In my experience, to do front squats properly, you're required to keep the front of your upper body and your core area more engaged, in order to not "fall forward" more or less, which might cause you to drop the weight. I can't tell you how that will affect my performance though. The reason is as you stated, the upper back is the limiting factor in the strength/performance of a front squat. Ronnie Coleman front squatted 800lbs twice. I do it because it's fun and I'm a powerlifter. I'd consider myself an intermediate lifter at best (symmetric strength standards are mostly in the "proficient" range). CrossFit Seminar Staff member Julie Foucher demonstrates the front squat. Sorry if it's a dumb question, I'm a tennis pro so I don't want to sacrifice my shoulder if I don't have to. Method 3: Front Squat max calculated by Back Squat max. (Discount the different levels of optimal joint angles) Still, even if you have the same muscles doing a movement that seems to be the same different muscles get the workout in different ways. They just seem to feel overall better for my physical makeup. Front squats have a knack for finding your weak link for you. Front Squat vs. Back Squat. This Front Squat to Back Squat ratio is highly individual and I can’t give you a number, but I can give you a range. The numbness you are experiencing sounds like a nerve is getting pinched in your neck (look up cervical radiculopathy). I also deadlift twice a week so I'm not worried about posterior chain issues. The back squat and front squat both have their advantages and disadvantages but in almost all cases, an athlete can lift far more weight in the back squat than the front squat. We're talking large shoulder/collarbone bruises, feeling like I couldn't breathe, wrists that wanted to straight fall off, etc... a month later it feels very natural and I have no issues with it at all. Fortunately, Earp et al. Such as poor core activation, helps me not cheat the form and has helped with my previous problem of good morninging squats. I change the weight accordingly. Only do front squats now without any problem. Also great for hip mobility and core strength. I do front exclusively because it's more quad orientated, The moves are cousins. If it goes away when you are done lifting that's good. They fail to distribute forces evenly and the weight lies awkwardly across the front of the shoulders. In my opinion, it is the best squat variation, hands down. if you don't like an exercise you've got my permission not to do it. Back squats engage your lower back more which helps your deadlift. But I understand back squats are a stable to any sort of strength training, and should never undermined. I'm pretty sure that front squats hit your quads more than back squats. Edit: Source to quell the downvotes. Heavy Squats. 2 of those sets are front and 2 are back. Let’s break them down. Front squat uses more quads and upper back, while back squat has a deeper impact on the glutes, posterior chain and lumbar spine. Safety squat bar is a great option but I know they're still rare out in the wild. This changes the squat for the worse. You shouldn't even be gripping the bar. Unless you're playing that sport it might not be necessary. Front Squats are limited by how much weight you can hold on the front of your shoulders. For the numbness, try unwrapping your thumb from the bar, I started to do that and my numbness went away. Just a difference of posterior vs anterior chain. Just a difference of posterior vs anterior chain. I change the weight accordingly. With a goal in mind to just get stronger. why would u say it is a superior exercise? There’s a certain simplicity in a lot of basic barbell movements. They feel very different from each other. 1 year ago. You'll be much better served to take 10-15 pounds off your training weights and dominating them then going for broke each training session. No idea what that means but thanks for your input. I know you can't do as much weight but I've progressed to 230lbs x5. Additionally, I just started doing this: Take the Back Squat weight in a front squat position and hold for as long as possible (standing). Just a difference of posterior vs anterior chain. Just curious, how tall are you and what are you body proportions like(ie long legs, short torso)? The Front Squat is an excellent squatting variation that requires you to place the barbell on your anterior shoulders rather than on your back. Programming-wise, I don't really train these any differently than I do any other lift when I'm really focusing on numbers. The hack squat is a variation of the squat which places the weight low and behind the lifter, providing different benefits than the traditional barbell squat, where the weight is usually placed across the shoulders. Main benefit to back squats is that you can do high volume. I thought generally high bar was superior for quad devlopment? You build some crazy good upper back strength from it that can help you in deadlifts, and quad size/strength, Thanks for relating it to a personal experience, I'll take the advice. Of course it's referencing an actual study, but apparently yes, back squat wins for glute activation. However, weight selection for your heavy work is critical – you need to ensure that you never miss a rep!. It has really helped my back squat weight jump up. Here, we break down the pros and cons of back squats and front squats. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. You said it yourself. 1/3 Bulgarian? About a month ago while doing heavy back squats, I seriously inflamed my sciatic nerve, causing immense pain in my lower back, hips, and butt. Why would your thumb ever be wrapped around the bar for a low bar squat? In addition, because front squats generally require less weight to get the same effect on the body, they put less compressive and shear force on the knees, lowering the risk of meniscus or ligament damage. That's ok. Get stronger. Yes but its not just your back, is your entire posterior chain. Front squats only slightly use quads more. I only had ac joint issues about 5 years ago but it's been fine in every x ray since then. The next workout, I did 120 kg for 4 sets of 4 reps. And I just kept making small increases like that — based on how my body felt each week — for the next 16 weeks. Which means you can Back Squat 10 – 25% more than you can Front Squat. It forces the hip muscles to engage less. The distribution on which muscles are supporting the weight as you go through your range of motion is just in different ratios. Every time I've tried back squats I eventually get a numbness that goes down my arm to my left thumb. Front squats are like a cheat code to strong back squats and deadlifts. Whereas in back squats, people can tend to fall forward with the chest as they lift heavier and heavier weights, without any immediate consequence. Front squats only slightly use quads more. This includes the strong glute, adductor, and especially the hamstrings muscles. Overall Strength: Back Squats let you lift more weight than Front Squats, period. I love front squats, having bar in front feels real natural to me, having my elbows up and the bar over my shoulders, and I always feel like my quads are giving it 100% when going all the way down and up, the whole movement feels like I'm getting a real good workout, Back squats give me a headache, I've never really had that feeling you get when you know your muscle are working hard, even when I go ass to grass and am pushing heavy weights. If the squat is king of all exercises, then consider the front and back squat the four legs it sits upon. I was stuck at 60kg for so long and I just did 2x8 of 70kg the other day. Moral of the story: do your dang front squats. If you simply want strong legs, squat is squat. They really don't. I'd still get the shoulder/elbow checked out, but it might be something as simple as your hand placement; maybe try spreading your hands out wider, bringing them in closer, don't crank down on the bar as hard, etc. I swapped it for back squatting due to lower back issues. Taken from this thread. Some coaches believe that a lifter should be able to front squat 90% of the weight that he/she back squats. So I started doing front squats. Honestly if front squats were more comfortable for me I would do them instead of back squats. By using our Services or clicking I agree, you agree to our use of cookies. I'm 6'1" with long legs and I'm not very strong, can only front squat 200, but they are a lot more comfortable for me so they are all I do. Close. level 2. anterior chain is weaker plus the way you hold the bar means your front squat weight is gonna be lower than your back squat weight, but that’s fine; definitely targets quads better. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, Discussion of physical fitness/exercise goals and how they can be achieved, Press J to jump to the feed. I've worked on my placement and can't seem to find a position where it doesn't go numb. We probably have different source, because it was my understanding that front squat requires, actually, more mobility in the ankle and hip mobility due to the need for the back to remain upright.