How to Do Barbell Hack Squat: Muscles Worked & Proper Form

Muscles Worked in Barbell Hack Squats

Primary muscles worked:

• Quads

Secondary muscles worked:

• Glutes
• Adductors
• Lower Back
• Trapezius
• Forearm Flexors
• Calves

How to Do the Barbell Hack Squat

1. Stand in front of a bar. Squat down and grip the bar with your arms outside your legs.
2. Inhale, brace your core slightly, and lift the bar.
3. Pull the bar close to your body, with a straight back, until you are standing straight.
4. Lower the bar back to the ground with control.
5. Take another breath, and repeat for reps.

Commentary

The barbell hack squat is an old-school lift and an alternative to regular hack squats if you don’t have access to a machine.

This exercise is similar to the barbell deadlift, with the difference that the barbell is placed behind your legs instead of in front of them. This forces you into a more upright position and shifts most of the work onto your quadriceps, unlike the deadlift which is more of a posterior chain exercise.