Barbell Zercher Squat

1. Set the bar in a rack at roughly elbow height and, if needed, wrap it with a pad or towel.
2. Hook the bar in the crooks of your bent elbows and clasp your hands together in front of your chest.
3. Stand up to unrack, step back, and set your feet slightly wider than shoulder width, toes a little out.
4. Brace your core hard and keep your chest tall against the bar trying to fold you forward.
5. Squat down between your knees until your elbows pass the inside of your thighs or your depth limit.
6. Drive through your whole foot to stand, keeping the torso upright the entire way.
7. Re-rack carefully after 5 to 8 reps, walking the bar all the way back into the hooks.

Common Mistakes

• Letting the elbows drop: If the arms tip downward the bar rolls forward and out. Keep the elbows lifted and the bar pulled tight to the torso.
• Rounding the upper back: The bar position pulls you forward, and giving in to it strains the spine. Fight to keep the chest tall on every rep.
• Skipping the pad when needed: Raw bar on bare elbows can end a set before the legs are challenged. Padding is fine and does not make it easier for the muscles.
• Going too heavy too soon: The limiting factor is often arm and core endurance at first. Build up over weeks so the legs, not the elbows, set the limit.