Traditionally there are two types of Rack Squats, both of which are underused in my opinion. The first variation of the Rack Squat involves lowering the bar down to the pins inside of a power cage and pausing for just a few seconds then exploding back up with the weight. The second variation is the harder variation (and utilized even less) and involves starting the lift with the bar resting on the pins. Both have value under the right circumstance.
The first variation of the lift we shall just call the Rack Squat. By and large this exercise has been driven out of mainstream use due to the popularity of the box squat which accomplishes a very similar purpose. Both the pins and the box can be set to a predetermined height so that the trainee has a quantitative indicator of where he/she should pause with the weight. Any sort of paused squat variation can be useful in developing power out of the hole on a traditional squat that utilizes a hard stretch reflex. Take the stretch reflex away, the lift gets harder, and hopefully you get stronger. It generally does work.
HOWEVER, it has been my experience in my own training and in the training of my clients that box squats do not always have carryover for the raw lifter. It isn’t that box squats don’t work to get the lifter stronger, they do, but they can also create a dependence on the surface area of the box at the bottom of the squat. Lifters who train too often with a box can start to lose the subjective feel for what the bottom of the squat should feel like. So even though they may have gotten stronger by training the box squat, we often see this cancelled out by the loss of proprioceptive “feel” for the bottom end of the regular back squat. What you will find is that lifters get tentative and hesitant at the bottom of the squat when the box is taken away. Is this universal? No. I know several raw lifters who do lots and lots of work off a box with no negative consequences. But there are enough problems created by box squats for a raw lifter that an alternative method is useful to have in your hip pocket.
Enter the Rack Squat.
The Rack Squat gives a marker for depth just as the box does, but since the pins come into contact with the bar and not the butt, the lifter doesn’t seem to develop the same dependence for finding the bottom of the squat.
In my opinion, for paused squat work of this nature, the Rack Squat is superior to the Box Squat for the raw lifter.
A couple of interesting comparative notes. At the same level of depth and for the same length of the pause, the Rack Squat will utilize less weight than the Box Squat. This is almost universal, and may be further evidence that it is the more useful exercise. As I allude to in Practical Programming 3rd Ed I tend to favor exercise variants that “underload” movements rather than “overload” them.
Part of the reason for the weight differential is because the box allows the lifter to rock back (even if it is very subtle) and gather momentum for the ascension. The Rack Squat holds the bottom position of the squat completely immobile. There is no ability to rock back or forwards, and momentum is absent from the lift.
Lifters will also find a difference in where they get sore from each lift. Rack Squats traditionally create much more quad soreness than Box Squats, which tend to create more soreness in the glutes and hamstrings. Again, much of this has to do with how much the box allows the lifter to sit back into the squat, often getting the bar behind the middle of the foot. In a box squat this is acceptable because the box is there to “catch” you, and it allows you to rock forward to get the bar back over the middle of the foot where it can be lifted. The Rack Squat tends to follow the mechanics of a regular back squat a little closer.
Programming
Rack Squats can be used for singles for up to sets of 5. Rack Squats are a pure strength and power exercise and getting out of this range is getting out of the strength and power range. Below are several ways in which Rack Squats could be programmed into some traditional training splits:
Back Off Sets: After your main work set or sets of Squats do 1-2 back off sets of Rack Squats with lighter weight. So a trainee who squatted 500×3 for his main work set, might strip the bar down to 405 and do 2×5 for added volume.
Substitute: If a trainee does 5×5 sets of squats once per week as part of his heavy training day, he might alternate every other week with 5×5 sets of rack squats.
Medium Day: If using a Heavy Light Medium routine, Rack Squats make an excellent medium day exercise. Just be careful with total volume because they are very stressful. In fact, they are too stressful to every be considered a light day exercise
Dynamic Effort Sets: Most of those who use Dynamic Effort method sets utilize a box. Next time you do your Dynamic Effort Squat workout, try doing Rack Squats instead of box squats for 8-12 doubles on the clock. You can still use bands and chains with Rack Squats
Max Effort Work: If you have a rotation of max effort squat/deadlift exercises, plug these into the rotation. Rack Squats work great for heavy singles.
Last Tip:
Use a coach, training partner, or cell phone camera to find the right height for the pins of the power cage. The temptation with the Rack Squat is to go high and use a lot of weight. Take the pins low enough so that you can sink down to just below parallel. The crease of your hip joint should be just below the top of your knee. Do NOT bounce the bar off the pins. We want to pause at the bottom for about 2-3 full seconds. The bar should be motionless before you come back up. It’s supposed to be hard!
In the next week or two I will write Part 4.5 of the series and we will examine the second variation of the exercise: The Dead Stop Rack Squat
This seems to almost entirely mitigate the issue of people box squatting with poor technique. Nothing new has to be learned. If you can squat, you can rack squat.
Great article! Shared.
I have been using rack or “pin” squats alternating weekly with pause squats as a supplemental movement this training cycles it works, The bottom of my squat has gone from a weak point to a strong point in my competition squat.
I’m not a veteran yet, but with a few years of proper training under my belt, I can pretty well feel the bottom of my squat (i.e., I know where full depth is by feel). Is there any advantage to using rack squats over simple paused squats?
The two lifts are probably exchangeable for the most part. Rack squats keep depth consistent when you get tired so that things are more measurable.
Andy:
In your experience, do people tend to come forward of the mid foot when ascending back up off of the pins? The pressure in my head from the Valsalva is significantly higher on the rack squat than a regular squat. When this happens on a regular squat, this usually means the bar has come forward. I’m wondering if I’m more prone to for the hip drive to get ahead of the chest. I just started doing the rack squat and the movement doesn’t seem quite right.
Thanks
It tends to be more of a problem on the dead stop rack squat than a standard rack squat where you lower to the pins. I suppose I’d have to see you doing the movement to diagnose the problem. Try de-emphasizing the hip drive a bit or more likely, squeeze your chest up as high as possible prior to hittong the pins. You may be “reaching” for the pins with the bar by dropping your chest right at the bottom. This would push you forward when you come back up