Is the squat or hip thrust a better exercise for increasing jump and sprint performance? The results of this study support the force vector theory.

This exercise technique excerpt demonstrates the Zercher squat as a possible alternative and more field-specific squat for tactical athletes.

This Personal Training Quarterly article presents alternative ways of teaching the squat technique. Visit NSCA online to read more on exercise science, health, and fitness.

This article demonstrates the benefits and limitations of the front squat and goblet squat in training for the abdominals.

The hip hinge and squat exercises, and their variations, are used in many strength and conditioning programs to develop athletes of many sports. The listed progressions are examples of practical implications used to develop athletes, but there may be additional practical and effective methods used by strength and conditioning coaches for similar purposes.

This article provides essential guidelines for athletes beginning a strength and conditioning program that ensures safety and productivity of the training sessions.

This article provides the first academic history of the barbell back squat and its evolution from a bodyweight exercise in the 19th century to a loaded exercise used for a variety of purposes in the present age. In doing so, the article highlights three key drivers in the evolution of the back squat—changes in equipment, the diversification of strength sports, and scientific communication concerning the safety and efficacy of the movement. The goal of this article was not to provide a dry and irrelevant history but rather to stress the complexity of the squat’s prominence within fitness programs and the need to hold a nuanced view toward the “optimal” way to approach this movement. It examines how the movement evolved from being primarily done on the tips of one’s toes, to a loaded movement on tippy toes, to a flat-footed movement. By contextualizing the back squat’s history, this article challenges rigid notions of “correct” squatting technique and encourages a more nuanced understanding of exercise selection in strength and conditioning practice. It concludes by highlighting the importance of critically examining the social construction of knowledge in fitness and sport, and the value of historical perspective in informing contemporary training practices

Nick Clayton, Personal Training Manager at the NSCA, shows key coaching points and progressions for single-leg squat and lunge movements.

Exercise Technique: Front Squat