Barbell Squat Techniques

Barbell squats are said to be the 'king of leg exercises'. They are indeed one of the most important exercises for building muscle and developing high levels of whole body strength. There are a number of benefits of doing squats with a barbell. This exercise primarily targets the quadriceps, gluteal muscles, hamstrings as well as the lower back.

The gluteal muscles and hamstrings are worked most in the bottom of the lift and the quadriceps and lower back are worked, when you do it standing up. At the same time, the calves, core muscles and upper back are also heavily involved to stabilize the body, while doing squats.

As a matter of fact, the barbell squat works a number of the muscles a lot, hence, it is often thought to be a full body lift. The emphasis of the muscles worked changes from one muscle to another, depending on the technique you use to do the exercise.

For example, the closer your feet are to one another, the lower back and the quadriceps will be worked more. The more wider are your legs, it will stress the gluteal muscles, hamstrings and inner thighs more. Now let's see how to do barbell exercises.

These are an intense version of squats, which force the largest muscles of the body to work much more than the regular squats. When you are doing squats with barbells, you add weight to your spine, hence, you should take care, when you are doing this leg exercise. Before you do squats, it is important to warm up yourself well. You can choose to include any of the cardiovascular exercise in your workout routine.

We will first see, how to do the regular squats using barbells.

• Stand with shoulder width distance between your feet.
• Lift and place the barbell a little above your shoulders, i.e. on the trapezius muscles.
• In case you feel uncomfortable, you can use a bar pad to protect your back.
• Slowly, start bending your knees and lower yourself into a squat.

• Lower your torso, only till your thighs are parallel to the floor.
• Slowly come back to the starting position and repeat the exercise.
• When you are doing the exercise, ensure that your knees are in line with the toes.

This is a variation of squats, which works the inner thigh muscles. Performing wide barbell squats is similar to regular squats, albeit with a little difference.

• To do wide barbell squat ,stand with your feet shoulder width or hip width apart.
• Point your toes outwards, i.e. duck toeing out. This will allow the quadriceps to contract with maximum efficiency.

• Place barbell on your shoulders, bend your knees and lower your torso down in control, till your thighs are parallel to the floor.
• Slowly come back up to the starting position.
• Ensure that your back is straight when you are doing this exercise.

It is the placement of the barbell, which makes this version different than the other squats. The barbell rests on your upper chests, on your front deltoids and upper thorax

• To do the exercise, hold the barbell, cross your arms and position your right hand on the top of the bar near your left shoulder, while you position your left hand on top of the bar near your right shoulder.
• Keep your upper arms a little above parallel to the floor to avoid the bar from sliding.

• Place your feet hip width apart with knees pointing a little outwards.
• Bend your knees and allow your upper body to descend in control, till your thighs are parallel to the floor.
• Slowly come up, but keep your legs strong.

When you are performing barbell squats, it is important that your knees do not cross your toes to avoid injuries. While doing the exercise, if you experience pain in your knees, do not continue further and talk to your trainer about the same. There is a possibility, that you are not doing the exercise well. Take care!