Welcome to the final installation of the squat progression in the BridgeAthletic Building Blocks series. I hope you have enjoyed this second progression and look forward to sharing more progressions in the coming weeks!
The next progression in the Squat series is the Barbell Back Squat. This is by no means the final step in the squat progression. In fact there are many other versions of the squat such as the Front Squat and Overhead Squat, but the Barbell Back Squat is a cornerstone in any strength program. Check out our E-Book to unlock more of the squat progression.
IMPORTANT! Please ensure that the athlete performing the Back Squat has had the appropriate progression leading into this. If you or your athletes’ have taken some time off from training, I also recommend reviewing the progression, as anytime you load your spine and multiple joints, your body needs the appropriate physiological and timed progression. Take a look at the Barbell Back Squat below.
Exercise 5: Barbell Back Squat
With the added load of the bar on your back, focus on your balance, especially on the downward movement of the squat. Feet are slightly wider than hip width apart, toes slightly rotated out. Hands are placed a comfortable distance apart on either side of the bar.
Work initially on a tempo of 2 to 3 seconds down, a slight pause and a controlled return to the start position. Do not lock your knees out at the top. Pause and repeat.
Be sure to check out the rest of the progression if you have more questions on how to master the squat.
Day 1: Wall Sit
Day 2: BW Squat
Day 3: Split Squat
Day 4: MB Squat
Now it’s your turn:
Thanks for joining us on the second stage of the squat progression.
Want Feedback?
We’re here to help. We highly encourage you and your athletes to share videos and pictures performing the exercises. Use #BuildBetterAtheltes in order to receive feedback and guidance from one of our elite coaches on the BridgeAthletic Performance Team.
Be sure to check back tomorrow for more Building Blocks!
About BridgeAthletic
BridgeAthletic works with elite professional, collegiate, and club swimming programs to provide a turnkey solution for dryland training. Led by Nick Folker, the top swimming strength and conditioning coach in the world, our team builds stroke-specific, custom-optimized dryland programs for each of our clients. The individualized workouts are delivered directly to athletes via our state of the art technology platform and mobile applications. Check Nick and BridgeAthletic out as recently featured in SwimSwam.
About Nick Folker
Nick Folker is the Co-Founder and Director of Elite Performance at BridgeAthletic. Nick’s athletes have won 22 Olympic Medals, 7 team NCAA Championships and over 170 individual and relay NCAA championships. Megan Fischer-Colbrie works as the Sports Science Editor at BridgeAthletic. Megan was a four-year varsity swimmer at Stanford, where she recently graduated with a degree in Human Biology.
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when in doubt, squat.