Should You Ever High Bar Squat?

Starting Strength Coach Grant Broggi explains what the high bar squat is, how it differs from the low bar squat, and why anyone would ever want to consider using this over the low bar.

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[jerseyjim]

It's all I can do for now along with SSB squats. My 70 year old shoulders won't cooperate.

[coffeeandlifting]

Determining which squat is best in a vacuum is kind of weird. Yeah, low bar has more hips and posterior-chain, but you're already deadlifting, aren't you? Barbell programs need quad work. Most people (especially people not competing in powerlifting) should be high-bar squatting instead of doing a squat variation that overlaps more with the deadlift for no reason.

[harryschrysan]

As a High bar squater and doing some 🏋️ as well I got to say this.. As long as you get of the couch and go to the gym it shouldn't matter what squat type are you using, as long as you don't ego lift and have a good form. The rest depends on many factors that you will decide for YOURSELF. 🥂

[Tomasz]

I use HB squats for my volume squatting. My LB are all about the hips, max weight 5s turn slowly into goodmornings from rep 3 with hips shooting up (not back) at the bottom and back angle becoming even more horizontal. As an result I build big glutes and shitty quads. HB helps to target them. I stop my sets as soon as I start to feel glutes taking over the movement.

[RouletteRog]

I started out in the gym loosely following Starting Strength, and therefore low bar squatting. I've recently started training for the sport of weightlifting, but I was moving in the high bar direction on my own. I consider the squat variants (i.e., low bar, high bar, front squat, and overhead squat) to be tools which each serve a purpose; each one has a place in the intermediate or advanced lifter's toolbox.

[glovemanjr]

one big point id throw in is, if you are very posterior dominant lifter and pull conventional, you can get wicked strong quads with high bar. Depends WHAT you want to get strong. Low bar and conventional and good mornings or whatever else make it hard to get super strong quads without a lot of accessories if you have poor leverages and highball is a great fix

[storiedstrength]

I get pretty good carryover from high bar to low bar. Elbow tendonitis made me switch to high bar for three months. A week after returning to low bar, I hit a lifetime PR of 500.

[DrakeLawnCareBussiness]

This is a great video.People need to watch.

[dougie]

I have been experiencing discomfort in my right shoulder for several weeks now. Despite my best efforts to perform the low bar squat last week, I simply couldn't manage it. Therefore, I resorted to the high bar instead. While doing the high bar, I couldn't help but think that Grant would give me the business if he saw me high barring. 😂 So thanks for posting this.

[dnlgdvv]

Anyone who wants quad development should high bar squat over low bar.

[alexoday]

Plugging in some high-bar work throughout the week, really helped manage fatigue, so I could break through on my deadlift. Still making gains in my LBS, but now they’re not getting in the way of making progress with my deadlift.

[mofojohnson]

Who else should high Anyone who wants big quads

[omdc]

As a 35+ yr lifter, I have always performed high bar squats. I found them to be more natural and they have given me excellent thigh (VMO & Vastus Lateralis) development. I place the bar right below the vertebra prominens so the bar is primarily resting on my shoulders and traps instead of my spine.

[daniellovesosrs]

The best thing is to learn and master both variations. On quad dominant days do high and on hammy days do low. If you dont split the leg into quad and ham then do whichever you like most but its good to master both variations.

[JamesVestal-dzqm]

I remember when Paul Ellison was arguing there's no value in the high bar squat. He trained 3 athletes to go to the NFL. He supported the front squat. I agree that high bar squat is better than not squatting. I have never used the mars bar before. Paul Ellison loved the clean and snatch.

[mercertj]

The few strength coaches I ever personally knew were advocates of the high bar squat for athletes and everyday functionality.

[gavinvandraven]

I like to do an upper/posterior split and alternate high bar and low bar squats.

I ran starting strength til I hit 225 OHP, 315 Bench, 405 squat and deadlift at 5’5 48 yrs old.

Example split I run now…

Mon
Low Bar Squat 405 3x5
RDL 2x10 225
Barbell Row
Leg curls
Incline dumbbell curls

Tue
Bench Press 315 3x5
Dumbbell fly
Laterals
Upright Rows
Pushdowns

Thu
High Bar Squat 315 3x5
Deadlift 405 1x5
Leg ext
Pull ups
Cable curls

Fri
OHP 3x5 225
Incl DB press
Cable Fly
Cable laterals
Overhead tricep cable ext

[BluegillGreg]

I do sets of one snatch with 3 overhead squats. I do sets of one clean with 3 front squats. It took more effort but cost less pain to learn these variations. I want to preserve these abilities, so I practice them. I also get more out of them by doing them barefoot atg, sometimes with a pause. I just enjoy these a lot more than back squats, and that's reason enough to keep doing them. It's also fun to do them at the beach or on a nice lawn.

[MegaLegz]

I high bar squat because its intuitive and I never knew what low bar was until I found it on youtube. I never worried about falling over because I always practice safe sets. Never got elbow tendonitis from squatting, its hard to imagine.

[thelostintranslation]

Usually on program I will do my major work low bar and switch to volume and back offs high bar.