Barbell squat: how to do it.
The barbell squat is the most complete leg exercise and one of the most productive exercises overall: quads, glutes and hamstrings work together with the entire chain that keeps you standing. It's also the most technical exercise in the gym: learning it properly pays off forever.
Starting position
- Position the bar on your traps (not on your neck), squeeze your shoulder blades together and create a "shelf" of muscle for the bar to rest on.
- Grip the bar as narrow as your mobility allows: elbows under the bar, back already tight and braced.
- Unrack, take two steps back and set up: feet shoulder-width or slightly wider, toes pointed slightly outward (15-30°).
Proper form
- Fill your belly with air and brace your core, as if you're about to take a punch: this protects your back throughout the entire rep.
- Start the descent by bending hips and knees together, as if sitting between your heels, not on a chair far away from you.
- Your knees travel in the direction of your toes: they can go past them, what matters is that they don't cave inward.
- Descend under control at least until your hips drop below knee level (or to the maximum depth you can control with a neutral spine).
- Drive up by pushing the floor away with your whole foot, hips and shoulders rising together: keep your chest up, don't let your back tip forward.
- Finish standing with hips and knees fully extended, catch your breath and go again.
When to inhale, when to exhale
Take a big breath in at the top, before descending, pushing your belly out against your abdominal belt: hold it through the entire descent and ascent, and only exhale once the rep is complete. With lighter loads you can exhale during the ascent.
Mistakes to avoid
Valgus collapse is the most dangerous mistake under load. Think about "spreading the floor" with your feet and drive your knees out in the direction of your toes throughout the entire ascent.
If your weight shifts onto your toes, your center of gravity is too far forward: the squat becomes unstable and your knees take the strain. Keep your weight across your whole foot; if your ankles are stiff, a heel wedge can help.
Pronounced butt wink under load stresses the lumbar discs. Only go as deep as you can control with a neutral spine, and build mobility gradually, not through ego lifting.
If your butt shoots up and your chest collapses forward, the squat turns into a half good morning and your lower back pays the price. Hips and shoulders need to rise at the same speed.
DAWT tip. Film yourself from the side once a week: depth and back position are hard to judge from the inside. Two minutes of video tell you more than a thousand feelings, and it's the same principle behind DAWT asking for your RPE after every set: real data, not impressions.
Variations and alternatives
Quick answers
How deep should I go in the squat?
Ideally you bring your hips just below knee level ("below parallel"), but only if you can get there with a neutral spine and heels flat on the floor. A perfect half squat beats a deep squat with a caving back.
Can your knees go past your toes?
Yes, it's normal and healthy, especially if you have long femurs. The "never past your toes" myth is outdated: what matters is that your knees track in the direction of your feet without caving inward.
Squat or leg press for legs?
They're not rivals: the squat trains your whole body and the movement pattern, the leg press isolates the push and lets you add extra volume without taxing your back. In a well-built program, they often coexist.
Related exercises
How much should you load on this exercise?
DAWT's AI coach tells you, set by set: it builds your plan around your goals, auto-regulates the load from your real effort and corrects you while you train. Download the app and start free.
