Low Bar Squat
Powerlifting squat with the bar low on the back. Recruits more glutes. It works mainly the glutes, quads and adductors, with help from the hamstrings and lower back.
In Flawless, a man aged 23–39 reaches Gold, the third of eight ranks, at 1.7× bodyweight (135 kg at 80 kg). For a woman it is 1.2× (72.5 kg at 60 kg).
How to do Low Bar Squat
- Set the bar lower on your back, on the shelf made by the rear delts below the top of the shoulder blades, with a wide grip and the elbows pulled back.
- Unrack, step back and set the feet a little wider than shoulder width with the toes out.
- Sit back and down with more forward lean of the torso than a high-bar squat, keeping the bar over the middle of the feet.
- Drive the hips and chest up together to stand; the lower bar position lets you use the hips more and usually lift more.
These are the same steps you see in the exercise guide in the Flawless app.
Muscles worked
| Role | Muscle | Anatomical name |
|---|---|---|
| Primary | Glutes | Gluteus maximus |
| Primary | Quads | Quadriceps femoris |
| Primary | Adductors | Adductores |
| Secondary | Hamstrings | Biceps femoris |
| Secondary | Lower back | Erector spinae |
Muscle data from StrengthLog.
Why do it
- The base of leg size
- Whole-body strength and a real metabolic cost
- Bracing that transfers to every other lift
Strength standards for Low Bar Squat
| Rank | Men | Women | Man, 80 kg | Woman, 60 kg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bronze | start | start | – | – |
| Silver | 1.1× | 0.8× | 87.5 kg | 47.5 kg |
| Gold | 1.7× | 1.2× | 135 kg | 72.5 kg |
| Platinum | 2.25× | 1.55× | 180 kg | 92.5 kg |
| Diamond | 2.8× | 1.95× | 225 kg | 117.5 kg |
| Obsidian | 3.5× | 2.45× | 280 kg | 147.5 kg |
| Painite | 4.2× | 2.95× | 335 kg | 177.5 kg |
| Antimatter | 5.6× | 3.9× | 447.5 kg | 235 kg |
Ratios are one-rep max ÷ bodyweight for ages 23–39; kilograms are rounded to 2.5 kg.
Flawless takes your best set of Low Bar Squat, estimates your one-rep max with the Brzycki formula (reps are capped at 12) and divides it by the bodyweight in your profile, so you never have to test a true max. Women’s limits are 30 % lower than men’s. For other ages the app lowers every limit: by 8 % under 23 and from 40 to 49, by 18 % in your 50s, 28 % in your 60s and 38 % from 70.
Similar exercises
Questions
What muscles does Low Bar Squat work?
It works mainly the glutes, quads and adductors, with help from the hamstrings and lower back.
How do you do Low Bar Squat?
Set the bar lower on your back, on the shelf made by the rear delts below the top of the shoulder blades, with a wide grip and the elbows pulled back. Unrack, step back and set the feet a little wider than shoulder width with the toes out. Sit back and down with more forward lean of the torso than a high-bar squat, keeping the bar over the middle of the feet. Drive the hips and chest up together to stand; the lower bar position lets you use the hips more and usually lift more.
What is a good Low Bar Squat for my bodyweight?
In Flawless, Gold starts at 1.7× bodyweight for men aged 23–39 and 1.2× for women, Diamond at 2.8× and 1.95×. For an 80 kg man that is a 135 kg and a 225 kg one-rep max.
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