Strength Training · Bodybuilding · Powerlifting · Olympic Weightlifting
High-Bar Back Squat
The high-bar back squat places a barbell across your upper shoulders while you squat and stand. It builds leg strength, emphasizing your thighs while your trunk supports the load.
Higher injury risk. Read the safety notes before adding weight.
- Intermediate
- Compound
- Higher injury risk
- Rest 3 min
How to do it
- Grip the racked bar evenly with your hands slightly wider than your shoulders.
- Position yourself beneath the bar with it resting across the muscular shelf at the top of your shoulders.
- Straighten your legs to lift the bar clear of the hooks.
- Step back into a shoulder-width stance with your toes turned slightly outward.
- Lower your hips between your heels until your thighs are roughly parallel to the floor, or deeper if comfortable.
- Push through your feet to return to standing.
- Return the bar to both rack hooks after your final repetition.
Form cues
- Breathe in and brace before each rep.
- Track your knees over your toes.
- Keep the bar over your midfoot.
- Let your chest and hips rise together.
Common mistakes
- Heels liftingUse a shallower squat or stable weightlifting shoes with raised heels to keep your whole foot planted.
- Forcing extra depthStop your descent before your lower back noticeably rounds or your pelvis tucks sharply underneath you.
- Supporting the bar with your handsTighten your upper back so your shoulders carry the load while your hands keep the bar secure.
Safety
A failed repetition can trap you under the bar without correctly positioned safeties. Excessive load or fatigue can cause loss of trunk control, increasing strain on your back or knees.
- Set the hooks just below shoulder height and the safeties just below your lowest controlled squat position; test both with an empty bar.
- Secure the plates with collars before lifting.
- Warm up with lighter sets before gradually adding weight.
- End the set when you can no longer maintain your position or control the descent.
If shoulder stiffness prevents a comfortable bar position, or squatting causes back, hip, or knee pain, choose an easier variation and seek advice from a physiotherapist.
Muscles worked
Primary muscles
Secondary muscles
Equipment
- Barbell Collar
- Bumper Plate
- Knee Sleeves (optional)
- Lifting Belt (optional)
- Olympic Weightlifting Barbell
- Power Rack
- Rack Safety Supports
- Wrist Wraps (optional)
Sets and reps
- Sets
- 3
- Target
- 6–8 reps
- Rest
- 3 min
Choose a load that leaves about two good repetitions in reserve.