How many sets and reps of the Frankenstein squat should you do when you are new to the exercise?

Start with the empty bar alone, or a light training bar, for 3 sets of 5 to 8 reps, since the point is learning the front-rack position, not loading it. Add small weight only once you can hold a vertical torso and a stable shelf on every rep, and end the set the moment the bar starts to roll forward.

What can you do instead of the Frankenstein squat if you don't have a barbell?

Balance a sandbag or a heavy medicine ball across the front of your shoulders with your arms reaching out the same way; the unstable load teaches the same upright-torso skill. If you only have dumbbells, hold them at your shoulders instead and focus on keeping the chest tall through the squat.

What is the Frankenstein squat good for, and when should you skip it?

It is a teaching drill for the front-rack position used in front squats and cleans, and for the upper-back and trunk control that holds a bar without hands. Skip it if your shoulders cannot comfortably rack a bar high on the delts, or if you are chasing leg strength or size, since the load has to stay too light to build either.

Intermediate

Frankenstein Squat

Resting the bar on the front delts with the arms held straight out and hands off the bar removes any chance of holding it in place, so only a perfectly upright torso and high shoulders keep it from rolling off. That makes it a demanding teaching tool for the front-rack position and a brutal drill for upper-back and trunk posture. Keep the loads light; this is about position, not maximal weight.

Equipment: Barbell
Body part: Quads
Type: Balance, Strength
Browse by muscle: Rectus Femoris, Vastus Lateralis
Browse by movement: Squat

How to do it

1
Set the bar across the front delts, resting it high near the collarbones.
2
Extend both arms straight out in front of you at shoulder height with the hands off the bar.
3
Step into a shoulder-width stance and brace the core hard.
4
Squat straight down while keeping the torso vertical and the arms reaching forward.
5
Descend until the thighs reach parallel without letting the chest drop.
6
Drive through the mid-foot to stand, keeping the bar balanced on the shelf of the delts.

Tips

Keep the elbows and arms high; the bar rolls off the instant the chest caves forward.
Use light weight and treat it as posture practice for a cleaner front squat.
Build a firm shelf on the front delts so the bar has a stable place to sit.

Variations

Common mistakes

The bar sits too low on the neck instead of high on the meaty shelf of the front delts, which makes the hold unstable no matter how good the arm position is.
Once the legs start to fatigue, the torso pitches forward out of the bottom, and with no hands on the bar that lean is enough to roll it off the shelf.
A stance that is too narrow leaves nowhere for the hips to go but forward on the descent, so the torso tips even with the arms held out.
Exhaling and losing the brace at the bottom lets the ribs flare, and that small lean is often all it takes to walk the bar forward off the shelf.
Standing up explosively out of the hole jerks the shoulders back for an instant, which is exactly when the bar tends to bounce off the shelf.

Frequently asked

How many sets and reps of the Frankenstein squat should you do when you are new to the exercise?: Start with the empty bar alone, or a light training bar, for 3 sets of 5 to 8 reps, since the point is learning the front-rack position, not loading it. Add small weight only once you can hold a vertical torso and a stable shelf on every rep, and end the set the moment the bar starts to roll forward.
What can you do instead of the Frankenstein squat if you don't have a barbell?: Balance a sandbag or a heavy medicine ball across the front of your shoulders with your arms reaching out the same way; the unstable load teaches the same upright-torso skill. If you only have dumbbells, hold them at your shoulders instead and focus on keeping the chest tall through the squat.
What is the Frankenstein squat good for, and when should you skip it?: It is a teaching drill for the front-rack position used in front squats and cleans, and for the upper-back and trunk control that holds a bar without hands. Skip it if your shoulders cannot comfortably rack a bar high on the delts, or if you are chasing leg strength or size, since the load has to stay too light to build either.

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