Exercise Technique: Front Squat

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

This article briefly explains different squat variations, as well as how they differ from a physics and biomechanics standpoint.

Squatting may be commonplace in the weight room, but proper execution of this great exercise is difficult. Strength and conditioning coaches will need to properly select exercises and cue their athletes in a way that not only allows for a proper stabilizing strategy to occur, but promotes it.

This article seeks to provide personal trainers with eight brief modifications that clients can benefit from if they suffer from both acute and chronic lower back pain (LBP).

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

The purpose of this article is to compare the effects of quarter, parallel, and full depth squats on muscle activity, joint stress, athletic abilities, and potential injury risks for the consideration of all strength and conditioning professionals.

The purpose of this meta-analysis was to synthesize the literature and provide a robust estimate of the correlations between lower-body, multijoint, isometric and dynamic neuromuscular assessment variables and snatch (SN) and clean and jerk (C&J) performance in competitive weightlifters. A comprehensive search through 3 electronic databases (PubMed, SPORTDiscus, and Web of Science) returned 12 studies that met the inclusion criteria. Meta-analyses were performed on Pearson’s correlations between SN and C&J performance and 15 variables from 5 neuromuscular assessments— countermovement jump (CMJ), squat jump (SJ), isometric midthigh pull (IMTP), back squat (BS), and front squat (FS) one repetition maximum (1RM). The FS and BS 1RM exhibited nearly perfect correlations (r 5 0.93 to 0.94), whereas the IMTP peak force exhibited very large correlations (r 5 0.83 to 0.85). The IMTP force at 250 ms exhibited very large correlations (r 5 0.77 to 0.78), and the CMJ and SJ peak power exhibited very large to nearly perfect correlations (r 5 0.88 to 0.92). These findings illustrate the importance of lower-body maximal and time-limited force-producing capabilities in weightlifters. Moreover, each assessment offers at least one variable that exhibits a correlation of .0.70. Therefore, these assessments may be used to gauge weightlifting performance potential.

The purpose of this article is to discuss the gray area that should be considered when it comes to implementing weightlifting exercises.

This excerpt from Developing the Core briefly defines closed- and open-chain exercises and their respective roles in training.