maratoolNarrow Stance Squat with Barbell
How to do the narrow stance squat with barbell
- A great overall exercise for the lower body. This version of the Squat targets and defines more of the externals leg muscles.
- Lifting a barbell off of a weight rack, position it on your shoulders.
- Place your feet about 6 inches apart with your knees and toes pointed slightly outward.
- Drawing your abs in, descend slowly by bending at the knees and hips as if you are sitting down (squatting).
- Lower yourself as far as you can control without letting your body shift towards your toes (this will cause you to loose balance).
- Pause in the downward position and slowly return upright to the starting position.
- Notes: A pad on the bar or towel on your shoulders can help improve your grip and reduce the discomfort of the bar against your back. Practice the squat without any weight to allow yourself to become comfortable with the movements.
Muscles worked
The prime movers are the quadriceps across the front of the thigh, which straighten the knee and, just as importantly, control it on the way back down.
Because more than one joint is moving, the work does not stay in one place: the glutes finish hip extension; the calves control the ankle and hold the heel position; the hamstrings assist hip extension and slow the knee down.
Every exercise for:QuadricepsGlutesCalvesHamstrings
How this movement works
Several joints move together, so effort spreads across a chain rather than concentrating in one place. Coordination is part of the difficulty: the movement is only as good as its weakest link, and improving it often means fixing a position somewhere other than the muscle you meant to train.
It is filed under strength: produce force against resistance for a countable number of repetitions, and progress the resistance over time.
What you need
A barbell locks both hands to one bar, so neither side can drift and the load climbs in plate-sized steps. That makes it the simplest way to add weight and the least forgiving thing to bail out of.
Every exercise using:Barbell
These train the quadriceps too, using equipment this one does not:
- One-Arm Overhead Kettlebell Squatskettlebell
- Pile Squat with Dumbbelldumbbell
- Quadriceps-SMRfoam roll
- Rear Leg Raisesbody only
- Recumbent Bikemachine
Illustration: Everkinetic — CC BY-SA 4.0 — license. Modified versions are shared under the same license. Full attribution →
ⓘ Informational only — not a substitute for professional fitness or medical advice.