Hack Squat
The hack squat machine supports the torso against a back pad so you can load the quads hard with minimal balance or spinal demand. The fixed angle and shoulder pads let you push deep and heavy safely, making it a hypertrophy staple for quad development. Adjust foot placement to bias the quads or share load with the glutes.
- Equipment
- Machine
- Body part
- Quads
- Type
- Strength
- Browse by muscle
- Rectus Femoris, Vastus Lateralis
- Browse by movement
- Squat
- Target
- Rectus Femoris, Vastus Lateralis
- Secondary
- Gluteus Maximus, Adductor Magnus
How to do it
- 1
Set your back and shoulders against the pads and place your feet shoulder-width on the platform.
- 2
Grip the handles, straighten your legs slightly, and rotate the safety catches out of the way.
- 3
Brace your core and lower under control by bending the knees toward your chest.
- 4
Descend until the thighs are at least parallel while keeping your whole back on the pad.
- 5
Drive through the mid-foot to press the sled back up, stopping just short of locking the knees.
- 6
Re-engage the safety catches before stepping out of the machine.
Tips
- Placing the feet lower on the platform biases the quads; higher shifts load toward the glutes.
- Keep your hips and lower back flat against the pad; letting them round at the bottom stresses the spine.
- Do not slam into full knee lockout at the top, which unloads the muscle and stresses the joint.
Variations
Common mistakes
- Safety catches come off at the start and never go back on, so there is nothing to rest the sled on when the legs are finished; set them before you step out.
- The heels lift off the platform as the sled comes down, which throws the load onto the balls of the feet and the knees; move the feet up a couple of inches until the whole foot stays flat.
- Loading the sled with the number you use on the leg press ignores how differently the two machines move; start thirty to forty percent lighter and build from there.
- Hauling on the handles to help the sled up does nothing for the legs and drags the shoulders off the pads.
- Once the weight gets heavy the reps stop a few inches short of parallel, which throws away the one advantage the machine offers: depth with the back supported.
Frequently asked
- How many sets and reps of the hack squat should you do when you are new to the exercise?
- Three to four sets of eight to twelve, with a controlled two to three second descent and no bounce at the bottom, resting two minutes. Add a plate when you hit twelve on every set at the same tempo. If it is your only quad exercise put it first in the session; if it follows barbell squats, two hard sets are usually enough.
- What can I use instead of a hack squat machine?
- A heels-elevated goblet squat is the closest free-weight match, because raising the heels tips the shins forward the way the machine does and biases the quads the same way. A front squat, or a leg press with the feet set low, also loads the quads hard. At home, a heels-elevated squat holding a loaded backpack against the chest gets you most of the way there.
- What is the hack squat good for?
- It loads the quads heavily with the back supported and almost no balance demand, which makes it a hypertrophy staple and a good option for lifters whose lower backs limit free squats. It is a poor choice as your only squat if a bigger barbell squat is the goal, since it trains none of the bracing or balance, and the fixed track suits some hip and knee structures better than others. If the bottom position pinches, change your foot placement before adding weight.
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