squat
Barbell Back Squat
quads · glutes · hamstrings · core
barbell · intermediate
How to do it
- 1Set the bar across your upper back and step out of the rack.
- 2Sit down and back until your thighs are at least parallel, then drive up.
What to think about
- Push your knees out in line with your toes.
- Keep your whole foot on the floor.
What usually goes wrong
- Knees collapsing inward.
- Heels lifting.
Worth knowing
- Set the safety pins at a height that will catch the bar.
Watch it
Instead of this
Dumbbell Goblet SquatThe same movement, a step easier while you build the pattern.Leg PressThe same movement, a step easier while you build the pattern.Bodyweight SquatThe same movement, a step easier while you build the pattern.Wall SitThe same muscles, but a different movement: you hold the position instead of moving through it, so it is counted in seconds rather than reps.
What the cautions rest on
The safety points above come from these, not from house opinion.
- Strength and muscle gain require progressively increasing demand over time.
- Weight training carries a low injury rate compared with most field and contact sports.
- Holding your breath through a heavy rep raises blood pressure sharply, which matters most for people carrying cardiovascular risk.
- Free weights carried over the head or trunk need a spotter or a catch mechanism, and equipment needs checking before it is loaded.
- Squatting deep is not inherently harder on the knees than stopping high, and cutting depth to add load carries costs of its own.
Who checked this
Nobody qualified has. These are standard coaching points and ordinary gym safety, written down: how to set the thing up, what to control, and when to stop a set. They are not a clinical opinion and no physiotherapist or strength coach has read them back. If they disagree with somebody who can actually see you lift, believe that person.