Back Squat
Movement demo
Watch a video demonstration of this exercise on MuscleWiki. The demo opens on an external site.
Muscles worked
Primary:Quadriceps
Secondary:Glutes
Effectiveness
★★★★★ 5/5
Longitudinal MRI trials found squat training increased knee-extensor muscle volume, with deeper squats adding greater gluteus maximus and adductor growth over 10 to 12 weeks. Evidence for quadriceps growth from squat training is consistent across trials.
How to perform
With a barbell across the upper back, the lifter descends by flexing the hips and knees and returns to standing by extending both joints. The quadriceps are the primary movers, with the gluteus maximus contributing strongly, especially out of the bottom of the movement. It is a bilateral compound lower-body movement.