Front Squat

Fred MckeeZach Krimm

Technique

• The Front Squat is a Squat done with the barbell on your front shoulders instead of on your upper-back. Put the barbell on your front shoulders, bend through your knees & come back up.

Technique• Begin by gripping the bar with an open pronatedgrip, slightly wider than the shoulders. Raisethe elbows, rotating the hands around the bar,placing the bar on the front of the shoulder.• After lifting the bar from the rack, positionyourself in an erect standing alignment withback flat, abdominals tight, scapula pulled in,eyes straight ahead. Place feet shoulder widthapart and even with each other with toes pointedslightly out.

Racking the Weight

Technique• Focus eyes on wall slightly above eye level.• Slowly and under control, lower the bar by

flexing the hips and knees and maintaining an erect torso position.

• Keep your weight over the middle of your foot and heels, not your toes and keep heels on the floor

and knees aligned over the feet. Do not bring knees inside of your feet.

• Slowly lower hips until the top of your thighs are parallel with the floor.

• Do not bounce out of the bottom.

Technique cont’d

• Keep eyes focused on the wall slightly above eye level.

• Slowly raise the bar by driving the thighs and extending the hips and knees to an erect position.

• Maintain a flat back, tight abs, scapula pulled in, and elbows up position.

• Do not allow your knees to move in or out and do not accelerate the bar at the top of the movement.

• Repeat downward and upward phase for the assigned number of repetitions.

Technique cont’d

• Inhale during the downward phase and exhale during the upward phase.

• Maintain a flat, erect back throughout the range of motion.

• Do not let heel come off the floor at any time.• Keep scapula (shoulder blades) retracted or

back and together throughout the exercise.• Keep eyes straight ahead.

Spotting• Spotting the Squat• During the squat, an athlete should always

utilize the assistance of a spotter.• The spotter should stand directly behind the

individual executing the squat but not so close as to interfere with the lifter’s progress.

• When spotting male athletes, place arms and hands under the lifters arms with hands in front of the pectoralis muscles.

• When spotting female athletes, place hands near the bar, below and outside where the lifters hands are positioned on the bar.

• Only assist through the full range of motion when assisting a beginning lifter to teach proper form such as a flat back, tight abs, and and erect posture throughout.

Major Muscles Used

• Legs (Quadriceps, Hamstrings, Gluteus Maximus, Calves)

• Hips• Shoulders (Weight stabilized by Front

Shoulders)• Core (Weight stabilized by all of your

Abdominal Muscles and Lower Back)

Variations

Crossover Grip Clean Grip

Technique errors• Not properly holding the weight

• Heels rise of the floor as subject squats down

• Rounded Back

• Excessive Lean

• Bouncing out of the bottom

Contraindications

• Degenerative Arthritis

• Connective Tissue Disorders

• Patellar Related Injuries

• Healthy Individuals should be fine performing this lift