Quads
Safety Bar Squat
The Safety Bar Squat is a strength exercise with a barbell for your quads. Share of the load in the Zulta muscle model: gluteus maximus 20%, quads (vastus lateralis) 18% and quads (vastus medialis) 14%.
Also known as: ssb squat
How to do it
- Set the safety squat bar in a rack at mid-chest height and step under the padded yoke.
- Hold the two front handles with both hands and stand up to unrack.
- Step back, set the feet shoulder-width and brace.
- Squat down until the hips are below the knees, keeping the chest up against the forward pull of the bar.
- Drive up through the whole foot to a full stand.
Tips
- Push the upper back into the pads: the bar tries to tip you forward.
- Use the handles to keep the bar steady, not to lift it.
Common mistakes
- Letting the upper back round forward under the cambered load.
- Pulling down on the handles so the bar slides.
- Shifting the weight onto the toes.
Muscles worked by the Safety Bar Squat
Share per muscle in the Zulta muscle model. The model spreads the load of one rep over 40 muscles, based on EMG and biomechanics research.
The machine or bar path takes over most of the trunk work. The cambered bar pulls the torso forward, so the back works at least as hard as in a back squat. Knees and hips flex and extend together under load: the vasti and glute max are the prime movers, the adductors extend the hip from the bottom, and the erectors hold the torso.
Safety Bar Squat alternatives
Same equipment
Different equipment
Easier
No equipment
Make it harder
Make it easier
Similar exercises
Frequently asked questions
What muscles does the Safety Bar Squat work?
Mainly the gluteus maximus, quads (vastus lateralis) and quads (vastus medialis). The adductors, spinal erectors (lower back) and quads (rectus femoris) assist.
Is the Safety Bar Squat good for beginners?
The Safety Bar Squat is rated intermediate. If you are new, learn the Band Squat first and build up from there.
What is a good alternative to the Safety Bar Squat?
For example the Anderson Squat, Band Squat and Cable Squat. They train mostly the same muscles, some with different equipment.
How do you make the Safety Bar Squat harder?
Add weight or reps, or move on to the Anderson Squat and Double Pause Squat.
Sources
- Escamilla 2001, MSSE 33(1):127-141 (knee biomechanics of the squat)
- Kubo et al. 2019, Eur J Appl Physiol 119(9):1933-1942 (squat depth and adductors)
- Gullett et al. 2009, JSCR 23(1):284-292 (front vs back squat)
Log your sets in Zulta
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