We’ve all had those off days. You look at your workout routine and barbell back squats are on the menu. Normally you can’t get enough of leg day, but on this particular workout day, you’re feeling a tweak your shoulder or knee after the previous night’s pick-up basketball game; now back squats have become more daunting than usual, leaving you scrambling to find a strength move to swap with squats that will still hit all the right muscles without worsening your minor aches.
If your knee hurts, getting in the right frame of mind to squat is difficult. You’ll be thinking about it, and it may throw you off. Sometimes this can be solved with box squats, and sometimes not. But when your shoulder is sore, this makes putting a barbell on your back difficult. Your shoulder needs some external rotation and mobility to put a barbell there.
And if any of those is lacking, getting a barbell comfortably on your back will be a problem. Yes, you can fight through it if you wish, but why when there are squat swap outs that allow you to go hard and heavy without pain? Instead of training in pain (of course if it’s an injury, get it checked out with a physician), work around it with these four squat swap outs and live to squat another day again.
4 Squat Swap Outs so You Never Need to Skip Leg Day
These four exercises will train the squat movement hard and heavily without discomforting your shoulders, knees, or lower back.
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Barbell Front Squat with Straps
Front squatting with straps makes it easier to hold the barbell if there are any upper-body issues—especially with your wrists, shoulders, or both. Because the front squat is more quad-dominant, it may be best to avoid this exercise if you tweaked your knee.
Due to the anterior position of the barbell, the muscles are emphasized differently than the back squat Front squats engage the anterior core and quads to a great degree, especially the vastus medialis, one of the four quadriceps muscles, which is targeted heavily with the front squat. If the lower back is an issue, performing the front squat with a vertical torso position is easier on the lower back due to less compressive force being placed on it.
How to Do It:
1. Attach the straps to the bar and slide each so that the distance between them is approximately the same as the distance between the bony ends of your shoulder (A/C joint).
2. Wrap the ends of the straps around your hands, get underneath the bar, and get it around your collarbone/upper shoulders.
3. Unrack the barbell, get your shoulders down, chest, and elbows up, and ensure the barbell is secure.
4. Take a deep breath and perform the squat as usual.
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Belt Squat
The belt squat is an excellent alternative to the barbell back or front squat if you’re nicked up in the shoulder, knee, or lower back. First, this exercise is more straightforward because the weight is closer to your legs. Easier means the ability to load more weight for more reps for more potential gains.
Plus, as the load is closer to the working joints, it may help your knees if they are sore.
Second, the belt squat is performed with a more upright torso, which puts a little or low load on the lower back but will have the same degree of knee flexion as the barbell squat. This drives more engagement to the quads and the glutes while stressing the lower back less.
How to Do It:
Note: There are many ways to set up and perform the belt squat. This is just one way.
1. Put a dip belt around your waist, kneel down to fasten it to the belt squat machine, and get your feet into your preferred squat stance.
2. While gripping handrails lightly, stand up and push away the stopper to squat.
3. Squat while holding the handrails.
4. When you have reached your preferred depth, push through the platform and squat back up until lockout.
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Trap Bar Squat
Many lifters poo-poo on trap bar squats because it’s more of a hybrid movement, and the reduced range of motion doesn’t have the same degree of knee flexion as a squat. Nothing can be done about the hybrid status, but stepping on a weight plate will solve the ROM issues. With trap bar squats, the weight is aligned with your center of gravity, and the neutral grip puts less stress on your shoulders and back if issues exist.
Trap bar and barbell back squats train similar muscles but are trained differently because barbell back squats, your body is engaged the entire time, but not so with trap bar squats. Plus, the smaller ROM of the trap bar squats limits the ability to train the quads and glutes throughout the entire ROM.
But grip strength plays a more significant role with the trap bar squat, and more upper back strength is required, making it a solid option if back squats are off the training menu.
How to Do It:
1. Put the weight plate (preferably a bumper plate) inside the trap bar.
2. Step inside the trap bar with your feet firmly planted on the weight plate.
3. With your shoulders down and chest up, squat down and grip the handles.
4. Keep a neutral spine, squat, push your feet through the plate, and finish with your glutes.
5. Then lower down and reset and repeat.
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Safety Bar Squat
Safety bar squats allow lifters with upper body aliments or shoulder mobility restrictions to squat hard and heavy because gripping the safety bar is more manageable. Although the safety bar squat looks like a barbell squat, the two have a few crucial differences.
In the safety bar variation, you squat with an upright torso, like a front squat which puts less compressive load on your lower back, which is excellent if you have any lower back issues. Due to the gripping differences between the two, lower trap activation is much like the front squat with the safety bar. If you’re having problems with the barbell back or front squat, the safety squat bar is your savior.
How to Do It:
1. Position the safety bar in the rack about one to two inches below where your shoulders would be if you were standing up.
2. Walk under the bar and position your head between the handles with the bar resting on your upper back and grip both handles.
3. Unrack the bar, take three steps back, and get your feet in your preferred position.
4. Perform your squat as you usually would, avoiding pulling the handles down too hard, as this will alter the mechanics of your squat.
