarly,whenourmusclescontract,theyexertaforcepullingoneend
ofthemusclestraighttowardtheotherend.


Moment

Thesecondis
moment
.Momentisforceappliedaboutanaxis,typicallycalculatedin
NewtonMeterstheforceapplied,multipliedbythedistancefromtheaxis
perpendiculartothedirectiontheforceisbeingapplied.Whileforceislinear,moment
isrotational.
So,let'ssayyou'recurlinga20kgbarbell.Yourupperarmisstraightdownbyyourside,
andyourforearm,whichis30cmlong,isparalleltothefloor.You'dcalculatetheforce
2
thebarbellisexertinginthesamemannerastheexampleabove:20kgx9.8m/sec
=

196Nofforce,directedstraightdownward.Then,tocalculatethemomentthebarbellis
exertingattheelbow,you'dmultiply196Nbythedistancebetweenthebarbellandyour
elbow(calledthe
momentarm
)inmeters:196Nx0.30m=58.8Nm.Sincethis
momentisexerteddownward,whichwouldextendtheelbowwiththeforearminthis
position,we'dtermthisan
extensormoment
.Ifyouwantedtocontinuecurlingthebar
upward,you'dneedtoproducea
flexormoment
greaterthan58.8Nmwithyourbiceps

andbrachialis.Sincethemomentarmisthedistancebetweentheaxisofrotationand
theload,measuredperpendicularlytothedirectiontheforceisbeingapplied,the
momentarmwouldbeshorterandthemomentwouldbesmalleriftheelbowswere
eitherabitmoreflexedorabitmoreextended,eventhoughtheforearmwouldbethe
samelength.

Momentsimposedbyaloadonyourmusculoskeletalsystemarecalled
external
moments
,andmomentsproducedbyyourmusclespullingagainstyourbonesarecalled
internalmoments
.Internalmomentsarecalculatedthesamewayexternalmoments
are.Theforcecomponentisthecontractileforceofthemuscle,andthemomentarmis
thedistanceamuscleattachesfromthecenter(axisofrotation)ofthejointit'smoving.
So,forexample,ifthepatellartendon(whichtransmitstheforceofthequadricepsto
thetibia)inserts5cmfromthecenterofthekneejoint,andthequadscontracthard
enoughtoexert10,000Nofforceperpendiculartothetibia,theinternalextensor
momentwouldbe10,000Nx0.05m=500Nm.


Toproducemovement,yourmusclescontract.Bydoingso,theyproducealinear
force
,
pullingonbonesthatactas
levers
,producingflexororextensor
moments
atthejoints
theycross,withjointsactingasthe
axesofrotation
.Inthecaseofthesquat,you're
primarilytryingtoproduce
extensormoments
atthekneeandhipthatexceedthe
flexormoments
atthosejointsimposedbyboththebarandyourownbodyweight.If
youcandothat,youexerta
force
onthebarthatexceedstheforcethebarisexerting
onyourbody,and
vola
!Asuccessfulsquat.
Puttingallofthistogether,thereareafew
very
basicprinciplestotakeawayfromthis:
1. Inthesquat,theload(thebarbellandyourbodyweight)appliesadownward
force
thatexerts
externalflexormoments
atyourkneeandhip,andanexternal
dorsiflexionmomentatyourankle.

2. Thesizeoftheexternalflexormomentyouhavetoovercometoliftaweight
dependsontwothings:Theloaditself,andthelengthofthemomentarm.Ifthe
loadincreasesandthemomentarmstaysthesamelength,iftheloadstaysthe
sameandthemomentarmgetslonger,oriftheloadincreases
and
themoment
armgetslonger,theexternalflexormomentthatyourmusclesmustovercome
increases.Thisiswhyliftingheavierweightsisharderthanliftinglighterweights
(duh),andwhypeoplewithlongerlimbs(andthuslongermomentarmsatthe
knee,hip,orboth)generallyhaveatoughertimesquattingagivenloadthan
peoplewithshorterlimbs.
3. Thetwofactorsthatdeterminewhetheryourmusclescanproducelargeenough
internalextensormoments
toliftaloadaretheattachmentpointsofthemuscles,
andtheforcewithwhichtheycancontract.
4. Attachmentpointsplayahugerolebecausemusclesgenerallyattachverycloseto
thejointtheymove,sosmallvariationscanmakeabigdifference.Forexample,
thisstudy
foundthatthepatellartendonmomentarmvariedfrom4cmto6cm.
Toproduceakneeextensormomentof500Nmliketheexampleabove,thequads
ofsomeonewitha6cmmomentarmwouldhavetocontracthardenoughtoexert
8333Nofforceperpendiculartothetibia,whereasthequadsofsomeonewitha
4cmmomentarmwouldhavetocontractwith50%moreforcetoproducethe
exactsamekneeextensormoment12,500N!
5. Unfortunately,youcan'tchangemuscleattachmentpoints,sotheonlyfactor
withinyourcontrolisincreasingcontractileforce.Thereareonlytwowaystodo
that:a)increaseyourskillasasquattersoyourcurrentmusclemasscanproduce
moreforceduringthemovementandb)addmoremuscle!
Thingsgetjustalittlemorecomplicatedthanthat,butthisshouldgiveyouagood
enoughgraspontheterminologywe'llbeusingmovingforward.Ifthisisstillhazyfor

you,youcandownloadafree
physicstextbookhere
(legally)that'sactuallyexceptionally
good.
Now,though,it'stimetolookatthemusclesandbonesthatplaythebiggestrolesinthe
squat.

Anatomy
Thesquatisafullbodymovement,sothereisamultitudeofmusclesandbones
involvedbuttosimplifythings,wereallyonlyneedtolookatfourbonesorgroupsof
bones,sevenmusclesorgroupsofmuscles,andfourjointsorgroupsofjoints.This
providesuswiththebasicunderstandingofthetissuesthatarecarryingoutallthat
physicsstuffinthelastsection,andprovidesuswithsomebasicinformationthatwill
helpusdiscussthebiomechanicsofthesquat.
Spine

Thespinerunsfromthebaseofyourheadtothetopofyourpelvisandis
madeupof24vertebrae.Thevertebraearesplitintothreegeneralsections:
sevencervicalvertebraeinyourneck,twelvethoracicvertebraerunningfrom
thebaseofyournecktothebottomofyourribcage,andfivelumbar
vertebraerunningfromthebaseofyourribcagetothetopofyourpelvis.
Notmuchmovementisallowedatthejunctionbetweeneachpairof
vertebrae,butsmallmovementsadduptoallowforprettylongrangesof
flexion,extension,rotation,andlateralflexionupanddownthespine.
Thespinenaturallyhasthreemajorcurves:alordoticcurve(rounded
inward)curveforthelumbarspine,akyphoticcurve(roundedoutward)forthethoracic
spine,andalordoticcurveforthecervicalspine.Whenwetalkaboutspinalflexionor
extension,we'retalkingaboutflexionorextensionrelativetothesebaselinecurvatures.
Whenthespinebendsforwardrelativetothesebaselinecurvatures,it'sflexed.Whenit

movesfromaflexedpositionbacktowardthesebaselinecurvatures,it'sextending.
Whenitmovestowardanarchedpositionpastthesenaturalcurvatures,it's
hyperextending.So,forexample,whenthethoracicspineisfullyflat,thatmeansit's
hyperextended,butwhenit'ssuperhunchedover,it'sflexed.Whenthelumbarspineis
fullyflat,thatmeansit'sflexed,butwhenit'ssuperarched,it'shyperextended.
Betweeneachpairofvertebraeisadiscthatcushionsthespine.Thesediscsholdup
reallywelltocompressiveforces(pressingthevertebraetogetherasaresultbothofthe
loadandthecontractionofyourspinalerectors)butcanhavesomeissueswithshear
forces(whichattempttoslidethevertebraepasteachotherasaresultoftheload,your
degreeofforwardlean,andthedegreeofspinalflexiontakingplace).

Inaproperlyperformedsquat,thereshouldn'tbeameaningfulamountofflexionor
hyperextensiontakingplace.Yourspineshouldremainrigidandextendedtotransfer
forcefromyourlegsandhipsintothebar.

Pelvis

Yourpelvisismadeupofsixbonesthatare,
forallintentsandpurposes,fusedtogether.
Eachsidehasanilium,anischium,anda
pubis.Theiliumisthetopofthehip,the
bonyridgethatyoufeelonyoursidejust
belowtheobliques.Theischiumisatthe
bottomofthepelvisonthebackside,and
thepubisisatthebottomofthepelvison
thefrontsideinyourgroinarea.
Thepointwherethosethreebonesfuse
togetherisyouracetabulumyourhipsocket.
Therearetwootherfeaturesofyourpelvisthatarerelevantforourpurposeshere:
There'stheanteriorinferioriliacspine,whichiswhereyourrectusfemoris(a
quadricepsmuscle)originates,andthere'stheischialtuberosity,whichiswherethe
hamstringsoriginate,andwheretheadductormagnusprimarilyoriginates.
Femur

Thefemurisyourthighbone,runningfromyourhiptoyourknee.
Therearefourmainpartsofthefemur:thehead,theneck,theshaft,
andthecondyles.
Theheadofthefemuristhatpartthatfitsintotheacetabulum(hip
socket)theneckshootsofftheheadofthefemurtoconnectittothe
shaft.Nearthejunctionoftheneckandshaftofthefemurarethe
greaterandlessertuberosities,wherealotofyourhipabductorsand
rotatorsinsert.Thevasti(yourotherthreequadmuscles,apartfromthe
rectusfemoris)originateontheshaftofthefemur,andyourgluteus

maximusinsertsonthebackandlateralsidesoftheshaftofthefemur.Thelengthof
theshaftofyourfemurlargelydeterminesthemomentarmsyou'reworkingwithatthe
kneeandhip.
Thefemoralcondylesareatthebottomofyourfemurwhereitmeetstheknee.They're
cushionedbyyourmenisci(padsofcartilageinyourkneejoint)andattachedtoyour
tibiabythefourmajorligamentsoftheknee:youranteriorcruciateligament(ACL),
posteriorcruciateligament(PCL),medialcollateralligament(MCL),andlateral
collateralligament(LCL).Yourgastrocnemius(yourbiggestcalfmuscle)alsooriginates
justaboveyourfemoralcondyles.
TibiaandFibula

Yourtibiaandfibulaarethebonesofyourlowerleg,runningfromyourknee
toyourankle.
Thetibiahasitsownsetofcondylesthatmeetthefemurattheknee.
Yourhamstringsmusclesinsertjustbelowthetibialcondylesandnearthetop
ofthefibula,andyoursoleus(theothermajorcalfmuscle,inadditiontothe
gastrocnemius)originatesnearthetopofthebacksideofyourtibiaandfibula.
IntervertebralJoints

Intervertebraljointsarethosebetweentwovertebrae.Tobrieflyrecap:Each
intervertebraljointiscushionedbyaspinaldisc,andeachallowsforonlyalittlebitof
flexion,extension,rotation,andlateralflexion,whichadduptolargerangesofmotion
inessentiallyallplaneswhenaddressingthespineasawhole.
Hip

Thehipisaballandsocketjoint,meaningitallowsformovementinallplanes,
includingflexion(bringingyourkneetoyourchest),extension(bringingyourknee
closertothefloororpushingitbehindyou),abduction(bringingyourkneeawayfrom
themidlineofyourbody),adduction(bringingyourkneetowardthemidlineofyour

body),androtation(internalrotationisrotatingthefrontofyourfemur
towardthemidlineofyourbody,andexternalrotationisrotatingthe
frontofyourfemurawayfromthemidlineofyourbody).
Anatomicalvariationsofthepelvis,hipsocket,andfemurlargely
determinehowlargeofarangeofmotionyou'llbeabletoachievein
eachofthosemovements.
Knee

Thekneeisessentiallyahingejoint,meaningitprimarilyonly
allowsflexion(likealegcurl)andextension(likealegextension).It
canallowfora
little
rotation,abduction,andadduction,butmore
thanafewdegreesofeachcanputexcessivestrainonthemenisci
andyourmajorkneeligaments.
Thepatella,theknobbylittleboneatthefrontofyourknee,
improvesthequads'leveragetopullagainstthetibiatocauseknee
extension.
Ankle

Theanklecanrotateandbendsideto
side(inversionandeversion),butfor
discussingthesquat,wereallyonly
needtoworryaboutplantarflexionand
dorsiflexion.Plantarflexionispointing
yourtoesawayfromtherestofyour
body,anddorsiflexionisthemovement
you'dperformifyoutriedtopointyour
toestowardyourhead.

Mostpeoplewithoutinsanelymobilehipsneedafairamountofdorsiflexionrangeof
motiontoallowtheirkneestotrackforwardfarenoughtobreakparallelinthesquat.
SpinalErectors

Thereareseveraldifferentsetsofindividualmusclesthatmakeupthismusclegroup,
buttheyalldoessentiallythesamething,sothey'renotreallyworthaddressing
individually.
Thespinalerectorsattachtothetopofthepelvis,theribs,andmostimportantly,the
spine.Allofthemextendthespinewhentheycontract.Eachindividualmuscleonly
crossesafewvertebrae,sostrengthineachregionofthespineneedstobeaddressed
specifically.Youcouldhaveverystrongthoracicerectors(upperback)butweaklumbar
erectors(lowerback)andviceversa.

The"Core"

Thisisacatchalltermforallofthemusclesbetweentheneckandthehipsthathelp
keepthetorsobracedandrigidthatdon'tplayquiteasdirectofaroleasthespinal
erectors.Thiswouldincludetheobliques,transversusabdominis,rectusabdominis,
psoas,lats,andquadratuslumborum.
Realistically,noneofthesemusclesareworthaddressingspecifically,sincenoneof
themplayamassiveroleindividually.Theysimplyhavetobeabletoproduceenough
tensiontoaidthespinalerectorsinkeepingthespinebracedandstable.Inthecaseof
theobliques,transversusabdominis,andrectusabdominis,thatalsoincludesproducing
intraabdominalpressurewiththehelpofthediaphragmandpelvicfloor.


GluteusMaximus

Thegluteusmaximusisyourstrongesthipextensor.Itoriginatesontheposterior
surfaceoftheilium,andinsertsonboththerearandlateralsurfaceoftheshaftofthe
femur,andontheiliotibialband(athickbandofconnectivetissueonthelateralsurface
ofyourlegtheonethatprobablymadeyouscreaminagonyifyou'veeverfoamrolled
it).
"Origin"referstotheattachmentpointofamuscleclosesttothemiddleofthebody
(proximalattachment),and"insertion"referstotheattachmentfurthestfromthe
middleofthebody(distalattachment).Whenamusclecontracts,itpullstheoriginand
insertiontowardeachother.

Hamstrings

Youhavethreehamstringsmusclesthebicepsfemoris,thesemitendinosus,andthe
semimembranosusbutforourpurposeshere,theyhaveessentiallythesamepurpose
andcanjustbetreatedasonemuscle,exceptfortheshortheadofthebicepsfemoris,
whichwedon'treallyevenneedtodiscuss.Theyalloriginateontheischialtuberosity
andinsertjustbelowthekneenearthetopofthetibiaandfibula.Sincetheycrossboth
thehipandtheknee,theycausebothhipextension(whichyouwantwhenstandingup
fromasquat)andkneeflexion(whichyou
don't
wantwhentryingtostandupfroma
squat).Sincetheirinsertionisfurtherfromthehipthanitistheknee(theinternal
momentarmislongeratthehip),though,theyproducealargerhipextensormoment
thankneeflexormomentwhentheycontract.

AdductorMagnus

Allofyouradductorscanplayasmallroleinthesquat,butthemostimportantbyfaris
theadductormagnus.It'softencalledthe"fourthhamstring"becauseitoriginatesin
essentiallythesameplaceontheischialtuberosity(alsoextendingontothepubisabit)
andisapowerfulhipextensor.Unlikethehamstrings,itinsertsonthelineasperaon
thebackofthefemur,soitdoesn'tcrossthekneeandexertakneeflexormoment.
Idon'tthinktheadductormagnusgetsquiteenoughlove.Whenpeoplethinkhip
extension,theyinstantlythinkoftheglutesandhamstrings,butrarelythinkofthe
adductormagnus.However,nottoboreyouwiththedetails,butit'salsoabig,meaty
muscle,andit'sinaverymechanicallyadvantageouspositiontoexertahugehip
extensormoment.Itjusthasn'tbeenstudieddirectlyverymuch(thoughasoontobe
publishedstudyshowsthatitlikelyproducesalargerhipextensormomentthanthe
glutesandhamstringsputtogetheratthebottomofthesquat.Attherequestofthe
authors,Ican'tsharefurtherdetailsyet,though),whichiswhyIthinkit'soften
overlooked.

Quadriceps

Newresearch
hasactuallyshownyouhaveafifthmuscleonthefrontofyourthighthat
noonehadnoticedbefore,somaybeweshouldreallycallthesequinticeps.However,
thatdoesn'tsoundasgood,sowe'restickingwithquads.
Threeofyourquadsthevastuslateralis,vastusintermedius,andvastusmedialiscan
allbetreatedthesameway.Theyoriginateontheshaftofyourfemur,andinsertnear
thetopofyourtibiaonthetibialtuberosity(thatlittlebumpnearthetopofyourshin,
justbelowyourknee)viathepatella.Alltheydoisextendtheknee.
Thefourthisabitdifferent.Therectusfemorisisessentiallytheinverseofthe
hamstrings.Itinsertsonthetibialtuberosityviathepatellajustliketherestofyour
quads,butitoriginatesontheanteriorinferioriliacspineoftheilium(justabovethe
hip),meaningitcanbothflexthehipandextendtheknee.However,muchlikethe
hamstringshadalongerinternalmomentarmatthehipthantheknee,makingthem
moreeffectivehipextensorsthankneeflexors,therectusfemorishasalongerinternal
momentarmatthekneethanthehip,makingitamoreeffectivekneeextensorthana
hipflexor.

Calves

Thelastgroupofmusclesweneedtoaddressareyourcalves.Youhavetwomajorcalf
muscles,bothofwhichareplantarflexors.
Yoursoleusoriginatesonthebacksideofyourtibiaandfibula,whileyour
gastrocnemiusoriginatesjustabovethecondylesofyourfemur.Bothoftheminserton
yourheelviatheachillestendon.
Sincethesoleusonlycrossesonejoint,it'ssolelyaplantarflexor.Sincethegastroc
crossesboththekneeandankle,however,itfunctionsasbothaplantarflexorandknee
flexor.

That'senoughphysicsandanatomyfornow.Youshouldhaveagoodgraspofthebasic
forcesatplayinthesquat,andthemajormuscles,bones,andjointsthatareinteracting
tocompletethemovement.

Biomechanics
Thisiswherethingsgetalittlebitmoretechnical.
Planes

Tomakethissectionalittleeasiertounderstand,youneedtounderstandplanesof
movement.Therearethreebasicplanes:sagittal,frontal,andtransverse.Thesagittal
planecutssomethinginhalftoptobottomandfronttoback,andit'swhereflexionand
extensiontakeplace.Thefrontalplanecutssomethinginhalftoptobottomandsideto
side,andit'swhereabductionandadductiontakeplace.Thetransverseplanecuts
somethinginhalffronttobackandsidetoside,andit'swhererotationtakesplace.

Here'sacrucialpoint:abduction,adduction,androtationaredefinedbythefrontaland
transverseplanesrelativetothetorso.Flexionandextension,ontheotherhand,are
definedrelativetothebonesandjointswherethey'retakingplace.

Mostimportantlyforthesquat,hipandkneeflexionandextensionaredefinedbythe
sagittalplane
relativetothefemur
.Imagineaplanethatcutsyourfemurinhalffrontto
backandtoptobottom.Ifyourkneesarepointedstraightahead,thenthesagittalplane
relativetothefemurmaybeparalleltothesagittalplanerelativetoyourtorso,so
assessingkneeandhipflexionandextensiondemandssimplybylookingattheliftdead
onfromthesidewillbeveryaccurate.However,ifyourhipsareabductedand
externallyrotated,thesagittalplanerelativetoyourfemurwillintersectthesagittal
planerelativetoyourtorso,meaningyou'dincorrectlyestimatekneeandhipextensor
demandssimplybylookingattheliftdeadonfromtheside.Youneedtoassessknee
andhipextensordemandsinthreedimensions,notjusttwo.Escamilla
previous
demonstrated
howassessingkneeandhipextensordemandsinjusttwodimensions
couldproduceprettylargeerrorswhenanalyzingthesquat

Inthefrontalplanerelativetothebody,butstillinthesagittalplanerelativetothehumerus,so
it'sstillelbowflexionandextension.

Here'saneasywaytothinkaboutthis:Thereareprobably1,000typesofcurls.There
arebarbellcurls,concentrationcurls,preachercurls,andthelistgoeson.Idon'tthink
anyonewouldarguethatacurlisn'tessentiallypureelbowflexionandextension.
However,whentheshoulderisinternallyrotated(asinaconcentrationcurl),the
forearmismovinginthefrontalplanerelativetothebody.Idon'tthinkanyonewould
arguethataconcentrationcurlisactuallyelbowabductionandadduction.That's
becauseelbowflexionandextensionaredefinedrelativetothehumerus,andyou're
alwaysperformingcurlsinthesagittalplanerelativetoyourhumerus.Theexactsame
principleisinplaywiththesquat.
BasicDemandsintheSquat

Therearefourbasicchallengesyouneedtoovercomeinthesquat:aspinalflexor
moment,ahipflexormoment,akneeflexormoment,andanankledorsiflexormoment.
Thespinalflexormomentdependsontwothings:
1. Thehorizontaldistance(perpendiculartogravity)inthesagittalplane(relativeto
thetorso)betweenthebarandanyintervertebraljoint.
2. Theloadonthebar.
Therefore,therearethreethingsthatincreasethespinalflexormoment,allotherthings
beingequal:
1. Movingthebarhigheronthebackorinfrontofyourbody.
2. Addingmoreweighttothebar.
3. Incliningyourtorsofarther.
Theankledorsiflexormomentdependsontwothings:
1. Thehorizontaldistanceinthesagittalplane(relativetothetibia)betweenthe
centerpressureonthefootandthemiddleoftheanklejoint.

2. Thetotalload(barweightandbodyweight).
Therefore,therearetwothingsthatincreasetheankledorsiflexormoment:
1. Addingmoreweighttothebar
2. Thecenterofpressureshiftingfurtherforwardonthefoot
Thehipflexormomentdependsontwothings:
1. Thehorizontaldistanceinthesagittalplane(relativetothefemur)betweenthe
centerofmassofthesystem(thebarplustheweightofyourbodyabovethehip)
andthehip.
2. Thetotalloadabovethehip(barweightandbodyweight).
Therefore,therearethreethingsthatincreasethehipflexormoment:
1. Thecenterofmassofthesystemshiftingfurtherforwardorthehipsshifting
furtherbackward.
2. Addingmoreweighttothebar.
3. Depth.Thefronttobacklengthofthefemurinthesagittalplaneincreasesthe
closeryougettoparallel,sothehipand/orkneeflexormomentarmsincreasein
lengthtoo.
Thekneeflexormomentdependsontwothings:
1. Thehorizontaldistanceinthesagittalplane(relativetothefemur)betweenthe
centerofmassofthesystem(thebarplustheweightofthebodyabovetheknee)
andtheknee.
2. Thetotalloadabovetheknee(barweightandbodyweight).
Therefore,therearethreethingsthatincreasethekneeflexormoment:

1. Thecenterofmassofthesystemshiftingfurtherbackwardorthekneesshifting
furtherforward.
2. Addingmoreweighttothebar.
3. Depth.Thefronttobacklengthofthefemurinthesagittalplaneincreasesthe
closeryougettoparallel,sothekneeand/orhipflexormomentarmsincreasein
lengthtoo.
Thedemandsontheankleandspinecanbeaddressedindependently,butthedemands
onthekneeandhipareintrinsicallylinkedtoeachother.
Kneeflexormoment=loadxhorizontaldistancebetweenthecenterofmassandthe
knee.
Hipflexormoment=loadxhorizontaldistancebetweenthecenterofmassandthehip.
So,asthecenterofmassshiftsforward,thekneeflexormomentdecreasesandthehip
flexormomentincreases,andviceversa.
Fromthis,wecanseeanothercoolidentitythatsimplifiesthingsalot.
Horizontaldistancebetweenthecenterofmassandtheknee+Horizontaldistance
betweenthecenterofmassandthehip=fronttobacklengthofthefemurinthe
sagittalplane.
Youcanfindthefronttobacklengthofthefemurinthesagittalplanebytakingthe
cosineoftheanglethefemurformswiththeground.
So...
Equation:Knee+hipflexormoment=loadxfemurlengthxcos(femur
angle)
Inotherwords,nothingyoudoreallychangesthesummedkneeandhipextensor
demandsinthesquat.
Whenthefemurisparalleltothefloor,totalextensordemands

peak,andthey'rethesameforanygivenloadregardlessofbarposition,stancewidth,or
footwear.Likewise,totalextensordemandsforthekneeandhiparethesamebetween
differentsquatstylesatanydiscretedepth,assessedbyfemuranglerelativetothefloor.
Thislittlefactsimplifiesthingsdramatically.Later,we'lldiscusswhyyoucanstillsquat
morewithcertaintechniqueseventhoughthetotaldemandsfromthewaistdownare
identical.

BiarticularMuscles

There'sonemorethingtoaddressthat'ssimpletounderstand,butnotimmediately
obvious:theroleofthehamstringsandrectusfemoris.

Remember,they'rethosepeskytwojointmuscles(alsocalledbiarticularmuscles)that
doonethingwewantkneeorhipextensionalongwithonethingwedon'twant
kneeorhipflexion.
Alsorememberthattheircounterproductivefunctionsdon'tmatter
too
muchbecause
thehamstringsinsertionismuchfartherfromthehipthantheknee,makingita
strongerhipextensorthankneeflexor,andviceversafortherectusfemoris.
However,theydohaveareallycoolproperty:Theyhelpdistributetheextensor
momentsproducedbytheotherkneeandhipextensorsfromonejointtotheother.
Whenthekneeextends,itpullstheinsertionofthehamstringsalongwithit.The
movementatthekneeistransmittedasaforceupthehamstrings,helpingtoextendthe
hip.Whenthehipsextend,thatmovementistransmittedasaforcedowntherectus
femoris,helpingthekneetoextend.
Theseactionshelpdistributetheforcesefficientlythroughoutthesystem.Thehip
extensorscanactuallyhelpoutabitattheknee,andthequadscanactuallyhelpouta
bitatthehip.
Whenyoulookatstudiesthatmeasuremuscleactivationinthesquat(oneexampleis
shownlateron,andmanymorearelinkedattheend),youseethatmuscleactivationis
actuallyprettysimilarbetweendifferentsquattingstyles,includingthosethat
look
alot
more
"kneedominant"or"hipdominant."
Generally,therearenodifferencesinmuscle
activation,orattheveryleast,they'remuchsmallerthanyou'danticipatejustbylooking
atkneeandhipextensiondemands.However,whenyourealizethatthesebiarticular
musclesarelettingthehipextensorshelpoutatthekneeandviceversa,those
minimaltononexistentdifferencesinmuscleactivationmakealotmoresense.
Thisillustrationfromastudyby
vanIngenSchenau
illustrateshowthisconceptalso
appliestojumpingthequadsaidinginplantarflexionviathegastrocnemius.The
sameconceptappliesatthekneeandhipviathehamstringsandrectusfemoris.


Nowit'stimetoactuallygetintothesquatitself.Afterdiscussingthebasicmovement,
we'llrevisitsomeofthismaterialtohelpyouaddressandcorrectweaknesses,andto
answersomebasicquestionsaboutthesquatandhowtooptimizeitforyourself.

Squatting:TheSetup
Therearethreekeycomponentsofthesquat:thesetup,thedescent(eccentric),andthe
ascent(concentric).


There'salittlebitofvariationregardingthedescentandtheascenttheremaybeacue
hereortherethatworkswellforsomepeopleandnotsowellforothers.However,they
areprettysimilarformostpeople.Theymaylookabitdifferent,buttheunderlying
cuesanddemandsarequitesimilar.
Thesetup,ontheotherhand,hasalotmorevariation.Peoplefeelthemostcomfortable
andsquatthebestwithdifferentbarpositions,differentstancewidths,differentgrip
widths,etc.
Formostofthetopicsinthissection,thereareveryfewblackandwhiterulesor
distinctlybetterorworseoptions.Therearejustseveraldifferentapproachesthatare
moreorlesseffectivefordifferentpeople.Thissectioncoversthatvariety,discussesthe
advantagesanddisadvantagesofvarioustechniques,andultimatelyaimstogiveyouthe

toolstotroubleshootyoursetuptooptimizeitforyourself,sincethere'sno
onesizefitsallsolution.
Acoupleofconsiderationsinthissectionwillbeexploredinmoredepthlateron(bar
positionandstancewidthparticularly),butinthissection,we'rejusthittingthehigh
points.
Barplacement

Thefirstconsiderationforyoursetupisbarposition.Therearethreebasicbarpositions
forthesquat:highbar,lowbar,andfront.Inthehighbarsquat,thebarisrestingon
yourtrapsinthelowbarsquat,thebarisrestingacrossyourreardeltoidsandinthe
frontsquat,thebarisrestingacrossyouranteriordeltoidsorinthecleftbetweenyour
anteriordeltoidsandyourtraps.

I'llalsonotethatthelinebetweenthehighbarsquatandthelowbarsquatisahazyone.
Youcoulddrawanarbitrarylineatthespineofthethescapulae(sincetheposterior
deltoidsoriginateonthebottomofthespineofthescapulae,andtheupperfibersofthe
trapsinsertonthetopofthespineofthescapulae),butisthereafundamentalchangein
theliftwhenyoumovethebarupordownhalfaninchacrossthespineofthescapulae?
Notreally.I'lltreatthemasdistinctentitiesintherestofthisguidesincethey'reusually
demarcatedasdifferentexercises.However,inpractice,thedifferencesbetweenthem
areverysmalljustashiftinbarpositionof23inchesformostpeople,leadingto510
degreechangesintorsoandjointangles(abitlessforwardlean,abitmorekneeflexion,
andperhapsabitlesshipflexionforthehighbarsquatvs.thelowbarsquat)unless
you'repurposefullycuingthemdifferently.

Inthehighbarsquat,thebarrestsacrossyourtraps.Dependingonhowjackedyouare,
yourtrapsmaycoverafairamountofrealestate.Seewherethebarfeelsmost
comfortable.Itmayfeelbesthigheruponyourtraps,oritmayfeelbestrestingabit
loweracrossthemeatofyourtraps.Alsoseehowitfeelsactivelyshruggingtotense
yourtrapsversusrelaxingthemabitmore.Ipersonallypreferthebaronthemeatof
mytraps,withmytrapsrelaxedalittlebitsothebarcansinkin.Yourmileagemay
vary.
Thebiggestthingyouwanttoavoidwhensituatingthebarforthehighbarsquatis
lettingitgrindintoyourC7spinousprocessthelittlebonybumpatthebaseofyour
neck.Whenpeoplecomplainofneckpainwhensquattingandthinktheyneedtousea
barpadtoalleviatethediscomfort,thisisgenerallythemistakethey'remaking.Ifyou
wanttosquatwiththebarthathighonyourtraps,tryshrugginguptotenseyourtraps
hardersothebarcanrestabovethatbonyprotuberanceorifyou'dprefer,lowerthebar
abitontothemeatofyourtraps.
Inthelowbarsquat,thebarshouldberestingonyourposteriordeltoids.Similarto
gettingpainduetothebarpressingintoyourC7spinousprocesswhenhighbar
squatting,somepeoplegetdiscomfortintheirshoulderbladeswhenlowbarsquatting.
Thatgenerallycomesfromlettingthebarrestdirectlyonthespineofthescapulae.Just
movingthebarateensybithigher(whichmakesitthelowestpossiblehighbarsquat,
thoughthedistinction
really
doesn'tmatter)orlowershouldtakecareofthat
discomfort.Forboththehighbarandthelowbarsquat,youshouldactivelypullyour
shoulderbladestogether.
Finally,inthefrontsquat,thebarshouldberestingbetweenyouranteriordeltoidsand
thefrontofyourtraps.IfyoufeeldiscomfortonyourACjoint(atthetopofyour
shoulder)oryoursternoclavicularjoint(whereyourcollarbonemeetsyourbreastbone)
...thenIcan'treallyhelpyou.Gettingslightlymorejackedanteriordeltoidscanhelpa
bit,butreally,frontsquatsarejustuncomfortableuntilyoudeadenthenervesunderthe

skinwherethebarrests.You'realmostguaranteedtogetbruisessomewherealongyour
collarbone,especiallywhenyoufirsttrythem.
Manyliftershaveahardtimefindingasecurepositionforthebarwhentheyfirsttry
frontsquatting.They'llfindthatthebarkeepstryingtoslidedowntheirshoulders,and
thatit'sputtingalotofpressureontheirwrists.Thebiggestculpritisscapularposition.
Experiencedpowerlifters
especially
getusedtodoingeverythingwiththeirscapulae
retracted(pulledback,likeyou'retryingtopinchapencilbetweenyourshoulder
blades).However,whenyouretractyourscapulae,yourclaviclesmovebackalongwith
them.Youwantto
protract
yourscapulae(likeyou'retryingtopinchapencilbetween
yourpecs),soyourclavicleswillshiftforwardaswell.Thatshouldputyouranterior
deltoidsfarenoughinfrontofyourneckthatyouhaveaniceshelftorestthebaracross.
Thisisn'tanymorecomfortable,butit
is
muchmoresecure,andthebarwillbemuch
lesslikelytoslidedownyourshoulders.
Handposition

Thenexttopicishandposition:Howwideornarrowdoyouwantyourhandsonthe
bar?
Ingeneral,forthehighandlowbarsquat,anarrowerhandpositionwillhelpyoukeep
yourupperbackalittletighterandmorestable.Whenyoubringyourhandsin,your
scapulaenaturallyhavetoretractharder(soyourmiddleandlowertrapswillbetighter,
alongwithyourrhomboids),andyourshoulderswillnaturallyhavetoadduct(tensing
yourlatsabit).Withawiderhandposition,youcanstill
consciously
tenseyourupper
backmuscles,butit'saloteasierandfeelsmorenaturaltocreateupperbacktension
withyourhandscloser.
Ingeneral,yourhandsshouldbeascloseasyoucancomfortablygetthem.Ifyoucan
getthemcloserwithoutpaininyourwrists,shoulders,orelbows,orjust
feeling
super
uncomfortable,thenyou'dprobablybenefitalittlefromdoingso.

Forthefrontsquat,therearethreebasichandpositions.
Thefirstisthefrontrackposition.Thisisthemostcommonamongweightlifters.Your
handsshouldbeslightlywiderthanshoulderwidth,keepingasmanyfingersonthebar
aspossiblewhilefrontsquatting.Ifthat'sonlytwoorthreefingers,that'sfine:Your
shouldersshouldbesupportingthemajorityoftheload,notyourhandsandwrists.
Thesecondisthearmscrossedposition.Thisismostcommonwithbodybuildersand
somepowerlifters.Onceyougetthebarsituatedacrossthefrontofyourshoulders,you
simplycrossyourarms,keepingyourhandsabitinsideyourshoulders,andholdonto
thebarthatway.Mostpeoplewillfeelabitmoresecureiftheycanworkontheirfront
rackpositionsotheydon'thavetofrontsquatthisway,butsomepeoplewhoare
exceptionallyjackedorwhohaveshouldermobilityrestrictionsmayfeelbestfront
squattingwiththishandposition.
Thelastiswithstraps.Thisisagoodcompromiseforpeoplewhohavepoormobility,
butwhostillwanttoapproximatethefrontrackposition.Simplywrapwriststraps
aroundthebarandgripontothem,asclosetothebaraspossible.Pullthestrapstight
sotheydon'tslidebackandforthwhileyou'retryingtofrontsquat.

Wristposition

Wristpositionisn'tanoverlyimportantconsiderationforthebacksquatifyou're
creatingastableenoughshelfforthebarwithyourtrapsorreardelts.Ifthetrapsor
reardeltsaresupporting(essentially)theentireweightofthebar,andthebarisn't

slidingdownyourshoulders,thenitdoesn'tmatterverymuchwhetheryourwristsare
keptstraight,orifyouletthemcockback.
Manypeopledon'tcreateastableshelfforthebar,sothebarpressesdownandback
intotheirhandswhentheysquat.Whenthishappens,itcancausewristdiscomfortif
thewristsarecockedback.Ifyou
do
getwristdiscomfortwhensquatting,gettingback
toaneutralwristpositioncanhelpalleviatethatdiscomfort.
Therearethreethingsyoucandotogetyourwristsbacktoneutralwhensquatting,if
squattingbothersyourwrists.
1. Justsimplyfocusonkeepingyourwristsstraight.Ifyouhavethemobilityto
keepyourwristsneutralbutyousimplydon'tdoit(perhapsbecauseyounever
knewtotry),thisisaneasyfix.
2. Widenyourgriponthebar.Remember,yourgripshouldbeascloseasitcanget
without
paininyourwrists,elbows,orshoulders.Generally,people'swristswill
cockbackwhenthey'resquattingduetolimitedshouldermobility.Theycan't
externallyrotatetheirshouldersenoughtogettheirhandsbehindthebarwith
roomtospare,sothey"cheat"andcocktheirwristsbacktocompensate.By
wideningyourgripabit,it'seasiertoexternallyrotateyourshouldersenoughto
getyourhandsbehindthebarwithyourwristsstraight.
3. Putyourthumboverthetopofthebar(andmaybeputyourpinkyunderthe
bar).Thiscanbeespeciallyhelpfulforlowbarsquatters.Ifyouwrapyour
thumbaroundthebar,thejuncturebetweenyourforefingerandthumbneedsto
bebelowthebar(obviously).Ifyoudon'twrapyourthumbaroundthebar,you
don'tneedtogetasmuchradialdeviationfromyourwrists(wristsbentintoward
themiddleofyourbody),andyoudon'tneedtogetyourhandquiteaslow,which
meansyoudon'thavetoexternallyrotateyourshoulderquiteasmuch.When
youdothis,thebarwilljustrestacrossthemeatypartofyourpalminsteadof
needingtogripitwithyourfingers,andinsteadofholdingontothebarby

grippingit,youpushitforwardintoyourshoulderstokeepinfromslipping.If
puttingyourthumbontopofthebardoesn'tquitetakecareofthisissueforyou,
youcankeepyourwristinaslightlymoreneutralpositionbyalsoputtingyour
pinkyunderneaththebar.

Justanote:Wristpainandissueskeepingthewristsstraightaremuchmorecommon
withthelowbarsquatthanthehighbarsquat,sinceexternalrotationdemandsatthe
shoulderaregreaterwithalowerbarposition.
Forthefrontsquat,yourwristswillalwaysbecockedbackifyou'reholdingthebarina
frontrackposition.Generallythiswon'tcausewristdiscomfortunlessyourwristflexors
are
super
tight,orifyoudon'thaveasolidshelfforthebartorestonanditstarts
sliding,causingyourhandsandwriststobearmoreoftheload.Ifthathappens,it's
moreofanissuewithhavingasolidshelftorestthebaron.Protractingyourshoulder
bladesanddrivingyourelbowshighershouldhelp.
Ifyou'restillgettingwristpainfrontsquattingaftertryingthosethings,thenfeelfreeto
holdthebarbyeithercrossingyourarmsorusingstraps,providedyou'renotfront
squattingforweightlifting(inwhichcase,you
really
needtomakesureyouhaveasolid
frontrackposition).
Elbowposition

Yourelbowpositioninthebacksquatlargelydependsoncomfort.

Ingeneral,yourelbowsshouldbedownandpulledintoyoursides.Iliketousethecue,
"scratchyourribcagewithyourelbows."Thiswillhelpcreatelattensiontoaidintorso
rigidityandupperbacktightness.
However,especiallyforthelowbarsquat,somepeoplemaybenefitfromdrivingtheir
elbowsupbehindthebar.Thereasonforthisissimple:Thebarisrestingonyourrear
deltsinthelowbarsquat,andpeoplewithsmallreardeltswillsimplyhaveahardtime
creatingastableshelfforthebartorestonwithoutsliding.
Drivingyourelbowsupbehindthebar
can
causesomepeople'scheststocaveforward.
Thisisespeciallytrueforpeoplewithpoorshouldermobility,whoneedtoflextheir
thoracicspinetogettheirelbowshigher.Conversely,manypeoplewhofeellikethey're
gettingcavedforwardbyasquatcansavetheliftbyaggressivelydrivingtheirelbows
downandforwardtostiffentheirupperbackandkeeptheirchestfromfoldingforward.

Inthefrontsquat,yourelbowsshouldbeashighaspossible.Drivingyourelbowsup
willhelpkeepyourthoracicspinefromflexing,andit'llgiveyouabettershelfforthebar
torestonbyflexingyourfrontdeltsalittleharder.
Walkout

Atthispoint,youshouldhavethebarsetcomfortablyandstably(ormaybe
notsocomfortably,butatleaststablyforthefrontsquat)acrossyourshoulders,so
you'rereadytowalkoutwiththebar.

Thefirstthingyouneedtosquareawayistheheightofthehooksyou'resquattingout
of.Youshouldbeabletogetthebaroverthehookscomfortablywithouthavingtohalf
squattheweightjusttounrackit,orriseuponyourtoestogetthebaroverthehooks.
Thisshouldbecommonsense.However,Istillseealotofpeoplewhosetthehookstoo
highsotheyhavetoraiseupontheirtiptoestounrackthebar.Notonlyisthisstupid
it'sdangerous.Startingwiththehookstoolowisabitlesscommon,andit'snotas
muchofaconcern,butit'llmeanwastedenergyunrackingthebarbeforeyou'reeven
readytosquatit.
Thesecondorderofbusinessisgettingyourfeetsetunderthebar.Thisisprimarilya
matterofcomfort.Mostpowerliftersunrackthebarwiththeirfeetsquareandset
beneaththeirhipsorshoulders.Manyweightlifters,ontheotherhand,willunrackthe
barwithaslightlystaggeredstance.

Realistically,itdoesn'tmatterverymuchhowyousetyourfeettounrackthebarinany
generalsense.Ifyou'resquattingatonofweight,orifyoufeellessstablewitha
staggeredstance,thenyou'rebetteroffunrackingthebarwithyourfeetsquared.
Otherwise,justgowithwhicheverapproachyou'remostcomfortablewith.
Unrackthebarbydrivingyourshouldersupintothebaraggressively.Alotofpeople
findthat,especiallywithveryheavyloads,unrackingthebaraggressivelymakesthe
weightfeellessintimidatingthangingerlyunrackingthebar.Startwithyourhipsabit
behindthebar,takeadeepbreathintoyourstomach,tenseyourback,anddrivethebar

upoffthehooksbydrivingyourhipsunderthebarandpushingthefloorawayfrom
you.
Youshouldwalkthebaroutoftherackasefficientlyaspossiblesothatyouwaste
minimalenergybeforeyouactuallygetdowntothebusinessofsquatting.Thismeans
takingasfewstepsaspossible.Youwanttogetfarenoughawayfromtherackthatyou
won'taccidentallyhitthehookswhenyou'resquatting,butyoudon'twanttoexpend
moreenergythannecessary,ortakehugestepsthatcouldthrowyouoffbalance.
Thefirstwalkoutisthetwostepwalkout.Onceyouunrackthebar,takealittlestep
backwithonefoot,takealittlestepbackwithyoursecondfoot,andmakeasmall
adjustmentinthedirectionyourtoesarepointedifneeded.Ifyou'reunrackingthebar
withastaggeredstance,thentakeyourfirststepbackwithyourfrontfoot.Thisismost
commonwithnarrowstancesquatters.
Thesecondwalkoutisthethreestepwalkout.Thisisthemostcommonwithwider
stancesquatters.Onceyouunrackthebar,yourfirsttwostepsarethesame,andthen
youwidenoutyourstancewithyourthirdstep.Thisismucheasierformostpeople
thanstartingwithawidestanceandtakingtwoawkwardstepsbackward.
Stancewidth

Thenextissueisfindingyourstancewidth.
Therearetwomainconsiderationshere:comfortandcarryover.
Comfort
Noneedtocomplicatethis.Simplyplayaroundwithyourstancewidthandseewhat
feelsthebestforyou.Youcandothisunweightedifyou'renewtosquatting,orwitha
reasonablyheavybutnotoverlychallengingload(think7080%ofyour1rm)ifyou're
moreexperienced,butthinkyoumaywanttochangeyoursquatstance.Juststart
aroundshoulderwidthandsquatdown.Seehowthatfeels.Thentryaninchortwo
narrower.Thenaninchortwowider.Trytodriveyourkneesoutversuslettingthem

trackstraightaheadandseewhatfeelsthestrongestandmostcomfortable.Letyour
bodytellyouhowtosquat.Seehowdeepyoucansquatwitheachstancewidthwithout
yourbackrounding,andseehowstableandcomfortableyoufeelineachposition.Stick
withtheonethatgivesyouthebestcombinationofdepthandcomfort.
Carryover
Thisisonlyaconsiderationforpeoplewhoaresquattingforsomethingotherthanthe
squatitself.Thinkingaboutthecarryoveryou'llgetfromsquattingtosomeother
athleticendeavorisparticularlyanissuewithweightlifterswhoprimarilybacksquatto
improvetheirlegstrengthforthesnatch,andfrontsquattoimprovetheirlegandtorso
strengthfortheclean.Peoplewhoaresquattingprimarilytoimprovetheirverticalleap
maywanttoconsidercarryoveraswell.
Ingeneral,you'llgetthebestcarryoverifyoursquatwidthissimilartoyourstance
widthinwhatevermovementyou'rehopingitwillcarryoverto.So,youshouldback
squatwithyourfeetthesamewidththey'dbewhencatchingasnatch,yourfootposition
shouldbethesamewhenyoufrontsquatandwhenyoucatchaclean,andyourstance
widthwhensquatting(inanymanner)shouldbesimilartoyourstancewhenjumping
(feetbelowhipsorjustslightlywider,typically).
Thisisn'tnecessarilya
massive
concern,becausethegenerallowerbodystrengthyou
buildsquattingwillcarryovertootherathleticendeavorsregardlessofhowcloselyyour
stancewhensquattingmimicsyourstanceinothermovements.However,itwillhelpa
littlebit.
Onefinalconsiderationforpowerlifters:Yourgoalincompetitionissimplytosquatas
muchweightaspossible,andyou'llgenerallybeabletosquatabitmorewithashorter
rangeofmotion.Youshouldbreakparallelconvincinglyenoughtogetwhitelightsfrom
thejudges,butnotexcessivelydeep.Unlikeiceskating,youdon'tgetbonuspointsfor
style.

You'llalsogenerallysquatmoreifyoucanbottomoutinthesquatversusreversingthe
weightaboveyourfullbottomposition(assumingyou'rebreakingparallelinboth
circumstances),becausebottomingoutallowsyoutotakeadvantageofthestretch
reflex,whichgivesyoualittlemore
oomph
tostartbuildingmomentum.
Withthatinmind,powerlifterswhosebottompositionisconsiderablydeeperthan
parallel,approachingasstograss,shouldalsoexperimenttoseehowwidetheycan
squatwhilestillbreakingparallel.Awiderstancewillnaturallylimitdepth,lettingyou
stillbenefitfrombottomingoutandtakingadvantageofthestretchreflex,withoutgoing
unnecessarilydeep.Thiscanbeveryhelpfulforsomepeople,butsomepeople'ships
willprotest.Eitherway,it'sworthashottoseeifitcanhelpyouputupbiggernumbers
ontheplatform.
Squattingwideralsohastwoadvantagesapartfromsimplylimitingrangeofmotion:
1. Awiderstancewidthwillnaturallytrainyouradductorsmore,particularly
youradductormagnus
.There'snoreasontobelievethatawiderstancewould
decreasehowmuchyourglutesorhamstringscouldcontributetothelift(infact,
twostudies
one
,
two
foundthatgluteactivationwasabithigherwithawider
stance),anditverywell
may
increasehowmuchyouradductormagnuscan
contributetothelift.Totalkneeandhipextensiondemandswouldbepretty
similar,butyou
should
beabletoproducealargerhipextensormomentwitha
widestance.Thisisn'ttrueforallpeople,butitistrueformany.
2. Awiderstancecanmaketheliftslightlyeasieronyourback
.Unlikekneeand
hipextensordemands,spinalextensiondemandsonlyneedtobeaddressedin
twodimensions.Withawiderstanceandmorehipabduction,makingthefemur
"shorter"fronttoback,yougenerallydon'thavetoinclineyourtorsoquiteas
muchtokeepthecenterofpressureoverthemiddleofyourfoot,decreasing
spinalextensiondemands.


Close,moderate,andwidestancesquats.Thewidthyousquatwithdependsonyourpersonal
anatomyandyourtraininggoals.
FootAngle

Therearetwomainconsiderationswhentalkingabouthowfaroutyoushouldpoint
yourfeet:kneehealthandbalance.
KneeHealth
Ingeneral,yourbestbetistoletyourhipsandkneesdetermineyourfootangle.
Onceyou'veexperimentedwithyourstancewidthandhowaggressivelyyouabductyour
hips(drivingyourkneesoutvs.lettingthemtrackforward),simplyadjustyourfoot
anglesothatyourtoesandkneespointthesamedirection.So,ifyouhaveawider
stancewithmorehipabduction(whichtypicallygohandinhand,butnotalways),your
toesshouldpointoutmore,andifyouhaveanarrowerstancewithlesshipabduction,
yourtoesshouldbeclosertostraightahead.Ina"normal"squatforsomeonenearthe
middleoftheanatomicalbellcurve,thatgenerallymeanshavingyourtoespointedout
1520degreesnotstraightahead,butnotturnedoutaton.Ontheotherhand,for
squatterslikemyselfwithawiderstanceandmorehipabduction,there'snothingwrong
withhavingyourtoespointedoutatcloserto3045degrees.
Youwantyourkneestotrackoverroughlyyourfirstorsecondtoe.Ratherthan
squattingwithyourfeetturnedouttoapredetermineddegreeorarbitrarilypointed

straightaheadandforcingyourkneesandhipstofollowalong,you'rebetteroffseeing
whathipandkneepositionfeelsthestrongestandmostcomfortable,andlettingthat
determinehowfaroutyoupointyourfeet.Ifyourkneestrackalittlebitinsideyourbig
toeoralittleclosertotheoutsideofyourfoot,it'snottheendoftheworldaslongasit
doesn'tcomealongwithkneepain.However,you'reprobablybetteroffjustpointing
yourtoesinwhateverdirectionyourkneesaretracking,andnotworryingaboutitpast
that.
Balance
Theoneexceptiontothegeneralruleoflettingkneepositiondictatetoepositionisfor
reallywidestancesquatterswithalotofhipabduction.
Manypeoplestarthavingbalanceissuesiftheirfeetareturnedoutward45degreesor
more,simplybecausetheirfeetarethen"shorter"fronttobackwhenlookingatthem
fromtheside.Sometimes,thiscanmakeiteasiertoloseyourbalanceforwardorbackif
youmisgroovethelift.
Ifthathappenstoyou,thenjustpointyourtoesabitfurtherahead.Yourkneeswill
trackabitoutsideyourfirstorsecondtoe,butaslongasyoudon'tgetkneepain,that's
probablyfine.Youcouldalsobringyourstanceinabitandnotabductyourhipsquite
asmuch.
Bracing

Bracingyourtorsoiscrucialforabigsquat.Itdoesn'tmatterhowstrongyourlegsand
hipsareifthatforcecan'tmakeittothebarthrougharigidtorso(hellopeoplewholeg
press800lbsandonlysquat225).
Therearetwokeyfactorsfordevelopingtorsorigidity:spinalextensionstrength,and
intraabdominalpressure.
Thefirstfactorspinalextensionstrengthisstraightforward:Isyourbackstrong
enoughtostayextendedwiththeweight,ordoestheweightcaveyouforward?For

moreexperiencedlifters,thisistypicallyastrengthissue,anditcangoalongway
towardexplainingperformancedifferencesbetweenthedifferentsquatstyles.Fornewer
lifters,though,itcanbeacontrol/skillissuebecausetheyaresimplynotaccustomedto
tensingtheirspinalerectorsandmaintainingthattensionwithaloadedbarontheir
shoulders.Mostpeoplewithsomedegreeofinnatekinestheticsensewillfigureouthow
tocontracttheirspinalerectorstokeeptheirbackrigidprettyquickly,though.Aloaded
baracrossyourshouldersmakesforagoodteacher.
Thesecondfactorintraabdominalpressureisn'tquiteasstraightforward.Tothe
bestofmyknowledge,thereisn'tmuchresearchconcerningdifferenttorsobracingcues
andtheireffectsonintraabdominalpressure.Here'swhatwedoknow:
1. Intraabdominalpressureishigher
withabeltthanwithoutone
.Thisisthe
primaryreasonpeoplecansquatmorewithabelt.
2. Intraabdominalpressureishigherwhenyoutakeadiaphragmaticbreaththan
whenyou"breatheintoyourchest/shoulders."Whenyouinhale,yourstomach
shouldinflatetothefrontandsides(whichhasbeendescribedas"360degree
expansion"byChadSmithand"inflateyourobliques"byChrisDuffin),rather
thanyourchestandshouldersrising.
3. Intraabdominalpressureishigherwhenyouholdyourbreathandusethe
valsalvamaneuver(likeyou'retryingtoforcefullyexhalewhileclosingoffyour
throatsonoairgetsout).

Thosethreethingswillaccountforthemajorityoftheintraabdominalpressureyou
canproduce.
Therearealsopeoplewhotakethepositionthatpurposefullypullingyourribsdown
(withoutroundingyourspine)andkeepingyourpelvisneutral(mostpeoplestartthe
squatinanteriorpelvictiltlikeyou'retryingtostickyourbuttout)willhelpyoucreate

moreintraabdominalpressure.Asthethinkinggoes,whenthediaphragmandpelvic
flooratthetopandbottomofyourabdominalcavityarefacingeachother,thenyour
diaphragmaticbreathwillcreatemoreintraabdominalpressure.That'sincontrastto
themorestandardcueofarchingyourbackhardthroughoutthelift,whichwillalsolet
yourribsflareup,andyourpelvisgointoanteriortilt,sothatyourdiaphragmand
pelvicfloorwouldn'tbefacingeachother.
Tothebestofmyknowledge,thisquestionhasneverbeenstudied.There'sanintuitive
appealtothesquattingwiththeribsdownandthepelvisinneutral,butI'mnotsure
there'sameaningfuldifferenceintherealworld,atleastinanygeneralsense.One
advantagetopurposefullysquattinginneutralisthatitletsyousquatabitdeeper.
Whenyourpelvisisanteriorlytilted,you'restartingthemovementalreadyinalittlebit
ofofhipflexion,andreachingorapproachingendROMforthehipsiswhatlimitsmost
people'ssquatdepth,somanypeoplebottomoutalittlehigherwhenfocusingon
archingtheirbackhard.Ontheotherhand,anadvantageoffocusingonarchingisthat
iteffectivelyensuresyou'reactivelykeepingyourspineextended(whichisthewhole
pointofbracing,afterall).Thereareplentyofgoodlifterswhousebothtechniques,so
thisisaninstancewhereyourbestbetisprobablyjusttoexperimentforyourselfand
seewhichcuehelpsyoufeeltighter.
Onefinalpointaboutbracing:It'snotjust"tensingyourabs,"andrealistically,
abdominalstrengthprobablydoesn'timpactsquattingtoanymeaningfuldegree.
Tostartwith,there'sthesimplemechanicalexplanation:

yourabsarespinalflexors,
andwhenyousquat,you'retryingtokeepyourspineextendedagainsttheflexion
momentimposedbythebar.
Somedegreeofabdominalcontractionisnecessaryto
produceintraabdominalpressure,butit'smorelikeyou'rebracingtotakeapunch(if
you'resquattingbeltless),notlikeyou'retryingtodoacrunch.Ifyou'resquattingwitha
belt,it'smoreliketryingtoinflateyourtorsotopressagainstyourbelt,nottoflexyour
abs.


Theharderyourabs(spinalflexors)contract,theharderitisforyourspinalerectorstokeepthe
spinefromflexing.

Furthermore,multiplestudieshavemeasuredactivationofvariousabdominalmuscles
inthesquat,andactivationisprettylowonthewholecertainlynowhereclosetowhat
you'dexpectfromtraditional"core"exerciseslikesitupsorplanks.Thisimpliesthat
theactualstrengthofyourabdominalmusculatureprobablywon'tlimityour
performanceinthesquat,sincethey'renotbeingstressedanywhereclosetotheirlimits.
Thisarticle
explainsthisconceptinmoredetail,completewithcitations.
Finally,in
researchonhighlytrainedpowerlifters
lookingatthecorrelationsbetween
performanceinthesquatandthethicknessofvariousmuscles,therewasn'ta
particularlystrongcorrelationbetweenabdominalmusclethicknessandsquat
performance.
Allofthismeansthatdevelopingtorsostiffnessforthesquatdependsonyourspinal
erector
strength
,combinedwiththe
skill
ofbracingyourcoretocreateintraabdominal
pressure,butthatthestrengthofyourabs,obliques,andtransversusabdominus
probablyisn'tgoingtolimityou.
Creatingfullbodytension

Atthispoint,you'vegottenthebarsetacrossyourshoulders,you'vesortedoutyour
handandelbowposition,you'vewalkedthebarout,foundyourstancewidthandfoot
position,andyou'vetakenadeepdiaphragmaticbreath(intoyourstomach)tocreate

intraabdominalpressureandbraceyourtorso.There'sonlyonethinglefttodo:
get
eventighter
.
Youwanttocreateasmuchtensionthroughoutyourentirebodyaspossiblesothat
you'llbeinutmostcontrolofthebar.
Thatstartsatthefloor.Youwanttomakesureyouhavethreesolidpointsofcontact
withthegroundyourbigtoe,yourpinkytoe,andyourheelwithyourweightevenly
distributedacrossallthreepoints.Thiswillhelpensureyoukeepyourbalance,andit
willkeepyourcenterofmassovermidfoot.Igotthisfrom
QuinnHenoch
.
Next,tocreatetensioninyourhips,tryoneoftwocues:
1. "Screwyourfeetintothefloor."Withyourfeetfirmlyplanted,attemptto
externallyrotateyourhips,likeyou'retryingtopointyourheelstowardeach
other,andyourtoestowardoppositewalls.Youmayfeeltheoutsideofyourfoot
pressingfirmlyagainstthewallofyourshoe.Thistendstobemosteffectivefor
narrowormoderatestancesquatterswiththeirfeetpointingfurtherforward(up
toabout20degreespointingout).
2. "Spreadthefloor."Imagineafaultlineopenedupbetweenyourfeet,andyou're
tryingtodriveyourfeetaparttoripthecrustoftheearthinhalf.Thistendstobe
themosteffectiveforwiderstancesquatterswhopointtheirtoesoutfarther.

Finally,youshouldalsocreatetensioninyourupperback.Thisispartially
accomplishedviabarplacement,elbowposition,andgripwidth(alowerbarposition,
elbowsunderthebarinthebacksquat,andaclosergripnaturallyhelpyougetyour
upperbacktighter).Tocreateevenmoretensioninthebacksquat,trytobendthebar
acrossyourshoulders,likeyou'retryingtofolditinhalf.Inthefrontsquat,driveyour
elbowsashighaspossible.
SetupChecklist:

1. Pickyourbarpositionbasedonpersonalpreferenceandyourtraininggoals
(moreonchoosingasquatforyourgoalslater).
2. Gripthebarascloseasyoucomfortablycan.Ifyou'regettingwrist,elbow,or
shoulderdiscomfort,widenyourhandsoutabitorexperimentwithotherwaysto
gripthebar(notwrappingyourthumbaroundthebarforthebacksquat,and
eithercrossingyourarmsorusingstrapsforthefrontsquat).
3. Driveyourelbowsunderthebarforthehighbarsquatandforthelowbarsquat
ifyourreardeltsarebigenoughtoeasilycreateastableshelfforthebar.Drive
yourelbowsbehindthebarifyouneedalittleextrahelptensingyourreardelts
enough.Forthefrontsquat,driveyourelbowsashighaspossible.
4. Walkthebarout,expendingaslittleenergyaspossible.
5. Getinyourpreferredstancewidth,andpointyourtoesouttotheappropriate
degree(basedonstancewidth,hipabduction,andkneetracking).
6. Takeadeep,diaphragmaticbreath(stomachexpanding,notshouldersrising).
Bracelikeyou'regoingtotakeapunchtothestomachifyou'resquattingwithout
abelt,andpushyourstomachandobliquesagainstyourbeltifyou'resquatting
belted.
7. Createtotalbodytensionfromthegroundupbyfindingandmaintainingthree
pointsofcontactwithyourfeet,screwingyourfeetintothegroundortryingto

spreadthefloor,andtryingtobendthebaracrossyourbackifyou'reback
squatting.

TheDescent
Onceyoursetupissquaredaway,it'stimetosquat!
CuingtheDescent

Therearetwobasicwaystocuethedescent:"sitdown"and"sitback."
Whenyou"sitdown,"youbreakatthekneeandhipsimultaneously,andtrytodrop
yourbuttdirectlybetweenyourheels,keepingyourtorsoasuprightaspossible.

Whenyou"sitback,"youbreakatthehipfirstandpushyourbuttback,asifyouwere
tryingtositintoachairbehindyou,purposefullyallowingyourtorsotoinclinequitea
bit.

Thereareadvantagesanddisadvantagestoeachtechnique.
Sittingdowngenerallyallowsyoutosquatdeeper.Reachingfullhipflexionisgenerally
whatlimitsdepthinthesquat,andsinceyou'reemphasizinghipflexionthroughoutthe
descentwhensittingback,yourbottompositionwillbeabithigher.Inmostcontexts,a

longerrangeofmotionmeansasuperiortrainingeffect,sothisisanadvantageofsitting
down,atleastfordaytodaytrainingpurposes.
However,sittingdowncanbedifficultforpeoplewithlimitedanklerangeofmotion.
Sinceyou'rebreakingatboththekneeandthehipatthestartofthelift,focusingon
sittingdowngenerallymeansmoreforwardkneetravel.Ifyouranklesaretootightfor
yourkneestokeepgoingforward,thatwillpushyoubacktowarda"sittingback"
positionanyways,somanypeoplewithlimitedanklerangeofmotionsimplyfeelmore
comfortablesittingbackfromthesquat.
Ontheflipside,limitingyourrangeofmotioncanbean
advantage
ofsittingback.This
isespeciallytrueforpowerlifterswhosquatwithawiderstance.Ontheplatform,you
don'thavetosquatlowenoughtobounceyourbuttoffyouranklesyoujusthaveto
breakparallel.Bysittingbackandnaturallyhavingabottompositionalittlebelow
parallelinsteadof
way
belowparallel,you'retrainingaskillthatcanpayoffina
competition.
Adisadvantageofsittingbackisthatyouwon'tgothroughasmuchkneeflexion,soyour
squatlikelywon'tbeoptimalforquadgrowth.Thiscertainlydoesn'tmatterintheshort
termwhentrainingforacompetition,butitcanlimityouinthelongrun.9timesoutof
10,whenIseealifterwithagreatdeadliftbutasubparsquat,theyhavechickenlegs,
andtheirsquatimprovesdramaticallywhentheyeitherdodedicatedquadworkoralter
theirtechniquetositdownintothesquatandtraintheirquadsthroughalongerrange
ofmotion.
Intheend,therearen't
major
differencesbetweenthetwotechniques.Researchhas
shownthatalmosteveryrelevanttrainingvariableandperformanceparameter(force,
poweroutput,muscleactivation,etc.)isverysimilar
whencomparingthetwostyles
.
Theadvantagesanddisadvantagesofeachtechniqueareprettysmall,soplayaround
withbothstylesandseewhichonefeelsthestrongestandmostcomfortableforyou.
SpeedofDescent

Thenextkeyfactorisspeedofdescent.
Ingeneral,yourbestbetistodescendasfastaspossible
whileremainingincomplete
controlofthebar
.
Afasterdescentcanhelpyougetalittlemore"bounce"outofthebottomofthesquat
viathestretchreflex(whenyourmusclesstretchquickly,theynaturallycontractwitha
bitmoreforceforamomentwhenyoureversethemovement),butalittleextrapopisn't
veryhelpfulifyou'relooseandoutofcontrolwhenyouhitthehole.
Depth

Thefinalissueforthedescentis...whendoyoustopdescending?
Mysimpleanswer:Atthebottom.Aslowasyourbodywillletyougo.However,be
awarethatthere'ssomevariabilityinthedepthpeoplecanachieve.Comparemy
rockbottompositiontomywifeLyndsey's.

I'mmanenoughtoadmitthatIhavedepthenvy.

Somepeopleareconcernedthatdeepsquatswillinjuretheirkneesortheirback,sothey
squathighandcuttheirsquatoffassoonastheirtorsostartsincliningforwardeverso
slightly.However,
themostthoroughreviewofthescientificliterature
foundthatdeep
squatsposednoseriousriskstothekneesorspine.Theloadsonyourkneesandspine
cancertainlygetveryhighwithheavy,deepsquats,butyourbodyisn'tfragile.Your
tendons,ligaments,andspinaldiscsareprimarilymadeofcollagen:atissuewhich

bordersonludicrouslystronganddurable.Thedemandsonthosetissuesinadeep
squatarewellbelowthemaximumthatthosetissuescanwithstand(assumingyoudon't
havepreexistingkneeorspineissues),
and
theyremodel,grow,andgetstrongerin
responsetotraining,justlikeyourmusclesdo(albeitataslowerpace).
Deepsquatshelpyougainmorestrengthandmusclethanshallowsquats,andthey
transferbettertomostathleticendeavors(evenverticaljumping,whichactuallymimics
thehalfsquatmoresothanthedeepsquat).
Ifyou'regoingtosquatdeep,thenyoumayaswellgountilyoubottomout.Notonlydo
yougetthebenefitsofincreasedrangeofmotion,but
most
peoplefindtheycanactually
liftmoreweight.
Mostpeople'sstickingpointinthesquat(thepointwherethebarslowsdown
dramatically,andthepointwheremostpeoplemissasquatthat'stooheavy)isalittle
bitaboveparallel.Ifyou'resquattingatleasttoparallel,thehardestpointofthelift
won'tbeyourbottomposition.Itwillbemidwayup,soyouaren'tmakingtheliftany
harderbysinkingacoupleofinchesdeeper.
Whenyousquatuntilyourhipsstopyouoruntilyourhamstringsbounceoffyour
calves,you'llgetthatbounceoutoftheholethatImentionedbefore,whichwillhelpyou
inreversingtheloadsoyou'llhavemoremomentumbuiltupwhenyoureachthe
stickingpoint.Mostpeoplefindthatiftheybottomout2inchesbelowparallel,it'salot
easiertocompletetheliftiftheygo2inchesbelowparallelratherthancuttingthesquat
rightatparallel.
Whenyoucutasquathigherthanyournaturalbottomposition,assumingyou'restill
squattingtosomepositionbelowyourstickingpoint,youhavetoreversetheweight
purelywithactivemusculareffortinsteadofalsogettingaboostfromyourstretchreflex
andthepassivecontractilepropertiesofyourmusclesthatkickinastheystretch.The
advantageyougainfromdecreasingyourrangeofmotionisgenerallyoutweighedbythe
additionaleffortittakestoreversetheloadwithouttheaidofthebounce.

Ontopoftheadvantageyougetfromthebounce,there'sanadditionaladvantagetoa
higherbottomposition:you'recatchingthebounceclosertoyourstickingpoint.Your
stickingpointisgoingtocomeatthesamepointinthelift(abitaboveparallel)no
matterhowdeepyougo,soifyoucancatchthebouncejustbelowparallel,youcanride
itthroughthestartoftheascentandstillhavemoremomentumleftwhenyoureachthe
stickingpoint.
Ifyou'reapowerlifter,therearesometweaksyoucantrythatwillletyoutakeadvantage
ofthatbouncewhilebeingableto
naturally
haveahigherbottomposition:below
parallel,butnotdeeperthanisnecessaryforacompetition.
1. Asmentionedpreviously,ifyoucangetreallydeepwhensittingdownintothe
squat,trysittingbackinstead.You'llreachfullhipflexionhigher,andnaturally
limityourrangeofmotionabit.
2. Trywideningyourstanceoutabitmore.Thewideryourstancegets,thehigher
yourbottompositionwillget.Findthestancewidththatstillletsyoubreak
parallel,butthatdoesn'tletyougomuchpastparallel.
3. Intentionallyarchyourlowbackharder.Thiswillputyourpelvisinanteriortilt,
soyou'llalreadybestartingtheliftinabitmorehipflexion.
4. Ifyougenerallyhighbarsquat,givethelowbarsquatatry.Sincethebarislower
onyourback,you'llnaturallyhavetoleanfartherforwardtokeepyourcenterof
massovermidfoot.Liketheotherthreetips,thiswillletyoureachfullhip
flexionataslightlyhigherdepth.
Ifyoutrythesetipsandtheydon'tclickforyou,that'sperfectlyfine!Theadvantageyou
getfrombeingabletobottomoutwhilestillcuttingyoursquatalittlehigherisasmall
oneinthefirstplacejustlookatweightlifterswhostillsquatatonwhilegoing
super
deep.However,thesearealltipsworthexperimentingwith.

TheAscent
Nowyou'vesquatteddownwithabunchofweightonyourback.Timeforthehardpart:
actuallystandingbackupwithit!
Theascentrevolvesaroundthesinglemostcrucialpointinthelift:thestickingpoint.
Mostpeople'sstickingpointisanywherefrom16inchesaboveparallel.Theexactjoint
anglesvarypersontoperson,butitoccursalmostuniversallyinthemiddleofthelift.
Veryfewpeoplegetburiedintheholeanddon'tevenstartcomingup,andveryfew
peoplemissoncetheybreakthroughthestickingpoint(unlesstheyjustlosetheir
balance).
Yourgoalwhenyoustartdrivingoutoftheholeistoputyourselfinagoodposition
whenyoureachyourstickingpoint,andyourgoalthroughthestickingpointisjustto
grindthroughasefficientlyaspossible.
Initiating

Withthatinmind,whenyoustartdrivingoutofthebottomofasquat,youshould
initiatetheascentbydrivingyourtrapsbackintothebaraggressivelywhiledrivingyour
feetthroughthefloor.The#1thingyouwanttoavoidisgettingcavedforwardand
reachingthestickingpointinagoodmorningposition.Sincethebaristryingtocrush
youforward(imposingaspinalflexionandhipflexionmoment),drivingyourtrapsback
intothebarwillcounterthattendency.
Formostpeople,yourdegreeofforwardleanatthebottomofthesquatshouldbe
maintaineduntilyoureachthestickingpoint.Gettingtiltedfartherforwardwithyour
hipsdriftingbacktakesyourlegsoutofthemovementtosomedegree,forcingyouto
fightthroughthestickingpointprimarilywithyourhipextensorsandback.

Theexceptionstothisrulearepeoplewhosquat
super
deep,andwhocanachievea
super
uprightbottomposition.Yourtorso
will
inclineforwardabitasyoustartdriving
outoftheholewiththistechnique.

Noticehowmybackangleisthesameinbothpictures,whileLyndsey'storsoismoreuprightinher
rockbottomposition,incliningabitasshestartstheascent.
TheStickingPoint

Onceyoureachthestickingpoint,yourgoalshouldbetomakeitthroughasefficiently
aspossible.
Thebiggestmistakepeoplemakeatthispointintheliftispanickingandrushing
themselves.Whenthishappens,they'lllettheirhipskeeprisingwithoutthebarmoving
verymuch.Theneteffectisthat,eveniftheymadeittothestickingpointinagood
position,they'reputtingthemselvesinalessmechanicallyadvantageousposition,so
they'llhavetofinishtheliftasagoodmorning(iftheyfinishitatall).
Thebetterstrategyistocontinuedrivingyourtrapsbackintothebaraggressively,while
simultaneouslytryingtodriveyourhipsunderthebar.Yourkneeswillprobablyshift
forwardaswell.


Driveyourtrapsbackintothebaranddriveyourhipsunderthebartogetthroughthesticking
point.

Thisfeelsalmostlikelockingoutadeadlift.Inadeadlift,whenthebarpassestheknee,
peoplearecued"shouldersback"and"hipsforward"tokeeptheirhipsfromshootingup
higherandtomakethelockoutmuchsmootherandmoreefficient.Thoseareprecisely
thesamecuesyoushouldusetogetthroughthestickingpointofasquat.
Tounderstandthiscue,weneedtolookintothedemandsimposedbythesquat.
TwostudiesbyBryanton(
one
,
two
)examinedthekneeandhipextensordemandsinthe
squat.Theybothlookedat
relativemusculareffort
,whichisessentiallytheratio
betweenthekneeandhipflexormomentsimposedbythesquatandthekneeandhip
extensormomentsyou'recapableofproducingateachjointangle.Alargevaluemeans
you'renearthelimitsofyourstrength,andasmallvaluemeansthatthedemandsofthe
liftatthatjointangleareverylow.Theimagebelowoverlaysthedatafromthosetwo

studieswithdatafrom
McLaughlin
onbarspeedforworldclasspowerlifterslifting
maximalloads.

Thoughthere'ssomevariability,thestickingpointtendstooccurataround70degrees
ofkneeflexion,withthebardecelerating(indicatinghighdemands)untilthatpoint
afteraninitialrapidacceleration.Throughthatpartofthemovement,relativemuscular
effortofthehipextensorsisconsiderablyhigherthanrelativemusculareffortofthe
quads.Thatmeansthatwhenyoumiss,it'sverylikelythatyourhipsweren'tstrong
enoughtobreakthroughthestickingpoint,andveryunlikelythatitwasyourquadsthat
weren'tstrongenoughtobreakthrough.
Bytryingtodriveyourhipsbackunderthebar,you
decrease
thedemandsonyourhip
extensors,whichareneartheirlimit,and
increase
thedemandsonyourquads,which
canhandlemoreoftheload.Thisensuresthattheloadremainsevenlydistributed
betweenthekneesandhipstomaketheliftasefficientaspossible.

Onefinalpoint:
EXPLODE
.Lifteveryrepasfastasyoucanwhilestillmaintaining
propertechnique.Squatsarehard,somanylifterssimplyputaslittleeffortintoeach
liftaspossible.However,you'll
gainstrengthmuchfaster
ifyoumakeapointoflifting
eachrepasexplosivelyasyoucan,fromthefirstrepofeachsettothelast.

DiagnosingWeaknesses
Nowthatyouunderstandthebasicdemandsofthesquat,itshouldn'tbetoohardto
figureoutyourweaknessestoimproveyoursquat.
1)Quads

Remember,thedemandsonyourquadsareattheirhighestpointattheverybottomof
thesquat.
Ifkneeextensiondemandsexceedyourquads'capacity,theyhavea"safetyvalve"
yourhips.Yourkneeskickback(shorteningthekneeextensionmomentarmand
decreasingkneeextensiondemands),yourhipsshiftback,andyourtorsoleansfarther
forward.
Insteadofmaintainingaconstantbackanglebetweentheholeandthestickingpoint,
youtiltfartherforward,windingupina"goodmorningsquat"positionbecauseyour
quadsweren'tstrongenoughtopulltheirweight,sotheyshiftedmoreoftheloadtothe
hips.


Inthegoodmorningsquat,thekneesandhipsshiftback,decreasingdemandsonthequadsand
increasingdemandsonthehipextensors,indicatingaquadweaknessyourbodyisnaturally
shiftingtheeffortawayfromthequadstowardthehips.

Tocorrectagoodmorningsquat,mostpeopleneeddedicatedquadwork.It'sbeenmy
experiencethatjustdoingmoresquatsrarelycorrectstheproblem.Frontsquatscan
help,sinceyou
can't
shifttheloadexcessivelytoyourhips.Ifyourtorsostartsinclining
fartherforward,thebarwilljustrolloffyourshoulders,sofrontsquatsforceyoutokeep
yourquadsheavilyinvolvedinthelift.Legpressesandmachinehacksquatsarealso
greatoptions.Finally,unilateralworklikesplitsquats,reverselunges,andstepupscan
helpaswell.
2)Core

Whenaddressingthecore,therecouldbetwoculprits:1)backstrength(thoracicspinal
erectorsinparticular,especiallyforthefrontsquatandhighbarsquat),and2)theskill
ofbracingyourtorsotoproduceintraabdominalpressureandsupportyourspine.

Thebiggesttelltalesignthatyourcoreislimitingyouisabigdiscrepancybetweenyour
squatanddeadlift.Ifyourdeadliftismorethan1520%higherthanyousquat,it'slikely
acoreissue.
Manypeopletakeforgrantedthattherewillbeabigdifferencebetweenyoursquatand
deadlift,butwhenyoureallyanalyzethemovements,yourealizethatyoushould
actuallyexpecttosquatanddeadliftsimilarweights.
Deadliftshavetwobigadvantages:therangeofmotionisshorter,andtheyallowfora
littlemoreformbreakdownthansquatsdo(ifyourspineflexesinthedeadlift,youcan
oftenfinishthelift.Whenitflexesmuchinthesquat,you'reusuallydeadinthewater).
However,withsquats:
1. Yourstickingpointoccurs
above
thestartingpositioninthedeadlift.Remember,
youdon'tmissaweightbecauseyou'retooweakthroughthewholerangeof
motion.Youmissaliftbecauseyouweretooweakthroughyourveryweakest
pointinthemovement.Evenifyouwindupinasuboptimalgoodmorningsquat
position,you'reessentiallyinthesamepositionyou'dbeinadeadliftwiththebar
acoupleofinchesbelowyourknee.Justsimplylookingatknee,hip,andspinal
extensiondemands,ifyoucanfinishadeadliftfromthatposition,youshouldbe
abletofinishasquatfromthatpositionwiththesameweight.
2. Inasquat,yourkneescanmovefreely.Yourkneescantrackfartherforward
throughoutthelifttokeeptheloaddistributedmoreevenlybetweenyourquads
andhipextensors,andifyougetstuck,yourkneescanshiftforwardalongwith
yourhipstoefficientlymakeitthroughthestickingpoint.Youdon'thavethat
sameluxurywiththedeadlift.Ifyourkneesshiftforward,they'llpushthebar
forwardaswell,throwingyouoffbalanceandensuringyoucan'tfinishthelift.
3. Whenyoureachthestickingpointofthesquat,thebarisalreadymoving.You
havesomemomentumbuiltupwhenyoureachyourstickingpoint.Compare
thattothedeadlift,whereyou'repullingthebarfromamotionlesspositionon

theground.Gettingthebarmovinginthedeadliftisthehardestpartformany
people,butwhenyou'reinthepointofyoursquatthatcorrespondswiththestart
ofyourdeadlift,you'vealreadygotsomemomentumonyourside.
4. Finally,whenyoubreakthroughthestickingpointofasquat,theliftis
essentiallyfinished.Barringsomestrangeaccidentsuchaslosingyourbalance,
there'snowayyouwon'tfinishasquatafteryougetpastthestickingpoint.In
thedeadlift,however,manypeoplestillmissatkneeheightorlockout.

Thestickingpointinthesquatvs.theequivalentpositioninthedeadlift.Ifyoucanfinishthedeadlift
withagivenload,yourquadsandhipextensorsarestrongenoughtofinishasquatwiththesame
load.

Thebiggestfactorthatexplainswhymostpeoplecandeadliftmorethantheysquatis
thatpeoplenaturallybracemoreeffectivelyforthedeadlift.You'vebeenpickingstuff
upoffthegroundforyourentirelife,includingwhenyouwereveryyoungwiththe
abilitytomastermotorskillsfasterandmoreeffectively.Youwereprobablysquatting
fromayoungageaswell,butyouweren'tsquattingwithaheavyloadacrossyour
shoulders,sowhenyoustartsquattingwithabar,thebracingpatternistotallyforeign
toyou.
Inotherwords,yoursquatanddeadliftnumbersshouldbeprettysimilar.Iftheyaren't,
themostlikelyexplanationforthedifferenceissuboptimalcorebracingpatterns.

Ifthissoundslikeyourproblem,Iaddresseditinmuchmoredepthin
thisarticle
,along
withexercisesspecifictothesquatthatyoucandotoworkonimprovingyourbracing.
3)Hips

Byprocessofelimination,ifyou'renotlimitedbyyourquadsoryourcore,there'sonly
oneplacelefttolook:yourhipextensors.
Thisisagoodthing.Thisiswhat"should"beyourlimitingfactorifyoubracewelland
youhavestrongquads.
Thebestexercisetoimproveyourhipextensors'strengthforsquatting:moresquats!
Ifyouwanttoaddsomeotherexercisesintothemix,however,goodmornings,stiffleg
deadlifts,hipthrusts,glutehamraises,hyperextensions,and
bandedkneelingsquats
areallgreatoptions.

CommonQuestionsandIssues
Aresquatssafe?

Thereisthepotentialforinjurywitheveryexercise.However,onariskscalefrom1to
"snapcity,"
properlyperformed
squatsarea1.
ThereasonIsay"properlyperformed"isthatthingslikespinalflexionorexcessiveknee
cavingcanmakesquatsmoredangerous.
However,ifyoudon'thaveissueswithyourspineroundingoryourkneescavingin,
squatscarrya
very,verylowinjuryrisk
ifyoudon'thavepreexistingjointissues.
Again,healthyspinaldiscsandhealthyconnectivetissueinyourkneescanhandleloads
wayhigherthanyou'llfaceinthesquat.Thosesametissuescanalsoremodelandget
strongerinresponsetosquatting,furtherdecreasingyourinjuryriskbothwhen
squattingandwhenplayingothersports.
WhatdoIdoaboutbuttwink?

Buttwinkisthenemesisofmany.Ifyouaren'taware,buttwinkoccurswhenthelumbar
spineroundsandthepelvistiltsposteriorlyabitatthebottomofthesquat.

Neutralpelvicandlumbarpositioningontheleft,andbuttwinkontheright.

Thefirstthingyoushouldfigureout:Isitbuttwink,orisitsimplyyourspinegoingback
toneutral?Ifyousquatwithahardarch,yourlumbarspineishyperextendedandyour
pelvisisanteriorlytiltedthroughoutthedescent.Whenyoureachthebottomofthe
squat,whatlookslikebuttwinkatfirstglancemaysimplybeyourlumbarspineand
pelvismovingfromhyperextensionandanteriortiltbacktowardneutral.Getavideoof
yoursquatfromtheside,andseewhetheryourbacklookslikeit'sgoingfromabigarch
toasmallerarch,orwhetherit'sgoingfromaslightarchtobeingrounded.
Ifit
is
buttwink,thefirstthingyoushoulddoistestwhetheryou
can
actuallysquatto
depthwithoutbuttwink.Somepeople'shipanatomysimplywon'tallowthemto.You
canuse
thisassessment
tofindout.
TheonelittlethingI'dchangeabouttheassessmentthewayit'spresentedinthisvideo:
dropyourchestalittleclosertothefloorsothattheassessmentmorecloselymimicsa
horizontalsquat.
Ifyoupassthistestandyou
can
reachtherequiredlevelofhipflexionwithoutbuttwink
(yourhipcreasecangetbehindyourkneewithoutbuttwink),thenit'snotamobility
issueit'sacontrolissue.

Therearetwostrategiesyoucanusetotrytoaddressthisproblem:
Strategy1
Rememberthedifferencebetweensquatsanddeadlifts:mostpeoplenaturallybrace
betterforanteriorlyloadedmovements.
Startwithagobletsquat.Seeifyoucansquatwithoutbuttwinkwhengobletsquatting.
Ifyoucan,addloadeachsessionuntilitsimplybecomeschallengingtogetthedumbbell
orkettlebellinpositiontokeepgobletsquatting.Afterthat,moveontofrontsquats,
whicharestillanteriorlyloaded,butmorechallengingthangobletsquats.You
should
beabletofrontsquatwithoutbuttwinkafterreallymasteringthegobletsquat.After46
weeksoffrontsquats,moveontohighbarbacksquats,whichyoushouldbeableto
controlwellatthispoint.Ifthatgoeswell,thengivelowbarbacksquatsashot(ifyou
wanttolowbarbacksquat).

Strategy2
Useprogressiverangeofmotion.Seehowdeepyoucansquatwithoutyourbuttstarting
totuckunder.Setthesafetypinstothatheight,andsquattothepins,startingwitha
slightlylighterloadthanyouweresquattingbefore(sinceit'salittlehardtosquatto
pins).Squatdowntothepins,letthebarrestonthemforasecond(don'tbouncethe
baroffthepins),andcomeup.Everyweekortwo,lowerthepinsoneposition.Keep
goinguntilyou'resquattingtodepth.
Combinebothoftheseapproacheswithplanksandsideplanksbeforeeachsetofsquats.
Thereasonyoushouldincludethemisexplained
here
.

Furtherreadingonthistopic
.
Whydopeople'ssquatformsvarysomuch?

Manypeoplesquatforspecificgoalsthatrequire(oratleastbenefitmorefrom)a
particularstyleofsquat.Forexample,powerliftersoftentrytosquatinamannerthat
willallowthemtoliftthemostweightpossiblethroughtheminimumrangeofmotion
requiredforcompetition.Weightlifters,ontheotherhand,trytosquatasdeepand
uprightaspossibleforbettercarryovertothecleanandsnatch.
Ontopofthesepracticalreasonsareanatomicalreasons.Thereareamultitudeof
differencesinhipanatomythatcanmakepeoplesquatdifferently,includingdifferent
hipsocketdepths,differentanglesofinclinationoftheneckofthefemur,different
degreesofrotationofthefemoralneckabouttheshaftofthefemur,anddifferent
positionsforthehipsocketonthepelvis.Throwindifferentfemurlengths,varying
degreesofanklemobility,varyingattachmentpointsforthemusclesaroundthehip,
anddifferentlevelsofstrengthintheprimemovers,andyouhavealotoffactorsthat
caninfluencehowsomeonewillsquatbest.
Morereading
here
,
here
,
here
,
here
,and
here
.
Caneveryonesquatasstograss?

No.Allofthosedifferentanatomicalfactorsdeterminehowdeeplysomeonecansquat.
Manypeoplecansquatasstograss,butmanypeoplecan't,nomatterhowmuchthey
workatit.
ShouldIhaveaverticalbarpath?

Alotofpeoplehavetheideathatifyoudon'thaveaperfectlyverticalbarpath,your
squatisinefficient.Theytreatitasanimmutablelawofgoodsquatting.

However,thissimplyisn'ttrue.Withveryheavyloads(2xyourbodyweightormore)
yourbarpathshouldbeveryclosetovertical,butyoushouldn'texpectittobewith
lighterloads.
Why?
Thesimpleansweristhis:yourassisn'tweightless.
Theslightlymorecomplexanswer:
Ifyouassumethatthebarbellitselfisthecenterofmassofthesystem,thenyes,you
shouldexpectthebarpathtobeprettydarnvertical,withthebaralwaysstayingover
themiddleofyourfoot.
However,thebarbellitselfisnotthecenterofmassofthesystem.Youcan'tdiscount
themassofyourbodysegments.Almostallofyourtorsowillbebehindmidfoot,and
mostofyourfemurwillbebehindmidfoot,whileyourarmswillberoughlyover
midfoot,andmostofyourlowerlegswillbemostlyoverorslightlyinfrontofmidfoot.
Takingallofthosesegmentsintoaccount,thecenterofmassforyourbodywillalmost
certainlybebehindmidfootformostofthelift.
I'llspareyouallthemath,butessentiallybarpathdependsontheweightofthebar
comparedtotheweightofyourbody.Ifyou're200lbsandyou'resquatting200lbs,and
youwantthecenterofpressuretoremainovermidfoot,thenthebarisgoingtoneedto
shiftforwardtothesamedegreeasthecenterofmassofyourbodyshiftsback.Ifyou're
200lbsandyou'resquatting600lbs,thenthebarwillonlyneedtoshiftforward1/3as
farasthecenterofmassofyourbodyshiftsback(andatthatpoint,thebarpathwill
basicallybevertical).
Yes,youwantthecenterofpressuretostayoverthemiddleofyourfoot.
Yes,youwantthecenterofmassforthesystemtostayoverthemiddleofyourfoot.

No,youshouldn'texpectthebartostayoverthemiddleofyourfootandmoveina
perfectlyverticallineunlessyou'resquattingatonofweight.

Forwardbartravelwith95lbsvs.315lbs.Inbothpictures,thecenterofpressureisovermidfoot,but
thebardriftsfartherforwardwiththelighterloadduetothemassofmybodybehindthebar.

Thissite
illustratesthispointreallywell.It'sbasedonanincrediblyaccurateand
thoroughbiomechanicalmodel(Iknowit'saccurate,becauseIhelpedtheprogrammer
implementit.It'sbasedonthemethodsforperformingaquasistaticanalysisinthree
dimensionsasdescribedin
BiomechanicsandMotorControlofHumanMovement
by
Winter,whichisprobablythebestbiomechanicstextbookoutthere).
Isawidestancesquateasier?

Forstarters,it'snotnecessarilyeasierforallpeopleduetodifferencesinhipanatomy
andmuscleattachmentpoints.Ifyouhavehipimpingementissueswhensquattingwith
awidestance,forexample,itdoesn'tmatterwhattheexternaljointmomentsare.You
stillwon'tbeabletosquatverymuch.Additionally,yourmuscles'attachmentpoints
maybefavorableforproducingalotofhipextensiontorqueindeadaheadhipflexion,
andnotnearlyasmuchwithafairamountofhipabduction.
Alsoremember,kneeandhipextensormomentsarecalculatedinthesagittalplane
relativetothefemur,notthesagittalplanerelativetothetorso,sothefactthatthe
femuris"shorter"fronttobackwhenlookingfromthesideisirrelevant.When

calculatingjointmomentsmoreappropriatelyinthreedimensions,stancewidthdoesn't
changethesummedkneeandhipextensordemands.
Widestancesquatsmaystillhavesomeslightadvantages,though.
Eventhoughyourfemurbeing"shorter"fronttobackdoesn'taffecttotaldemandsat
thekneeorhip,that
can
allowyoutostayslightlymoreuprightthroughoutthelift,
makingtheliftalittleeasieronyourspinalerectors.

Noticethedifferenceinbackangleandfronttobacklengthofthefemur.Also,nowyouknowwhyI
squatwithawiderstanceandmorehipabductionthepictureontherightisaslowasIcanget
withaclosestanceandmykneestrackingroughlystraightahead.Why?Differenthipanatomies
requiredifferentsquatstyles.

Thesecondadvantageisthatawiderstancegetsyouradductorsintotheliftmore,
specificallyyouradductormagnus.Basedonbrandnewmodelingresearch(sonewthat
Iunfortunatelycan'tshareyetattherequestoftheauthorssinceit'sstillinpeerreview
I'lladditonceit'saccepted),theadductormagnuslikelyproducesalargerhipextensor
momentthanyourhamstringsandglutes
combined
atthebottomofthesquat.Iknow
thatIpersonallyfeelmore"pop"frommyhipswhenIreverseasquatwithawide
stance,andIalsogethorrendousadductorsorenessifIsquatwideaftersquatting
narrowforawhile.Istronglybelievethosetwothingsarerelated.

Thefinaladvantage,aspreviouslydiscussed,isthatawiderstancesquatallowsyouto
bottomoutandcatchyourbounceclosertoparallel,insteadofbottomingoutdeeper
thanyouneedtoifyou'reapowerlifter.
Again,
thissite
doesagreatjobofillustratingthe(verysmall)effectsofstancewidthon
thedemandsinthesquat.
WhereshouldIfocusmyeyes?

Peopleobsessaboutheadpositiontoapotentiallyunhealthydegree.Theyopinethat
lookingupwillstrainyourneckordamageyourcervicalspineovertime,andtheyposit
thatlookingdownwillcauseyoutocaveforward.IalsoseepeopletalkaboutaRussian
studythatsupposedlyshowedthatlookingupincreasedactivationofthespinalerectors
andhipextensors,whilelookingdownincreasedactivationofthequads.I'velookedfor
thisstudy,andI'veaskedmultiplepeoplewho'vereferencedittosendmeacopy.Sofar
I'vecomeupempty,andI'mstartingtothinkitsimplydoesn'texist.
After10yearsinthesport,I'veliterallyneverseenaneckinjuryfromsquatting,andI've
seen
many
successfulsquatterslookup,down,orstraightahead.
Here'stheimportantpart:Findonepointtofocuson,whetherthatbe10feetinfrontof
youonthefloor,somewhereonthewall,oratthejunctureofthewallandtheceiling.
Focusintenselyonthatonepointthroughoutthelift.Thiswillhelpyoukeepyour
balanceandavoidbeingdistractedbywhat'sgoingonaroundyou.
WhatshouldIdoaboutelbowpain?

Firstthingsfirst,ifthesimplestepsbelowdon'thelp,goseeaphysicaltherapist.
Mostelbowpainfromsquattingisaresultofpoorthoracicspineextensionandpoor
shoulderexternalrotation,meaningyouhaveproblemsgettingyourhandsbehindthe
barinthefirstplace,puttingalotofstrainonthemedialsideofyourelbow.Thiscanbe

compoundedbyhavingapoorshelftorestthebaronsoyourarmsendupbearingmore
oftheloadinsteadoflettingyourbackhandleit.
Youcanfirsttryadjustingyourgriptakingaslightlywidergripandnotwrappingyour
thumbaroundthebar,asaddressedabove.Thedrillsin
thisarticle
willhelpyou
improveyourthoracicmobility.Finally,ifallelsefails,youcanjustswitchtohighbar
squatting.
Almost
allinstancesofelbowpaininthesquatI'veseencomefromlowbar
squatters.Attheveryleast,youcanswitchtohighbarwhileyouworkonimproving
yourmobilityuntilyoucancomfortablysquatlowbaragain.
HowshouldIsquatifIwanttobuildmyquads?

Ingeneral,longerrangesofmotionmeanmorehypertrophy.Yourkneeswillgenerally
gothroughmoreflexionfrontsquattingorhighbarsquattingthantheywilllowbar
squatting,evenifyouusethesamecues,simplybecauseyourtorsoisslightlymore
inclinedwiththelowbarsquat,meaningyourhipsreachfullrangeofmotionandcut
yourdepthoffabithigher.
Whencomparingthehighbarsquatandfrontsquat,threestudieshavemeasured
muscleactivation(
one
,
two
,
three
).Twofoundnodifferences,andonefoundslightly
(andIdomeanslightly)highermuscleactivationinthequadswithfrontsquats.
Anytypeofsquatwillbuildyourquads,buthighbarsquatsandfrontsquatstakenas
deepaspossible,sittingdownintotheliftinsteadofsittingbackintothelift,will
probablybuildyourquadsthebest.
CanIsticksolelywithsquatstomaximizelegdevelopment?

Whilesquatsshouldprobablybeatthecenterofyourlowerbodytraining,squatting
probablywon'tmaximizelegdevelopmentbyitself.
Inparticular,otherlowerbodyexercisesgiveyouhigherlevelsofrectusfemorisand
hamstringsactivation.Inalllikelihood,thismeansthatusingawiderarrayofexercises
willbenecessaryformaximizingleggrowth.Thisisn'toverlysurprising,sincethe

nervoussystemgenerallyprioritizesrecruitmentofsinglejointmusclesoverthe
recruitmentmultijointmusclesincompoundexercises(there'snotatonofresearchon
thatparticulartopicyet,butthat'sthedirectionit'sleaning).
Tomaximizerectusfemorisdevelopment,purekneeextensionexercises(likeleg
extensions)willhelp,andtomaximizehamstringsdevelopment,purerhipextension
(likeRDLs,goodmornings,andbackraises)andkneeflexion(likelegcurlsandglute
hamraises)willhelp.
Inaddition,there'sagrowingbodyofevidencethatcertainexercisesgrowcertain
regionsofaparticularmuscletoagreaterorlesserdegree,soincludingdifferent
variationsofsquatsalongwithothercompoundlowerbodymovementswillprobably
helpmaximizequaddevelopment.
Thisarticle
exploresthistopicinmoredepth(withsources),althoughthisshouldn't
comeasmuchofasurprise.Bodybuilderswhoseektomaximizelegdevelopmenthave
reliedonabroadervarietyofexercisesforalong,longtime.
WhatshouldIdoaboutkneeorbackpain?

First,makesureyoudon'thaveanymajortechniqueissues,suchasyourkneescaving
in,yourheelscomingofftheground,oryourbackrounding.Ifallofthosethingsare
squaredawayandyoustillhavejointpain,seeaphysicaltherapist.That'stheirdomain
ofexpertise,notmineasacoach.
Mykneesarecavingin.Isthatbad?Ifso,howdoIfixit?

Itlargelydependshowmuchthey'recavingin.It'snotuncommontoseetheknees
"tick"inslightlyasyou'recomingupoutofthehole.Manypeople,includingalotof
highlevelweightlifters,squatthatwaywithoutissue.However,excessivekneecaving
shouldbeavoided.


Inthefirstpicture,mykneesaretrackingdirectlyovermytoes.Inthesecond,they"tick"inabit,
whichgenerallyisn'tproblematic.Inthethirdpicture,they'recavingtoadegreethat'slikely
dangerous.

Howdoyouknowit'sexcessive?Ifitcausespain,it'sexcessive.Ifyouvideoyoursquat
fromthefrontandyourkneestickinnoticeablymorethanthesquatterswho
intentionallylettheirkneestickin,it'sprobablyexcessive.
Therearethreesimplethingsyoucantryouttocorrectthisissue.
1. Trybringingyourstancein.Formanypeople,theirkneescaveinbecausethey're
tryingtosquatwiderthantheirhipswillallow,andnarrowingtheirstancefixes
theissueimmediately.
2. Trysquattingwithabandaroundyourknees.Thistactilecuewill"remind"your
hipabductorstopushoutagainstthebandtokeepyourkneesout.After
squattinglikethisforafewweeks,themotorpatternshouldbeingrainedwell
enoughthatyoucansquatwithoutthebandandyourkneeswill"remember"to
stayoutwithoutthetactilecueoftheband.There'sapictureofthisbelow.
3. Ifneitherofthosethingswork,youcandodedicatedabductorworktostrengthen
thosemuscles.Myfavoriteexerciseforthispurposeishipthrustswithaband
aroundyourknees.Bycombiningactiveabductionwithhipextension,this
mimicswhatyourhipsdointhesquatbetterthanabductorisolationmovements.


Thebarisuncomfortableonmyshoulders.

Ifyou'redoingahighbarbacksquat,movethebaralittlelower.It'slikelypressing
againstthespinousprocessofyourC7vertebra.
Ifyou'redoingalowbarsquat,movethebareitheralittlehigheroralittlelower.It's
likelypressingagainstthespineofyourscapulae.
Ifyou'redoingfrontsquats...justsuckitupordon'tfrontsquat.They'renever
comfortableuntilyoueventuallydeadenthenervessurroundingyourclaviclesandAC
joints.
TheweightisshiftingforwardandI'mlosingmybalance.

Makingsureyou'redrivingyourtrapsaggressivelybackintothebarcanhelpwiththis.
Whenyoudothat,you'resimultaneouslyfightingtoextendyourhipsanddrivethebar
back
.Ifthatdoesn'twork,
thislittletrick
canhelpalot.
WhatshouldIdoabouttightankles?

Thefirstthingyoushoulddoismakesureyouranklesareactuallytight.There'sa
simpletestforthat:
Placeyourtoeagainstawall,androckforward,keepingyourheelontheground.If
yourkneecantouchthewall,backyourfootupbyabouthalfaninchandrepeat.Keep
goinguntilyoucan'tgetyourkneetothewallwithoutyourheelcomingofftheground.

Inthefirstthreepicturesmykneeistouchingthewallwithmyheelontheground.Inthefourth,it's
hardtosee,butmykneehasn'tquitemadeittothewall,andmyheelisstartingtocomeoffthe
ground.

Ifyourtoesaremorethanabout2inchesfromthewallwhenyoureachthatpoint,you
haveenoughanklemobility.
Most
peoplewhothinktheydon'thaveenoughankle
mobilitypassthistestjustfine.(Asanote,IgotthistestfromQuinnHenoch.)
Ifitstill
seems
likeyoudon'thaveenoughanklemobilitywhenyousquat,eventhough
youpassedthistest,youmaysimplyhaveweakcalves.The
sameresearch
lookingat
relativemusculareffortforthequadsandhipextensorsexaminedrelativemuscular
effortforyourcalfmuscles,andfoundthatthosedemandscanactuallygetquitehigh.


It'sentirelypossiblethatyourcalvessimplyaren'tstrongenoughtoallowyourkneesto
trackfartherforward,becauseasyourkneestrackfartherforward,plantarflexor
demandsincrease(generallyasyourkneestrackfartherforward,centerofpressureon
yourfootshiftsforwardabitaswell).
Howdoyoufixthis?Calftraining,ofcourse.
What'smuchmorelikely,however,isthatit'sactuallyduetoaquadstrengthissue.The
furtherforwardyourkneestrack,thehigherthedemandsonyourquadsare.Asthe
weightsincrease,you'llnaturallyshiftmoreandmoreoftheloadtoyourhips,meaning
yourkneesdon'ttrackasfarforward.This"looks"likepooranklemobility.
Ifit'sastrengthissue,it'shardtoteaseoutwhethertheculpritisyourquadsoryour
calves,becausetheendresultisthesame:eitheryourkneeswon'ttrackforward

becausedoingsowouldincreaseplantarflexordemandstoomuch,oryourkneeswon't
trackforwardbecausedoingsowouldincreasekneeextensiondemandstoomuch.
Ifyouhavechickenlegs,it'sprobablyquads.Ifyouhaven'ttrainedyourcalvesin3
yearsandyoudon'tdoanything"athletic"(sprint,jump,etc.)thatwouldindirectlytrain
yourcalves,thenit'sprobablyyourcalves.Ifyouhavechickenlegs
and
youdon'ttrain
yourcalves,thenaddinmorequadworkandsomedirectcalftraining.Simple.
Ifitisactuallyamobilityrestriction,youcanjustgetsomeweightliftingshoeswitha
raisedheel.Problemsolved.
HowdoIcorrecttheweightshiftingtooneside?

Thefirstquestioniswhetheryou
need
tocorrectit.
Bilateralasymmetriesarethenorm
ratherthantheexception,and9timesoutof10theydon'tcauseanyproblems.
Ifyouthinksidetosideimbalancesarecausingyouissues,ifyouwanttotakethe
"bettersafethansorry"approach,orifyoujustwanttobalanceoutyoursquatsoit
looksbetter(I'mnotjudging),checkoutthelinkabovewhichlooksatthisissueinmore
depthandprovidestrainingadviceabouthowtoaddressit.
DoIhavetosquatbelowparallel?

Noone'spointingagunatyourheadandforcingyoutosquatbelowparallel.Ifyou
wanttocompeteinpowerlifting,you'dbetterfigureouthowto,though.Additionally,if
you
can
squatbelowparallel,you'llprobablygetabetterallaroundtrainingeffectfrom
squattingdeep.
However,noteveryone
can
squatbelowparallel.Mostpeoplecan,buthipanatomy
simplydoesn'tallowsomepeopletosquatbelowparallelsafely.
Dr.StuMcGill,theforemostexpertonspinalbiomechanics,addressedthistopic
inan
interviewwithBretContreras
.Ithinkheexplaineditbeautifullyandcandidly,so
insteadoftryingtoparaphraseit,here'shistakeonthematterinhisownwords:

Whenyoudoadeepsquat,thereareseveralcomponentsthatdeterminetheamountof
motionthattheyhave.Ofcourse,thereismuscletightness.Butifyouredoingthesquat
thenthatsoverridden.Thatsprobablynotgonnamattermuch.Theresthejoint
capsule,neuraltensions,andfortheclienteleIsee,peoplewithdiscbulgesandtrapsin
theirback,thatmatters.Theneuraltensionthattheywillfeelthroughthepiriformis
areabehindtheirhipandwhatnot.
Butthemostimportantmatteronallofthisisthedepthofthehipsocket.Ifpeopleare
lookingupontheinternet,depthofthehipsocketandsquatability,theywontfindit.
Theyhavetogotothehipdysplasialiterature.Whattheyllfindisthattherearegroups
intheworldwithveryshallowhipsocketsandtheyhaveveryhighratesofhipdysplasia.
ThecenteroftheworldforhipdysplasiaisPoland.Theyhaveveryshallowanteriorhip
socketsandtheycansquatverydeeply.Thefemurcomesrightupbecausethereisno
boneonbonecontactthere.
ItsactuallycalledtheDalmatianHip,whichoriginatesontheDalmatiancoastof
CroatiaupthroughBulgariaintoPolandandintoWesternRussia,whichistheUkraine.
NowIthinkIjustnamedthecountriesthatproduceyearafteryear,unbelievable
Olympiclifters.Theyalsohavethehighestrateofhipdysplasia.Soagain,itsformand
functionandformandfunctiondeterminesathleticability.Itdetermineswhereyou
becomearthriticandalltherest.Itwasveryinteresting.Ioccasionallydolegalcasesas
aspineknowledgesource(Iguess)andIworkedonacoupleofmurdercasesbelieveit
ornot,wheretheyneededsomespineexpertise.Andanotheroneofthescientistswasa
professorofforensicanthropology.Itwasherwhofirstshowedmeallofthesedifferent
hiparchitecturesandhowtheychangethroughouttheworld.Soithelpedhertoidentify
bodieswhentheskinandthehairandotherfeatureswereburnedoff,say.Thatsthe
Dalmatianhip,whichisideallysuitedfordeepsquatting.Nowyoutakethearchetypical
shallowsockethipanditsaverydeephipsocketandthatsaCeltichip,prevalentinthe
NormandyareaofFrance,Ireland,andScotland.

NowhowmanyOlympiclifterscomefromthosecountries.Notverymany.Thereason
istheyhaveverydeephipsocketsandwhenyoumeasurethepowerproductionoutof
thathiparchitecture,youllfindthattheydonthavemuchpoweratthebottomofthe
squatpullingoutoftheholetouseanathleticterm.Butthetophalfofthissquatis
reallypowerful.Soforthrowingthecaberandthingslikethat,itsastandingstrengthor
averyshallowsquatstrength.Thatswherethepoweris.AmIsayingthatallScottish
peoplehavedeephipsocketsandthatallPolishhaveshallow?NoImnot.Imjust
sayingthatsthetendencyfromthosegeneticpools.Anyway,thatsastarttothe
discussion.AnditsnotthatIcarewhereyourefrombutwhatitmotivatesmetodoisa
hipexam.Asyouknow,IhaveanassessmentDVDwhereIshowthesetechniquesand
thenIcanstartansweringthequestionstoguideathletes.Shouldtheybesquatting
deep?Shouldtheybeconcernedaboutbuttwink?Orshouldtheyavoidthatbecause
theyrestressingtheanteriorlabrumofthehip.Theyarestressingtheirspines.Chances
arethattheyaregonnasurvivealothighervolumeoftrainingiftheypulloffblocks.So
theyonlysquatdeepenoughwheretheycansavethelabrumoftheirhipandsavetheir
spine.Youknow,sayyoureanNFLlineman.Whydoyouneedtodeepsquatifyoure
anNFLlineman?Whynotjustsquatasdeepasyoucantothepointofwherethepelvis
startstobreakaway?Becausethatswherethefemuriscollidedupagainstthelabrum
ofthehipanyway.Takeallthestressout.Yourestillgonnaplayoffensivetackleinthe
NFLjustaswell.Yourestillgonnagetstrongandbetteryet,youcannowtoleratea
highervolumeoftrainingbecauseyoureremovingthatstressriser.Thatsakeyforalot
ofpeople.
Isitokayifmykneesgopastmytoes?

Formostpeople,yes.
Moreforwardkneetrackingmayincreasecompressiveandshearforcesontheknee
slightly.However,yourtendons,ligaments,andmeniscicaneasilytoleratetheforces
youplaceontheminadeepsquat,andtheywilladapttogetstrongerinresponseto

training.Ifyouhavehealthyknees,lettingyourkneestrackpastyourtoesisn'ta
concern.
However,ifyouhavepreexistingkneepain,lettingyourkneestrackfartherforward
maypossiblycausesomeissues.Ifyougetkneepainwhenyourkneestrackfarther
forward,butyoudon'twhenyousitbackintothesquatanddon'tletyourkneestrack
forwardquiteasfar,thenobviouslyyoushouldn'tletyourkneestrackasfarforward.
Otherwise,it'sfine.
Willsquatsmakemebetteratothersports?

Unlessyou'realreadyaverystrongsquatter,improvingyoursquatwillprobablymake
youbetteratothersports.
Squatstrengthandpowerrelativetobodyweightpredictsprintperformance,and
increasingsquatstrengthdecreasessprinttimes.Thisisalsotrueforjumpheightin
moststudies.(
one
,
two
,
three
,
four
,
five
,
six
,
seven
)
WhenlastIchecked,runningfasterandjumpinghighermakeyoubetteratmostsports.
There'salmostcertainlyapointofdiminishingreturns,butaimingfora~2xbodyweight
fullsquatwouldbeagoodgoalformostathleteswhoplaysportsthatrequirealotof
runningandjumping.Theymaybelessbeneficialforshuffleboard,however.

BarPosition
Nowthatmostofthegeneralinformationaboutthesquatisoutoftheway,it'stimeto
tackleabigtopicthatpeopleseemtocaredeeplyabout:barposition.
Shouldyouhighbarsquat,lowbarsquat,orfrontsquat?

First,let'saddressthedifferencesbetweenthethree:
1. Wherethebarisresting(obviously).

2. Jointangles:Generally,youreachthehighestdegreeofhipflexioninthelowbar
squat,asimilardegreeorslightlylessinthehighbarsquat,andabout10degrees
lessinthefrontsquat.Theoppositetrendappliesforkneeangles:youcan
typicallyreachhigherdegreesofkneeflexioninthefrontsquatandhighbar
squatthaninthelowbarsquat(again,adifferenceofroughly1015degrees).
Thesedifferencesatthekneeandhiparedrivenbydifferencesintorsoangle.To
keepthecenterofmassovermidfoot,allotherthingsbeingequal,yourtorsowill
bethemostinclinedwhenyou'relowbarsquattingandtheleastinclinedwhen
frontsquatting,withhighbarsquatsinthemiddle.Becauseofthis,youhitfull
hipflexionsoonerinthelowbarsquat,whereasyoumaynotreachitatallinthe
frontsquatsinceyoureachfullhipflexionearlierinthelowbarsquat,you
generallydon'tattainquiteasmuchkneeflexion.
3. Ofthethree,peoplefrontsquattheleastbyfar.Theretendstobea1520%
differencebetweenthefrontsquatandthehighbarsquat.Additionally,formost
people,there'sa510%gapbetweenthehighbarsquatandthelowbarsquat.
Firstthingsfirst,let'strytofigureoutwhymostpeoplecansquatthemostlowbar.
Ifyou'vebeenpayingattentionsofar,onethingshouldbeobvious:Factorsfromthe
waistdownprobablydon'tplaytheprimaryrole.Thesumofkneeandhipextensor
demandswithanyabsoluteloadareidenticalthroughanygivenrangeofmotion
betweenallthreebarpositions(refertothebiomechanicssection).Notonlyaretotal
lowerbodyextensordemandsidentical,butyour
twojointmuscles
(yourhamstrings
andrectusfemoris)worktodistributethosedemandsefficientlybetweenthekneeand
hip,regardlessofhowthesquatlooks(muscleactivationisverysimilarbetween
differentstylessquatsforthisreason).
BottomingoutslightlyhigherfromhittingendROMhipflexionsoonerplaysarole,but
that'scertainlynotabigenoughdifferencetoexplaintheentiretyofthegap.Especially
withthefrontsquat,anotherobviousfactoristhatyoucan't"getintoyourhips"aswell.
Yourmaximumhipextensorstrengthisquiteabithigherthanyourmaximumknee

extensorstrength,soevenifthesummedkneeandhipextensordemandsareidentical
withanydiscreteload,youcan'tshiftmoreandmoreofthedemandstothehipsasyou
addweighttothebarinthefrontsquatbecausethatwouldnecessitatemoreforward
leanthebarwouldjustrolloffyourshoulders.However,thatstilldoesn'tdoanything
toexplainthegapbetweenthehighbarandlowbarbacksquats.
Thereisonemajorfactorthatoftengoesoverlooked,though:upperbackstrength.
I'vethoughtforawhilenowthatthoracicerectorstrengthmaybetheprimary(butnot
theonly)reasonmostpeoplesquatmorelowbarthanhighbar.However,untilnowI'd
justbeentoolazytoquantifythedifference.

Sowhatareyoulookingathere?
Thesegmentlengthsarebasedonaveragemaleproportionsfrom
EXRX
(average
femaleproportionsareverysimilar,sothatwouldn'tchangethenumbersmuch).For

example,thetorsois30%ofbodyheightonaveragesoitwas3cm,thethighis23.2%of
bodyheightsoitwas2.32cm,etc.
Thethreereddotsnearthetopofeachfigurerepresenteachbarposition(frontsquat,
highbar,andlowbar).Thegreenpointonthespinelabeled"B"isapproximatelyatthe
junctionbetweenthe9thand10ththoracicvertebrae.ThelengthofsegmentABisthe
thoracicextensionmomentarm.Thenumbersthemselvesdon'tmatter,justtherelative
size.
Topleftisfrontsquat,toprightishighbar,bottomleftislowbarassumingsimilar
cuingashighbar,andbottomrightisamore"hipdominant"lowbar.Allarefromright
aroundthestickingpoint.
ThethoracicextensionmomentarmisWAYlongerforthefrontsquatthanforeither
styleofbacksquat:about165%ofhighbar,200%ofthemorehipdominantlowbar,
and235%ofthelesshipdominantlowbar.
Thoracicextensionmomentarmforhighbarwas~115140%longerthanlowbar.In
otherwords,ifyousquattedthesameweighthighbarandlowbar,thedemandsonyour
thoracicspinalerectorswouldbe1540%greaterforthehighbarsquat.
Sincesummedkneeandhipextensormomentswouldbethesameforanyabsoluteload
withallbarpositions,thisstronglysupportstheideathatthoracicextensionstrength
maybeoneofthekeyreasonsforthedifferenceinperformancebetweenthefrontsquat,
highbarsquat,andlowbarsquat.Idon'tthinkit'sacoincidencethattwooftheonly
highbarsquatterswhocompeteattheinternationallevelinrawpowerlifting
Mike
Hedlesky
and
BryceLewis
arealsophenomenaldeadlifters.
Sowhatdowedowiththesedifferences?Howwouldthisimpactthetrainingeffect
you'dgetfromonestyleofsquat?
Firstoff,letmeacknowledgethatresearchdoesn'tdirectlyanswerthisquestion.Ina
generalsense,therehavebeenalotofstudiescomparingalotofdifferentvarietiesof

squats,andmostreportveryfewdifferences(statisticallyorpracticallywhenlookingat
jointmoments,muscleactivation,kineticdata,etc.They'llallbelinkedbelow,ifyou
wanttocheckthemout).
Herearetwogreatexamples.
This
MastersThesisbyGoodin
givesusthebestlookatperformancerelatedvariables
comparingthehighbarandlowbarsquat,workingupfrom20%to90%loads.The
highbartechniquewaspurposefully"quaddominant"andthelowbartechniquewas
purposefully"hipdominant":

Notaheckofalotofdifferencehere.

ThisstudybyBretContreras
comparedmuscleactivationinthehighbarsquatandthe
frontsquat(meanactivationisontheleftsideofthisgraph,andpeakactivationison
theright):


Again,notaheckofalotofdifference.

Atleastwhenlookingatacutedata,itcertainlydoesn'tseemliketrainingeffectswould
bemeaningfullydifferent.However,therehasn'tbeenalongitudinalstudycomparing
theeffectsofhighbarsquatsvs.lowbarsquats,orfrontsquatsvs.eitherbacksquat.
It'salsoworthpointingoutthatdifferencesinbarpositiondon'ttellthewholestory,
especially
whencomparingthehighbarsquatandthelowbarsquat.Youcanstill"sit
back"intoahighbarsquat(asmanyequippedpowerliftersdo)andyoucanstilltryto
stayasuprightaspossibleandsitdownintoalowbarsquat(asChadWesleySmith
does,amongothers).
However,thereareafewthingswecanprobablysurmise:
Theoveralldifferenceinwholebodytrainingeffectsbetweenallthreevarietiesofsquats
isprobablyprettysmall.
Lowbarsquatsareprobablyalittlebetterfortrainingthehipextensors,sincethehips
generallygothroughthesameROMoralongerROMwhensquattinglowbarthanwhen

squattinghighbar,andtheyalmostcertainlygothroughalongerROMthanwhenfront
squatting.OntopofalongerROMatthehips,youcangenerallyloadthemtheheaviest.
Highbarsquatsareprobablyalittlebetterfortrainingthequadssincethekneesgo
throughalongerROMwhenhighbarsquattingthanwhenlowbarsquatting,andthey
gothroughasimilarROMaswhenfrontsquatting.Sincethey'relesslikelytobelimited
byupperbackstrengththanthefrontsquat,youcanloadthemheaviertotrainyour
quadsalittleharder.
Frontsquatsare,handsdown,thebestsquatvariationforbuildingupperbackstrength.
Allthreehavetheiradvantagesanddisadvantages.IfyouthoughtIwasgoingto
proclaimthatonewasbetterthantherest,Ihatetodisappointyou.Ithinkthey'reall
equallygoodatbuildingheadtotoestrengthandmass,justwithslightlydifferent
emphases.
Inageneralsense,thebestbarpositionforyouistheonethatletsyoutrainthehardest
andthemostconsistently.Powerliftersshouldatleastgivelowbarashotsincemost
peoplecanliftmoreweightlowbar.Weightliftersshouldprobablyfocusonthefront
squatandhighbarsquat,sincethey'llhavethebestcarryovertothecleanandsnatch.
Foreveryoneelse,it'sprimarilyamatterofpersonalpreference.

Equipment
Belts:Getone.Useit.Don'tgettoofaroutofpracticesquattingbeltless,sinceit'sa
goodskilltomaintain.
MUCHmoreonbeltshere
.
Kneewraps:Theyhelpyousquatmorebyincreasingyourmaximumkneeextensor
moment.Whenyourkneebends,theyresistflexion,storingelasticenergytohelpyour
kneesextendcomingoutofthehole.There's
someresearch
suggestingthattheymay
decreasequadactivationandincreasetheactivationofyourhipextensors.Gettingthe
mostoutofyourwrapsdependsontwothings:practiceandpaintolerance.Onceyou

getproficientwithwraps,it'snotuncommonforthemtoincreaseyoursquatby10%or
more.
Kneesleeves:I'veneveractuallywornapairofkneesleeves.Ican'tseehowthey'dhelp
allthatmuch,butsomepeopleswearbythem.They'reatleastworthtrying,Isuppose,
ifyouplanoncompetinginafederationthatdoesn'tallowtheuseofkneewraps.For
theloveofallthingsholy,washthemregularly.Ifyoudon't,everyoneelseinthegym
willhateyou.Yourkneesleevesalwayssmellwayworsethanyouthinktheydo.
Wristwraps:Ifyougetwristpainsquattingandtechniqueadjustmentsdon'tremedy
thesituation,they'reagoodinvestment.
Shoes:Makesurethesoleissolid.Mushysolescanthrowyouoffbalance,whichisn't
preferablewhenyouhaveatonofweightonyourback.Whetheryousquatwitharaised
heelornotisamatterofpersonalpreference.Squattingwitharaisedheelversusaflat
soledoesn'tfundamentallychangethemovementinageneralsense,butalotofpeople
stronglyprefersquattingwithoneortheother.GetsomeChuckTaylorsorwrestling
shoestoseehowaflatsolefeels,andgetsomecheapweightliftingshoestoseehowyou
likearaisedheel.I'drecommendnotpullingthetriggeronexpensiveflatshoeslike
MarkBell's"PowerShoe"orexpensiveweightliftingshoeslikeAdipowersorRomaleos
untilyouknowwhichtypeofshoeyouprefer.
Specialtybars,bands,andchains:Theseareallfuntoystohave.Forpeoplewith
shoulderissuesandforpeoplewhodon'thaveenoughmobilitytofrontsquatwitha
barbell,the
safetysquatbar
inparticularcanbealifesaver.Bandsandchainsmayhelp
yougainalittlemorestrength,alittlefaster,basedona
recentmetaanalysis
.However,
theycertainlyaren'tnecessary.Ifyouusebandsorchainsasarawlifter,I'drecommend
notaddingmorethan20%ofyour1rmtothebarinchainweightorbandtensionifyou
gooverboard,specificitystartsdecreasingandtheoverloadcanbeatupyourjoints
(especiallywithbands).

BulletPoints
Thingsthatareentirelyuptoyou:
1. barposition
2. handposition
3. elbowposition(forbacksquats)
4. headposition
5. stancewidth
6. footangle
7. sittingbackvs.sittingdown
8. degreeofforwardkneetraveletc.
9. footwear(aslongasithasasolidsole)
10. squattingwithabeltornot
Thingsthatarenonnegotiable:
1. Don'tletyourkneescaveexcessively.
2. Don'tletyourspineround.
Generalrecommendations
1. Squatasdeepasyoucanforgeneraltrainingpurposesandforweightlifting.
2. Trywideningyoursquat,sittingback,andusingthelowbarpositiontolimit
depthforpowerlifting.
3. Trytodriveyourhipsforwardunderthebartobreakthroughthestickingpoint.

4. Squatlowbartobuildmorehipstrength.
5. Squathighbartobuildmorequadstrength.
6. Frontsquattobuildmoreupperbackstrength.
7. Lifteveryrepasexplosivelyaspossible
Mypersonalsquatassessmentchecklistforclients:
Thesetup:
1. Isyourwalkoutefficient?23stepsispreferable,but4isacceptablejusttomake
sureeverythingissquaredaway
2. Doesthemiddleofthebarlineupwiththemiddleofyourback,orisitoffset?
3. Isthebarrestingfirmlyonyourback,orisitsliding?
4. Areyoubreathingintoyourabdomen,orareyourshoulderselevatingwhenyou
inhale?
5. Areyourwristscockedback,oraretheystraight?Ifthey'recockedback,don't
worryunlessit'saccompaniedbypain.
Theliftitself:
1. Areyourfeetstable,ordotheymove?(It'snotuncommonforpeopletostartwith
theirfeetpointedtoofarforward,andforthemtorotateoutabitduringthe
initialdescentifthebottomofyourshoesaretoogrippyforthistohappen,then
youmayseethelateralpartoftheheelofyourshoeraiseabit.)
2. Isyourweightshiftingexcessivelyforwardorbackward?Doyourheelsriseoff
theground,orcouldyouliftyourtoesupoffthegroundifyouwantedto?
3. Doesyourspineflexatanypointinthemovement?(Lumbarismorecommon
thanthoracicalsonotewhetherlumbarflexionactuallyoccursatthebottomof

thesquat,orwhetheryourspinestartsinhyperextension,andthenjustmoves
backtowardneutral.)
4. Isyourdepthadequateforyourtraininggoals?Ingeneral,ifyoucanmaintain
spinalposition,deeperisbetter,butaroundparallelisgenerallyfineforathletes
andcasuallifters,powerliftersshouldbreakparallel,andweightliftersshouldbe
asclosetoasstograssaspossible.
5. Isyourkneetrackingprettydecent?Don'tworrytoomuchaboutalittleknee
valgusorkneevarusaslongasthere'snoaccompanyingpain,butexcessive
valgusandvarusshouldbeavoided(thisisabitofajudgementcallafteryousee
alotofsquats,youlearnthedifferencebetween"yourkneestickedinabitonthe
ascent"and"holyshit,no,don'tdothat").
6. Areforcesprettyevenlydistributedbetweenthequadsandthehipextensors?
Thisisusuallyanissuethateitherrespondsveryquicklytogoodcuing(people
withstrongquadswhowerealwaystaughttheyneedtositwaybackinthesquat,
orpeoplewithstronghipextensorswhoareafraidofareasonabledegreeof
forwardleanjustgettingridofsomebadhabits),orit'sanissuethat'sjust
indicativeofyourcurrentstrengthsandweaknesses,withyourcurrenttechnique
simplyrepresentingthemostefficientwayyourbodyhasfoundtomovetheload.
Ifit'sthelattercondition,cuingdoesn'taffecttechniqueorperformancemuch,
butyourtechniquewillnaturallyshiftasyouaddressweaklinks.
1. Improvequadstrengthifyoursquatswinduplookinglikegoodmornings.
2. Improvecorebracingifthere'smorethana1520%gapbetweenyour
squatandyourdeadlift.
3. Improvehipextensorstrengthifyoudon'tmeetthefirsttwocriteria.
GeneralIssues:

1. Doyou
feel
strong,stable,andbalancedundertheload?
2. Doessquattingcauseanyachesandpains,whetheracuteorchronic(wrist,
elbows,knees,hips,back,etc.)?
3. Doyouhaveadequateankle,knee,andhipmobilitywithoutload?Dothose
thingschangewithload?IfROMdecreaseswhenloaded,it'sacontrolissue,not
amobilityissue.
4. Doyoushiftyourweighttooneside,ordoyourotateexcessively?Again,thisisa
bitofajudgementcall,sinceeveryoneisasymmetricaltosomedegree.
5. Areyouwearingtherightshoes?Anyshoewithgoodtractionandasolidsoleis
finewithorwithoutaraisedheelisjustamatterofpreference,butcushiony
solesshouldbeavoided.

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