Hack Squat is one of the best movements for leg strength training. Like Smith Machine Squat, it is a squat with fixed equipment. Therefore, the Hack Squat does not need to worry about maintaining body balance, and you can use a narrow stance so that the force can be conducted upward in a straight line. Therefore, the Hack Squat is more beneficial to improving quadriceps strength. And you can squat as deep as possible (below the horizontal plane) to increase the strength of the biceps femoris and gluteus maximus. But this method doesn't work so well in the free squat.
Target exercise areas: Quadriceps (also involves biceps) Muscles, gluteus maximus)
The Hack Squat mainly trains the quadriceps, especially the lateral head and rectus femoris. The force exerted on the biceps femoris and gluteus maximus is only a small part.
Action essentials:
Because it is a fixed equipment squat, the movements are The path is unique and will not be described in detail. The basic requirements for squats follow the barbell squat
Notes:
1. As a powerful weapon for improving ultimate strength, Hack Squat should be placed at the forefront. The goal of performing the hack squat is to increase your ultimate strength, so you should use heavier weights than the barbell squat because the movement is more stable than the barbell squat. As a golden rule of strength training, you should always use the force of the movement. Use limited movements to perform heavy weight and low-rep exercises, and use free movements to perform high-rep exercises. Only in this way can you safely break through the strength limit.
2. As a limited fixed squat, Hack Squat should be used. With some auxiliary items. Generally speaking, the auxiliary items of free movements can be either free movements or restricted movements, and the auxiliary items of restricted movements are preferably limited movements. Different forms of Hack Squat can be used for each other. Auxiliary items, if you use the back-inclined Hack Squat as the main item, you can use the vertical Hack Squat and the forward-inclined Hack Squat as the auxiliary items, and vice versa. In addition, the leg press, Leg flexion and extension and leg abduction can be used as auxiliary items for the Hack Squat.