front squats

[thinsgreat]

can anyone tell me the advantage of doing a front squat where the bb is in front of you vs a squat with the weight behind you on your shoulders? i have a lot of trouble with the front squat and can do more weight with the bar on my back.

 

[ms71069]

My uneducated guess would be that it places more emphasis on the quads...but I may be wrong!

 

[janie1234]

I think it also works the core more since you have to counter balance your weight so you don't fall over but that is totally a guess.

 

[orphylea]

Cathe just did a segment on it for Cathe TV and I think she said it does target the quads a bit more. It had great form pointers- you should check it out!

 

[jansherman]

Front squats do target the quads a little more, but if you focus on really sitting back into your heels, they can also target the glutes and hams equally well. Holding the weight in front helps aleviate some of the stress on the vertabrae and back muscles that happen when you put a heavy bar on your back. For me, I'm somewhat restricted in the weight I can squat because of what I can safely lift over my head. When I hold the weight in front I can lift far more weight because the over-the-head lift is eliminated. It took some practice to find the most comfortable position for holding the weight in front, but it has worked wonders for my squatting weight!