A barbell squat with the bar racked on the front of the shoulders. More upright, more quads, and zero tolerance for sloppy bracing.
GIF · Demo
What is the front squat?
The front squat is a barbell squat where the load sits across the front delts and clavicles, held by a clean-style rack (fingers under the bar, elbows high). The bar position forces a vertical torso, which shifts the work onto the quads and demands a rock-solid brace from the upper back and core. It builds quad mass, cleaner squat depth, and the upright posture needed for cleans, jerks and Olympic-style lifting. It also exposes weak ankles, weak abs and weak upper backs faster than any back squat ever will.
How to do the front squat
1
Rack the bar on the front delts
Step under the bar so it rests on your collarbones and front delts. Fingers loosely under the bar, elbows pointed forward and up. The bar should sit, not be held by your arms.
2
Unrack and set your stance
Take two steps back, feet just outside hip-width, toes slightly turned out. Big breath in, brace the core hard, elbows stay up.
3
Squat down vertically
Sit straight down between your feet, knees tracking over toes. Keep elbows pointed up. Drop until your hip crease is below the top of the knee.
4
Drive up with the elbows high
Push the floor away, lead with the chest. If elbows drop, the bar rolls forward and the lift collapses. Stand tall, breathe, repeat.
Coach tip
If your wrists scream during the rack, it's a mobility issue, not a hardware problem. Spend 5 minutes a day on wrist and lat stretches. Crossed-arm or strap-assisted grips are fine as a bridge, but fix the mobility long-term.
Common mistakes
Elbows dropping. The second elbows drop, the bar rolls onto your wrists or off your shoulders. Drive them up every rep.
Caving knees. Knees collapsing inward kills hip drive and stresses the joint. Push them out to track over your toes.
Heels coming off the floor. Lifted heels mean tight ankles or quads. Wear lifters or work mobility, don't fight it with momentum.
Loose core. A soft brace dumps the bar forward. Big breath, lock the trunk, hold it the whole rep.
Variations & progressions
Easier
Goblet squat
Hold a single dumbbell or kettlebell at chest height. Same vertical-torso pattern, much easier setup.
Harder
Pause front squat
Pause 2-3 seconds at the bottom. Crushes the quads and exposes any leak in your brace.
No barbell?
Double kettlebell front squat
Two kettlebells in the rack position. Brutal core demand, no need for wrist mobility or a power rack.
How to program it
Three protocols by goal. Pick one per cycle and aim for progression on load or distance.
Goal
Sets × Distance
Load
Rest
Strength
5 × 3
80-85% 1RM
3 min
Hypertrophy
4 × 6-8
70-75% 1RM
2 min
Olympic carryover
6 × 2 with 3 s pause
75-80% 1RM
2-3 min
Log every rep
Add the front squat to your ZON program
Track load, distance and progression in one timeline.
Why is my front squat so much weaker than my back squat?
That's normal. Most lifters front squat around 80-85% of their back squat. The bar position eliminates posterior-chain help and demands a vertical torso. If the ratio is below 70%, your upper back, core or ankle mobility is the bottleneck. Train the front squat for 8-12 weeks at higher frequency to close the gap.
My wrists kill me, what do I do?
First, the bar should rest on your shoulders, not be gripped by your hands. Three fingers under the bar is enough. Second, mobilise wrists, triceps and lats daily. Third, if pain persists during warm-ups, use a cross-grip (arms folded over the bar) or lifting straps looped on the bar as a bridge while you build mobility.
Front squat or back squat for athletes?
Both, but lean front squat for sports that demand an upright torso: sprinting, jumping, Olympic lifting, combat sports. The front squat punishes a weak core and rewards good posture under fatigue, both critical on the field. Use back squat for raw load tolerance and posterior chain. A 60/40 split toward front squat works well for most athletes.
