The Ultimate CrossFit Back Squat Movement Review

The back squat is the king of all squatting exercises and is a fundamental movement in CrossFit. If you are familiar with the CrossFit Level 1 certification, you are familiar with the CrossFit back squat points of performance. 

They are a list of cues to follow when performing the back squat. As a CrossFit coach and Performance Physical Therapist, I have seen these performance points stand the test of time in helping people optimize their back squats.

When the back squat is mastered, it will translate to almost any lower body exercise you perform in CrossFit training. Out of all the squat exercises, the back squat allows you to handle the most weight and produce the most significant stimulus possible. 

However, although it is one of the best exercises you can perform in the gym, it is also one of the more challenging movements to perform and master. 

In this article, we’ll explore the back squat in depth and uncover everything you need to know to master it, reach your next personal best score, and do so pain-free!

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What Are The CrossFit Back Squat Points of Performance?

Follow these points of performance to optimize your back squat and keep your training pain-free.

• Take a shoulder-width stance for the starting position.  
• Rest the bar along the upper back. 
• Hands grip the barbell just outside of the shoulders. 
• Assume a full grip on the barbell. 
• Elbow point down and back. 
• Hips descend back and down. 
• Continue descending until the hip crease is below the knee. 
• Maintain your lumbar curve. 
• Keep your heels down. 
• Knees track over the toes.
• Move through a full range of motion of the hips and knees to full extension. 

How To Achieve A Perfect Squat

Achieving a perfect squat is relative to what perfect means for you and your goals. You may be a CrossFitter, but emphasize powerlifting; therefore, you’d want to emphasize the low bar squat. If you wanted to prioritize your Olympic lifts, you’d focus on the high bar back squat since it translates better to the Olympic lifts. 

There are many different variations of the back squat, each with its own nuances. Regardless of which one you choose to train, we can work towards a better overall squat movement pattern by building great thoracic spine, hip, knee, and ankle mobility. 

As well as progress the movement through the stages of strength development, including motor control, strength endurance, and maximal contractions. Laying the largest foundation possible will provide you with the largest peak possible. 

It is common in CrossFit to want to jump in on heavy squat workouts right away. Unfortunately, this is a recipe for underperformance and increased risk of injury. To achieve a perfect squat, your brain must first learn to sequence the movement with light loads and high frequency. 

This is followed by heavier loads with stimulus variations, such as weight changes, speed, tempo, etc., to build strength and endurance. Then, once your system is read, you can incorporate heavy squat days and one-rep maximums. 

The Benefits of Back Squats In CrossFit

Below are the biggest benefits of training the back squat as a CrossFitter and why it should be emphasized in your training. 

Building Leg Strength

The back squat is a great way to develop the lower body’s strength, endurance, and muscle mass. Of all the squat variations, the barbell back squat allows you to apply the most significant load to the legs. This, in turn, creates the biggest stimulus for the legs and the whole body to adapt and grow stronger.  

To build the most strength possible for your CrossFit training, focus on controlled and slower tempos throughout the motion to allow for the maximum time under tension. Then, over time, increase the speed of your squats to allow for heavier weights, lower repetitions, and shorter time under tension. 

Improved Core Stability

The back squat is also an excellent way to build core stability that will translate to other movements, such as the deadlift, strict press, and Olympic lifts. It is best to prioritize achieving standard motor control and strength endurance levels in the core using exercises like planks, knee tucks, and other static core strengthening. 

However, once you reach these levels, you can rely on more extensive strengthening exercises to build your core strength functionally. 

The back squat does a great job of this because it is considered a “core-to-extremity” movement, meaning the core must contract first to provide stability for the legs to operate at their fullest potential. (1)

If the core cannot stabilize the midline properly, then the force you can produce with the lower body will drop, and you won’t achieve optimal performance for the repetition or set. (1)

Transfer To Olympic Lifts

The Olympic lifts, such as squat cleans and snatches, and their variations benefit significantly from developing the back squat. The back squat and, more specifically, the high bar back squat, where the torso remains vertical, transfers well to the Olympic lifts because it strengthens the bottom position of the squat, which is a point of failure in Olympic lifting. 

Many times, I can lift the barbell off the ground and get underneath it, but then I cannot stand the bar up from a lack of squatting strength. 

But by emphasizing the back squat and using increasing load, pause squat variations, and other methods, you can solidify your strength at the bottom of a squat and see increased Olympic lifting performance almost immediately. 

What Muscle Groups Do Back Squats Work?

Like the other six foundational movement patterns, the back squat trains almost every muscle in the human body. When you are under the barbell and at the bottom of the squat, there isn’t a single muscle in the lower or upper body that isn’t creating movement or resisting movement to keep you safe and optimize performance. The muscles below are the primary muscles training in the squat and are worth noting to improve any athlete’s ability in the back squat. 

Quadriceps

The quadriceps are the primary muscle group responsible for extending the knee joint. In the back squat, the quadriceps play a prominent role in controlling your descent into the bottom position and producing force into the ground to stand back up. (2)

Gluteus Maximus

The gluteus Maximus, or your “glutes,” is the largest muscle in the human body and is the prime mover for all hip extension motions. Hip extension is moving the hip from a flexed position, such as during good mornings, to a fully extended or opened hip joint. The glutes are primarily involved in the bottom position of the back squat to initiate the ascent back up to full extension. (3)

Hamstrings

The hamstrings are on the back side of the legs and oppose the quadriceps, as they are primarily involved in knee flexion or bending. The hamstrings are the most active knee stabilizers during the back squat, during the descent and ascent of the movement. Since weight and gravity will naturally flex the knee during the back squat, the hamstring’s job is to prevent unnecessary knee motion. (2)

Lower Back Muscles

The lower back muscles, such as the multifidi and erector spinae, are essential for maintaining the lumbar curve and keeping the torso upright as you back squat. Unlike the muscles of the legs, the lower back muscles contract isometrically and, therefore, do not produce movement; instead, they prevent motion of the spine to increase performance and avoid injury. 

Core Muscles

The core muscles, such as the rectus abdominis, the transverse abdominis, and the oblique muscles, act similarly during the back squat. They are not producing motion; they are resisting it. 

These muscles contract with the diaphragm, and through strategic breath-holding, you can increase intrabdominal pressure in the torso to increase core stability. This is important for optimizing the core-to-extremity relationship, allowing for the maximum amount of force produced by the legs and keeping the lower back safe. (1)

Back Squat Common Flaws

Accomplishing each CrossFit back squat point of performance is a challenging task. It can take weeks, months, and even years of squat cycles to master the movement and incorporate it into a CrossFit workout. By knowing the common faults in the back squat, you can spot them when they happen and work towards preventing them. 

Knee Valgus 

Knee valgus refers to when the knees travel inwards during a squatting motion. If this is an athlete’s first attempt at the movement, you will usually see this fault if they have spent the time building a foundation of motor control in the squat pattern with less complex variations or lighter loads at higher rep ranges.

You will also see if the athlete’s hip external rotators, such as the glute max, glute medius, and glute minimus, are weak compared to the adductor muscles or weak relative to the weight they are trying to lift.

Some knee valgus is normal during reps where the goal is lifting as much as you can, but this kind of lifting should be reserved for those who have developed their bodies and have squatted back for months and years.

Hips Rise Before Shoulders

When the hips rise before the shoulders, it is usually due to one of two reasons. The first is an imbalance between the strength of the quadriceps and the glutes and hamstrings.

When the lifter rises from the bottom position and shoots their hips up rapidly, they try to shift the load from the quadriceps to the larger muscles of the glutes and hamstrings to deadlift the barbell to the standing position.

The second reason is a need for more awareness or movement control in the squat pattern. This can be fixed by decreasing the load and increasing the time under tension through tempo and repetitions to improve our motor control and command of the motion.

Butt Wink

The dreaded “butt wink” occurs at the bottom of the squat, where you will see the lumbar spine curve reverse and flex as the pelvis tucks under the body. There is debate over whether this is an issue or not. 

But you want to minimize spine motion under load as much as possible to reduce injury risk. The butt wink can happen for several reasons. These include a lack of core strength and stability, tightness in the glutes and hamstrings, or restricted joint mobility in the hips, knees, and ankles. 

Rounding The Spine

Rounding of the spine occurs when the muscles of the upper back, lower back, and core are not strong enough to maintain a neutral spine. This fault is commonly seen in the deadlift, but I have also seen it in the back squat. 

It is usually a sign that the weight you are attempting to lift is too heavy for you. You will typically see the thoracic spine round as you stand. Over time, improper lifting under load can weaken the soft tissue structures of the spine and lead to pain or injury. (4)

Lack of Hip Depth

Not reaching full squat depth is the king of all squat faults. Although detrimental to your orthopedic health and performance, you could commit every fault I mentioned and still have your back squat “counted as a good rep” at the CrossFit Games. 

But, if you cannot reach the full depth of your back squat, the repetition is for nothing. Without reaching the bottom position where the hip crease is below the top of the knee cap, the repetition is considered a “no rep”. 

Not having full access to the bottom position in a squat can be related to decreased joint mobility needed for the back squat, decreased core stability, a lack of motor control for the movement, or the weight Is too heavy for you, and your brain knows that if you go any lower, then you won’t be able to stand up.

Other Types of Squats

The back squat is the king of all squat variations. However, I rarely have new clients begin with Back Squats when I coach them inside my 1:1 Pain-Free Performance Program or Bulletproof CrossFit Program.

Air Squat

The air squat is a body-weight squat variation and the first variation to be mastered in the squat progression. It is commonly used as a warm up for squat days, but I often see that many CrossFit athletes need help to even reach the points of performance for an air squat, let alone a back squat. Before adding load to your squats, consistently hit the air squat with great technique. 

Goblet Squat

The goblet squat is a great beginner option for adding load to the squat movement. It places the load in the front of the body, which helps to increase the strength of the upper back muscles and the core. I prefer the goblet squat as the first loaded squat because it promotes excellent positioning under load, as the load provides a counterbalance for the body. 

Front Squats

The front squat is another front-loaded squat with the barbell resting in the front rack position. In the front squat, the barbell sits across the shelf by protracting the shoulder blades and creating a shelf with the shoulders to hold the bar. 

This further increases the squat challenge as the core and upper back work harder to keep the torso upright. You can also increase the load on the legs since the barbell can be loaded higher than a dumbbell. The front squat translates very well to the squat cleans since it mimics the bottom position of the squat. 

Overhead Squat

The overhead squat is an advanced movement where the barbell is held overhead instead of on the shoulders. It requires exceptional ankles, knees, hips, and thoracic spine mobility. The movement mimics the bottom position of the squat and snatch well. 

It is a great accessory tool for Olympic weightlifters.  However, the drawback to the overhead squat is that the load being used is limited by how much weight can be held overhead. 

Pro Tips For The Back Squat

Ready to start crushing your back squats in training? These are the four major things I have learned to help CrossFit athletes the most as they develop their back squat performance. 

Brace The Diaphragm

As mentioned above, a stable midline is paramount to producing the most force possible with the legs and optimizing back squat performance. Utilizing the diaphragm and the other core muscles to maximize intra-abdominal pressure, you’ll lift more weight and keep your back safe. 

This is called the Valsalva Manuever.  To do so, breathe into your belly to expand the midsection as much as possible, followed by a contraction of the abdominal muscles to create downward pressure on the air inhaled. 

Weight In The Midfoot

It’s common to think that during a back squat, the weight is in your heels; however, this is typically a strategy to overcome you to keep the weight off of the balls of your feet. 

By keeping the weight in your midfoot, you can utilize the three points of contact of the foot, the big toe, the pinky toe, and the heel, to produce the most force possible into the ground and remain balanced as you descend into the squat position. 

Tighten The Upper Back Muscles

Maintaining tension in the upper back is another strategy to create stability in the body as you perform the back squat. To do so, pull the shoulder blades together and down to engage the upper back muscles. This will help prevent rounding of the back while holding heavy weights on the shoulders and keep the torso upright. 

Pull Down On The Barbell

Pulling down on the barbell with the hands further engages the muscles surrounding the torso, creating even more tension in the midsection. When you pull down on the bar, the lat muscles engage, which increases the tension on the thoracolumbar fascia. A piece of dense ligamentous tissue that provides stability to the upper back. 

Final Thoughts On The Back Squat For CrossFit

You now have everything you need to start crushing your squat training and smashing the CrossFit back squat points of performance with every repetition. Whether you are walking into the gym preparing for a heavy day of squatting or a metcon with back squats, you can do so now to the best of your ability. 

The Back squat is the best way to develop lower body strength in the squat position and is a staple in barbell training. By following the points of performance listed above, avoiding the common mistakes, and incorporating the pro tips, you can reach new personal bests in training and stay injury-free while you do. 

If you are ready to start training CrossFit without joint pain, my Bulletproof CrossFit Program can help. I invite you to click HERE to check it out and experience the difference a program that combines CrossFit training with Performance Physical Therapy can make in how you look, feel, and perform!

References:

1. Willson, J. D., Dougherty, C. P., Ireland, M. L., & Davis, I. M. (2005). Core stability and its relationship to lower extremity function and injury. The Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, 13(5), 316–325. https://doi.org/10.5435/00124635-200509000-00005 

2. Kubo, K., Ikebukuro, T., & Yata, H. (2019). Effects of squat training with different depths on lower limb muscle volumes. European journal of applied physiology, 119(9), 1933–1942. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-019-04181-y 

3. Neto, W. K., Soares, E. G., Vieira, T. L., Aguiar, R., Chola, T. A., Sampaio, V. L., & Gama, E. F. (2020). Gluteus Maximus Activation during Common Strength and Hypertrophy Exercises: A Systematic Review. Journal of sports science & medicine, 19(1), 195–203. 

3.Amin, D. B., Tavakoli, J., Freeman, B. J. C., & Costi, J. J. (2020). Mechanisms of Failure Following Simulated Repetitive Lifting: A Clinically Relevant Biomechanical Cadaveric Study. Spine, 45(6), 357–367. https://doi.org/10.1097/BRS.0000000000003270