Exercise of the Week – Anderson Front Squats

This exercise is a killer… Anderson Front Squats.  ”Anderson Squats” are usually done with the bar on your back.  But in this version, you rack the back across your shoulders, as you would in a traditional front squat.

You can set the pins as low as you want.  The lower the harder, but make sure to set them at a depth that allows you to keep form (abs tight, weight on your heels, chest tall, etc).  In traditional squats, as you descend, the tendons will store energy and assist the muscles on the concentric portion (the way up) of the lift.  By unloading the bar on the pins for a second, this “stretch-shortening cycle” is reduced (or eliminated if you rest the bar on the pins long enough) making it so the muscles will have to do more work.  It is kind of like a deadlift in this sense – you let the bar rest on the ground for a second before going into the next rep.  The big different here is that Anderson Squats are more quad dominant, whereas deadlifts are more hip dominant (unless you purposely lean forward with Anderson Squats to bring the glutes/hams into play more).

When first trying these, start off light as they can be humbling!  But they are great for your quads, your core, and will help with your posture.  Did I say they are great for your quads? …

Give them a try, and um, “enjoy,” as they are oh-so-fun!