Smith Machine Front Squat

What you'll gain

• Emphasizes the quadriceps through an upright torso position.

• Produces lower knee compressive force than an equivalent back squat.

• Removes most of the balance demand, which shortens the learning curve.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. 1

   Set the Smith bar at shoulder height and step under it so it rests across your front deltoids.

2. 2

   Place your hands on top of the bar or use a front rack grip with two or three fingers.

3. 3

   Set your feet slightly ahead of the bar, about shoulder width, with the toes turned out a little.

4. 4

   Rotate your wrists to unrack the bar and brace your trunk.

5. 5

   Bend the knees and push the hips back together until your thighs reach parallel.

6. 6

   Drive the elbows up and press through the whole foot to return to standing.

Common Mistakes

• Letting the elbows drop, which rolls the bar forward off the shoulders.

• Placing the feet directly under the bar, which forces the torso to lean into the fixed path.

• Rising hips first, which turns an anterior-loaded squat into a stiff-legged shove.

• Letting the knees collapse inward instead of tracking over the second toe.

About This Exercise

The Smith machine front squat holds the bar across the front of the shoulders, so the torso has to stay upright and the knees travel further forward than in a back squat. That shifts emphasis onto the quadriceps, with the glutes, hamstrings, trunk, and calves supporting the position. Biomechanical work comparing front and back squats found the front-loaded version produced lower knee compressive forces and lower knee extensor moments while recruiting the same musculature, which is part of why it is prescribed for lifters managing knee complaints. The fixed bar path removes some of the stabilizing demand. In a catalog this clip covers the machine-based squat slot for gym programs, and it gives a program builder an anterior-loaded squat option that does not need free weight coaching.

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