
Muscles Worked in Barbell Hack Squats

Primary muscles worked:
Secondary muscles worked:
How to Do the Barbell Hack Squat
- Stand in front of a bar. Squat down and grip the bar with your arms outside your legs.
- Inhale, brace your core slightly, and lift the bar.
- Pull the bar close to your body, with a straight back, until you are standing straight.
- Lower the bar back to the ground with control.
- 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.
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