This video is about how you should squat to facilitate some important benefits. The benefits would include, muscle hypertrophy, injury prevention, and technical proficiency. In this video we look at numerous studies that analyze surface EMG readings to see where muscle recruitment is at its highest. The researchers examine partial squats, parallel squats, and deep squats. What we find is that all squat styles, when loaded appropriately, recruit the same muscles.

What I believe is that you should strive to shoot for as low as you can comfortably and safely squat. I believe that this will facilitate muscle growth, as well as increased mobility, which is a good way to avoid injuries. Secondly we examine stance width and foot position to maximize your squat. A wide stance, toes out squat may recruit the glutes and inner thighs slightly more. In my opinion, super wide stance squats can result in a truncated range of motion, and because of the reasons listed above, I believe ROM should be preserved.

Lastly we examine bar position. You can put the bar higher on your traps (high bar), lower on your back (low bar) or in your front rack (front squat). Again, when loaded appropriately, each squat variation is a viable option for developing leg strength, and mobility. I believe the tie breaker here is technical proficiency. In my experience, the front squat is harder to learn and less fun for most. That leaves me with the high bar and low bar squat. If you’re suffering from shoulder pain, I’m going to recommend the high bar squat. If you don’t suffer from shoulder pain, either squat will do.