Pin Squat
Squatting down until the bar settles on the pins removes all stored elastic energy, so you have to grind the weight up from a complete stop at a fixed height. That targets a specific sticking point and builds pure concentric strength and confidence out of the bottom. Set the pins at whatever depth you struggle with most to attack it directly.
- Equipment
- Barbell
- 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, Erector Spinae
- Tertiary
- Biceps Femoris
How to do it
- 1
Set the safety pins in the rack at the depth you want to train, typically at or just above parallel.
- 2
Rack the bar on the traps, unrack, and step back into your normal squat stance.
- 3
Brace hard, squat under control, and let the bar settle fully onto the pins.
- 4
Relax the drive for a beat so the bar rests dead on the pins without bouncing.
- 5
Re-brace and drive through the mid-foot to stand explosively from the dead stop.
- 6
Lower back to the pins under control for each subsequent rep.
Tips
- Let the bar truly settle on the pins so each rep starts from a genuine dead stop.
- Stay braced and keep your back flat as you re-initiate; the dead start punishes a loose position.
- Set the pins at your personal sticking point rather than defaulting to parallel every time.
Variations
Common mistakes
- The pins sit at slightly different heights on the two sides of the rack, so the bar settles unevenly and one side has to muscle up out of the hole first.
- The bar drops onto the pins from well above where they actually catch it, letting momentum carry through the landing instead of a controlled touch.
- Standing too far forward or back in the rack means the bar has to drift forward or backward to find the pins instead of traveling straight down.
- The second brace taken at the dead stop is rushed and weaker than the one taken standing, so the explosive drive starts from a soft trunk instead of a tight one.
Frequently asked
- How many sets and reps of the pin squat should you do when you are new to the exercise?
- Do 3 to 4 sets of 3 to 5 reps at a weight around 80 to 90 percent of what you could handle for the same reps from a normal squat, since starting from a dead stop removes any rebound and makes the same load feel heavier. Rest 2 to 3 minutes between sets. Move the pins up in small steps toward your actual sticking point once the dead-stop rep feels solid rather than shaky.
- What can replace the pin squat without safety pins in a rack?
- A box squat, sitting briefly onto a box or bench at the same depth before standing back up, gives a very similar dead-stop training effect. A paused squat, holding a full stop at the bottom with no pins or box, is the closest fallback, though it takes more control to keep a true dead pause.
- When should you use the pin squat instead of a normal squat, and who should hold off on it?
- It builds concentric strength and confidence out of a specific sticking point for lifters who already squat consistently. It's a poor choice as a first squat variation for beginners, since there's no rebound to help a shaky brace, and the dead start punishes a loose setup more than a normal squat would.
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