Barbell front squat is one of the most important strength exercises for weightlifters of all levels and periods of preparation. Everyone squats anyway, but loads differ depending both on the preparation stage and training ‘philosophy’. The exercise imitates the clean position, thus, it is a basic drill for Olympic weightlifters.
Apart from that, the front squat is also used by bodybuilders and other athletes. However, front squat technique and mobility demands may be slightly different, compared to Olympic weightlifting.
Front rack squats are a variation of barbell squats. However, they shift the load more to the quads, compared to the traditional option. Also, they involve the upper back which is responsible for keeping a firm position without any rounding.
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What Muscles Are Involved In The Front Squat?
The front squat is a compound exercise that primarily targets the quadriceps, but also engages several other muscles in the lower body and core. The main muscles involved in the front squat are:
Quadriceps
The front squat is an excellent exercise for developing the quadriceps muscles, which are located on the front of the thigh.
Glutes
The gluteus maximus muscle, which is the largest muscle in the buttocks, is also involved in the front squat.
Hamstrings
The hamstrings, which are located on the back of the thigh, are activated as stabilizers during the front squat.
Calves
The muscles in the lower leg, specifically the gastrocnemius and soleus muscles, help to stabilize the body during the exercise.
Core Muscles
The muscles of the core, including the rectus abdominis, obliques, and erector spinae, are engaged to maintain proper posture and stability during the exercise.
Overall, the front squat is an excellent exercise for developing lower body strength and can be used in a variety of strength and conditioning programs.
Since the center of gravity in the front squat moves slightly forward compared to the regular squat, a lot of athletes find it difficult to squat deep. To make this exercise safe, you may also need optimal mobility of all joints, including ankles (weightlifting shoes can help), shoulders, and wrists.
Main Front Squat Benefits
The front squat is a highly effective exercise that provides a range of benefits for athletes, bodybuilders, and fitness enthusiasts. Here are some of the main benefits of front squats:
Strengthens The Lower Body
Front squats are excellent for strengthening the muscles in the lower body, including the quadriceps, glutes, and hamstrings. These muscles are essential for everyday activities like walking, running, and jumping, as well as for sports and other physical activities.
Improves Core Strength
The front squat is a highly effective exercise for strengthening the muscles of the core, including the rectus abdominis, obliques, and erector spinae. These muscles are essential for maintaining proper posture and stability during the exercise.
Enhances Mobility And Flexibility
Front squats require a great deal of mobility and flexibility, particularly in the hips, knees, and ankles. Over time, performing front squats can improve your range of motion and help to prevent injuries.
Builds Overall Muscle Mass
Front squats are a compound exercise that engages multiple muscle groups at once, making it an excellent exercise for building overall muscle mass and increasing strength.
Enhances Athletic Performance
Front squats are highly functional and can improve athletic performance in a variety of sports and activities. They can help to improve speed, power, and explosiveness, as well as overall strength and endurance.
Overall, the front squat is an essential exercise that provides a range of benefits for those looking to improve their strength, mobility, and overall fitness.
Нow To Do The Front Squat?
Unrack And Starting Position
Grab the bar slightly wider than the shoulder width. Take a step forward and place both of your legs in line with the bar. It is really critical, especially for beginners, not to hurt the back. I sometimes make this mistake as well and take the bar off the racks in the split position. But I don’t recommend that you do this in any case.
Common question is how to hold front squat or how to hold bar for front squat? Place the bar on the front of your shoulders: over your collar bones. Breathe in, tighten up your trunk, and take the bar off the racks.
Take two steps backward and fix your leg position: the feet must be shoulder width or slightly wider apart and the knees point out 5-10°.
Squat Back, Not Down
So, how to front squat? Start driving your hips backward and only then bend the knees. One of the biggest mistakes in the front squat technique is moving your knees forward. It may seem weird for a newbie, though.
Weight On The Heels
Another common mistake is shifting the center of gravity to the toes, especially along with driving your knees forward. Don’t let it happen. Think about keeping your weight on the heels both during the upward and downward movement.
Keep Your Trunk Tight
Another common mistake is approaching the front squat only as a leg exercise. It is important to start every set by driving your hips backward and pointing the elbows up. Keep your back tight from the moment you put the bar on the shoulders, then tense the core muscles.
Look Straight Ahead, Not Down
Always look straight ahead while squatting – it helps to keep the spine neutral for every rep.
Maintain Proper Front Squat Tempo
Front squat is an auxiliary exercise for the clean, so its structure should follow particular standards. Control the movement. Doing the front squat, up to 80% of your 1 RM, try to perform the descending phase slowly and explode back up quickly and powerfully. Fast recovery in the squat with bar in front is even more important than in the back squat. Athletes often have a ‘bad habit’ of cleaning the bar confidently and then sitting in the hole for some reason.
Squat As Low As You Can With The Proper Technique
Control the downward movement. Once you have reached the bottom point, start rising actively. Breathe out while standing up or at the top point. Learn how to breathe carefully not to lose trunk balance.
Full Grip
I often hear about this problem from both CrossFitters and experienced Olympic weightlifters who struggle to grab the bar fully. As for me, many athletes just don’t know how important it is and how to fix this fault. Find more information about front squat grip issues HERE.
Weightlifting Shoes And Belt
I always say that athletes must use weightlifting shoes for Olympic weightlifting training all the time. They help to squat deeper and to do that safely, especially if you lack ankle mobility. This problem is really common among novice and intermediate athletes. As for the belt, from my own experience, there is no great need for that. Even if you already use a belt, I recommend putting it on for 70% front squat weight and more in order to keep muscles toned up.
My Advice On The Front Squat
- Face the racks – it is a safety issue.
- Don’t hesitate to find a spotter.
- Always use a full grip.
- Always work for the full range of motion – make your tendons and joints ready in case the bar makes you squat low at competitions.
- Patience, correct angles and solid front squat form during the downward movement will let you develop the biggest power on the way up.
- There shouldn’t be any ‘sticking points’ while rising out from the hole – one smooth movement. If it happens all the time, decrease the working weight and try to rise smoothly.
- You should always set your mind to push the hips backward, knees out, and rise with acceleration – it is more productive in terms of muscle efforts.
Front Squat Variations
I will remind you that the warm-up is essential before the front squat – both general and special since you involve the whole muscle system. You can skip the warm-up only in case you have a front bar squat at the end of the training plan.
For athletes who significantly lack mobility, I have several options:
- you can use an alternative grip: either cross the forearms and put them on the bar, or wrap straps around the bar and hold them. Such a variation has some funny names: bb front squat, mummy grip. Zercher squats are also a good squat variation that have a similar quad emphasis while also being more comfortable.
Front Squat With Straps
Front SQUAT with straps is one of the best exercises for developing special mobility in weightlifting or CrossFit. The main idea of the front squat with straps is to correct and improve the bar position on the chest during the entire movement. Be ready to cope with some discomfort at first. But believe me, soon you will notice great progress in upper limb mobility.
If you have little mobility, I recommend squatting with straps only with light weights and for 2-3 sets as a warm-up before any main clean&jerk exercise or front squats. If you are an advanced athlete with sufficient mobility, you can use straps for working sets from time to time.
Box Front Squat
BOX Front SQUAT - is an excellent preparatory exercise that helps develop muscle feeling, balance, and kinesthetic awareness. It teaches patience and the right position of a barbell on the chest.
Select a box that will allow you to squat down to your desired depth and place the box behind you.
Approach the box as close as possible, try to touch it with your toes. Lower yourself slowly onto the box while at the same time maintaining a neutral spine. Do it slowly, the pelvis stretches back, knees to the sides, and the torso and elbows forward. Be prepared for the fact that you can’t keep your balance - this is normal for beginners.
I recommend doing this exercise as a warm-up before jerks (clean & jerk, cleans, front squats), do a total of 2 to 4 sets, 6 to 8 reps.
Frankenstein Front Squat
This movement is a great drill to help the athlete understand the position of the bar during the front squat.
How to do it:
The feet are in a shoulder-width stance and slightly turned out. The bar is securely in the channel between the top of the shoulders and the base of the throat. The arms are extended in front of the body and held high. The shoulders are square to prevent the bar from rolling forward. The hips descend back and down and go lower than the knees, the lumbar curve is maintained, the heels stay grounded.
The move is complete at full hip and knee extension.
Front squats are also used in a set with other exercises to boost capacity, strength, and c&j results.
In my training programs, you can find many helpful combinations:
The clean and front squat are two separate exercises that can also be combined into a single movement. The clean is a weightlifting exercise that involves lifting a barbell from the floor to the shoulders in one smooth motion. The front squat is a strength exercise that involves holding a barbell across the front of the shoulders while performing a squat.
In this complex, the lifter performs a clean to bring the barbell to the front rack position, then immediately performs a front squat. This movement requires coordination, strength, and technique to perform correctly, and can be a challenging exercise for even experienced lifters.
The clean and front squat is often used by weightlifters and other athletes to improve explosive power, lower body strength, and overall athletic performance. It's important to learn proper form and technique for both the clean and front squat before attempting to combine them into a single movement, and to start with lighter weights until you feel comfortable and confident with the exercise.
The clean and front squat can be combined with another weightlifting movement, the jerk, to create a complex movement known as the clean and jerk. In this exercise, the lifter performs a clean to bring the barbell to the front rack position, then performs a jerk to lift the barbell overhead, and finishes with a front squat to complete the movement.
The jerk is a weightlifting movement that involves lifting the barbell from the shoulders to an overhead position, using a powerful leg drive and upper body strength to propel the barbell upwards. When combined with the clean and front squat, the clean and jerk becomes a full-body exercise that requires strength, power, and coordination to perform correctly.
The Clean Pull + Clean + Front Squat + Jerk exercise is a complex weightlifting movement that combines four separate exercises into one continuous movement. It begins with the clean pull, which is a weightlifting movement that involves pulling the barbell from the floor to the hips with explosive power.
From there, the lifter performs a full clean, which involves lifting the barbell from the hips to the front rack position in one smooth motion. Next, the lifter performs a front squat to lower the body and then completes the movement with a jerk, which involves lifting the barbell from the shoulders to an overhead position with a powerful leg drive and upper body strength.
This exercise requires a high level of coordination, strength, and technique to perform correctly and safely. It can be used by weightlifters and other athletes to improve explosive power, full-body strength, and overall fitness. However, it's important to learn proper form and technique for all four components of the exercise before attempting to combine them into a single movement. It's also important to start with lighter weights and gradually increase the weight as you become more comfortable and confident with the exercise.
The Clean from blocks + Front Squat is a weightlifting exercise that combines two separate movements - the clean from blocks and the front squat.
The clean from blocks is a variation of the clean where the barbell is lifted from blocks or elevated platforms instead of the floor. This allows lifters to focus on the explosive power needed to lift the barbell from the hips to the front rack position, without having to lift the barbell from the floor.
After performing the clean from blocks, the lifter moves directly into a front squat. This involves holding the barbell across the front of the shoulders while performing a squat.
This exercise is beneficial for developing explosive power, lower body strength, and overall athletic performance. It is also a good variation for those who have trouble lifting from the floor due to mobility issues or other limitations.
The muscle squat clean + front squat is a weightlifting exercise that combines two separate movements - the muscle squat clean and the front squat.
The muscle squat clean is a variation of the clean where the lifter pulls the barbell from the floor to the shoulders into the full clean squat position using only their general strength without explosive phase. This variation focuses on building upper body strength and coordination, as the lifter must rely on their arms, shoulders, and back to lift the weight.
After performing the muscle squat clean, the lifter moves directly into a front squat. This involves holding the barbell across the front of the shoulders while performing a squat.
This exercise targets the muscles of the upper body, including the back, shoulders, and arms, as well as the lower body, including the quadriceps, hamstrings, and glutes. It is a challenging exercise that requires a high level of strength and technique to perform correctly and safely. It can be used by weightlifters and other athletes to improve explosive power, full-body strength, and overall fitness.
The Power Clean + Front Squat + Push Press is a weightlifting exercise that combines three separate movements into one continuous motion.
The exercise begins with a power clean, which is a weightlifting movement that involves lifting the barbell from the floor to the shoulders with explosive power, but without dropping into a full squat. This exercise targets the muscles of the legs, hips, back, and shoulders.
After the power clean, the lifter moves directly into a front squat, which involves holding the barbell across the front of the shoulders while performing a squat. This exercise targets the muscles of the legs, hips, and core.
Finally, the lifter performs a push press, which involves using the legs and shoulders to lift the barbell from the shoulders to an overhead position. This exercise targets the muscles of the shoulders, triceps, and upper back.
The Front Squat + Jerk is a weightlifting exercise that combines two separate movements - the front squat and the jerk.
The front squat involves holding the barbell across the front of the shoulders while performing a squat. This exercise targets the muscles of the legs, hips, and core, and is a key exercise for weightlifters and other athletes looking to develop lower body strength, power, and explosiveness.
The jerk is a weightlifting movement that involves lifting the barbell from the shoulders to an overhead position in one explosive motion. This exercise targets the muscles of the shoulders, triceps, and upper back, and is a key exercise for weightlifters and other athletes looking to develop upper body strength and power.
The Front Squat + Jerk involves performing a front squat, then using the momentum generated by the squat to lift the barbell from the shoulders to an overhead position in a jerk. This exercise requires a high level of coordination, strength, and technique to perform correctly and safely.
The Front Squat + Push Press is a weightlifting exercise that combines two separate movements - the front squat and the push press.
The front squat involves holding the barbell across the front of the shoulders while performing a squat. This exercise targets the muscles of the legs, hips, and core, and is a key exercise for weightlifters and other athletes looking to develop lower body strength, power, and explosiveness.
The push press is a weightlifting movement that involves using the legs and shoulders to lift the barbell from the shoulders to an overhead position. This exercise targets the muscles of the shoulders, triceps, and upper back, and is a key exercise for weightlifters and other athletes looking to develop upper body strength and power.
The Front Squat + Push Press involves performing a front squat, then using the momentum generated by the squat to lift the barbell from the shoulders to an overhead position in a push press. This exercise requires a high level of coordination, strength, and technique to perform correctly and safely.
Main Front Squat Mistakes
The front squat is a complex exercise that requires proper form and technique to perform correctly. Here are some common mistakes to avoid when performing front squats:
Incorrect Grip
One of the most common mistakes when performing this exercise is an incorrect front squat hand position on the barbell. The barbell should rest on the front of the shoulders, with the elbows high and the fingers gripping the bar.
Poor Posture
Maintaining good posture is essential when performing front squats. Leaning forward, rounding the back or incorrect front squat bar placement can put unnecessary strain on the lower back and lead to injury.
Incorrect Foot Positioning
Proper front squat stance is critical when performing this drill. The feet should be shoulder-width apart, with toes pointing slightly outward.
Not Going Deep Enough
Another common mistake is not going deep enough into the squat. The hips should be lowered until the thighs are parallel to the floor or below, while maintaining proper form and technique.
Allowing The Knees To Collapse
It's important to keep the knees pointing outward and in line with the toes when performing front squats. Allowing the knees to collapse inward can put unnecessary strain on the knees and lead to injury.
Lifting Too Much Weight
Trying to lift too much weight can compromise form and technique and increase the risk of injury. It's important to start with a weight that you can handle comfortably and gradually increase the weight over time.
Not Warming Up Properly
Proper warm-up exercises are essential to prepare the body for the front squat. Skipping warm-up exercises can increase the risk of injury.
By avoiding these common mistakes and focusing on proper form and technique, you can perform front squats safely and effectively, and reap the benefits of this excellent exercise.
Front Squat Programming Tips
Programming front squats into your workout routine can help you develop lower body strength, enhance core stability, and improve overall fitness. Here are some programming tips to help you get the most out of your front squat workouts:
Start With Lighter Weights
If you're new to front squats or haven't performed them in a while, start with lighter weights and focus on proper form and technique before gradually increasing the weight.
If you're new to front squats or haven't performed them in a while, start with lighter weights and focus on proper form and technique before gradually increasing the weight.
As you become more comfortable with the exercise, gradually increase the weight and volume to continue to challenge your muscles and promote strength gains. This can be achieved through adding weight, increasing reps, or decreasing rest time.
Include Accessory Exercises
Front squats primarily target the quadriceps, but including accessory exercises such as lunges, step-ups, and leg presses can help to target other muscle groups in the lower body, and enhance overall lower body strength.
Vary The Tempo
Varying the tempo of your front squats can help to further challenge your muscles and improve your overall strength. For example, try performing a slow eccentric phase (lowering phase) of the squat, or incorporating pauses at the bottom of the squat.
Program With Proper Recovery Time
Front squats can be a taxing exercise on the body, so it's important to program with proper recovery time in between workouts. Allow at least 48 hours of recovery time before performing front squats again to give your muscles time to recover and rebuild.
By incorporating these programming tips into your front squat workouts, you can improve your lower body strength, enhance core stability, and achieve your fitness goals.
Who Should Do Front Squat?
Front squats can be a beneficial exercise for anyone looking to improve lower body strength, core stability, and overall fitness. Here are some groups of people who may benefit from including front squats in their workout routine:
Athletes
Front squats can help improve lower body strength, explosive power, and overall athletic performance.
Bodybuilders
Front squats can help build quadricep, glute, and core strength, which are all important for bodybuilding.
Weightlifters
Front squats are an important exercise for weightlifters, as they can help improve the front rack position, which is essential for performing cleans and snatches.
Fitness Enthusiasts
Front squats can help improve lower body strength, core stability, and overall fitness for anyone looking to improve their physical health and wellbeing.
People With Lower Back Pain
Front squats can be a good alternative to back squats for people with lower back pain, as they put less stress on the lower back and can help improve core stability.
However, it's important to note that front squats may not be appropriate for everyone, especially if you have any existing injuries or mobility limitations. It's always a good idea to consult with a qualified fitness professional before starting any new exercise program.