17 Underrated Squats You Need to Try

The front squat is a staple in Olympic weightlifting routines. Instead of placing the barbell on your back, you position it on your shoulders (hence the name, because the barbell is in front rather than behind).

Many people avoid front squats due to concerns about wrist discomfort, but that’s unfortunate because they’re fantastic for your quads and core. Plus, the bar actually rests on your shoulders, not your arms, so once you get the hang of it, the grip is easier than you might think once you figure it out.

These are the home-friendly alternative to front squats. You hold a kettlebell or dumbbell in front of you and squat down as deeply as your body comfortably allows. This is one of my favorite variations to introduce someone to the movement. The added weight in front helps improve balance and makes it easier to reach depth compared to a regular air squat.

Technically, these may not even be considered a true “squat,” but with “squat” in the name, they deserve a mention as a highly underrated leg exercise. Setting them up requires some precision, so watch Joe’s positioning in the video. Your forearms should be placed in your hip creases, and instead of extending your hips, you simply straighten your legs until your head is directed towards the floor. These are the closest alternative to a leg extension you’ll find without a gym machine.

The safety bar was created to allow powerlifters to continue squatting even when shoulder or wrist pain made it difficult to position a barbell on their back. This padded, specialized bar sits comfortably on your back without the need for you to grip it (although handles in the front offer extra stability for reassurance).

Here’s another hands-free option that’s ideal for working around injuries or adding more leg volume when your upper body is fatigued. A belt squat requires a machine where you secure a belt around your hips, which is then attached to a pulley system holding weight. You can even improvise this movement at a gym without a dedicated machine, for example, using a landmine attachment.

Here’s another kettlebell variation (and you can also try this with a pair of dumbbells if you prefer). Instead of holding a single kettlebell, use two, clean them both into a rack position, and rest them on your upper arms. Then, perform a squat while keeping your elbows elevated to prevent the kettlebells from dropping. It’s essentially a goblet squat, but with a bit more challenge.

In a box squat, you lower yourself until your glutes touch a box (such as a plyometric box, or you could use a bench or a stack of plates set to the right height). Depending on the version, you might either sit all the way down and rest your weight on the box before standing up, or you could focus on maintaining tension and just lightly touch the box.

Box squats remove the stretch-shortening reflex we typically use when bouncing out of the bottom of a squat, but they’re also a great option if you're dealing with an injury or you want to limit your squat depth.

Jump squats are a plyometric exercise where you drop into a full squat and then explode upwards. They’re a great way to make a bodyweight squat more challenging, and advanced athletes may even choose to add weight to them.

If you can perform a two-legged squat with your bodyweight on your back, it seems logical that you'd be able to do a one-legged squat without weight, right? As sensible as that idea sounds, single-leg squats are actually much harder than they appear. Pistol squats demand strong stabilizer muscles, good balance, and, to reach full depth, good ankle mobility. You also need enough hip flexor strength to keep your free leg off the ground. So, if you’re after a new challenge, try pistol squats.

This is my term for what’s often called a bottoms-up box pistol squat. But that just sounds too technical! In a one-leg stand-up, you begin seated on a bench or box. Place one foot on the floor, extend the other leg in front of you, and stand up. If that’s too easy, hold a kettlebell on your shoulder. These are a great way to build the strength and balance for pistol squats when you haven’t yet mastered a full pistol.

There are two common ways to position the barbell for back squats. One involves squeezing your traps (the muscles at the base of your neck) to create a shelf for the bar, while the other positions the bar on your rear deltoids, essentially just behind your shoulders. The first variation is known as the high bar squat, and the second is the low bar squat.

If you’ve been performing your squats one way, give the other a try next time you’re looking for a change. The high bar squat keeps your torso more upright and resembles a front squat, whereas the low bar squat engages your back and glutes more, making it a bit more like a deadlift. Both are excellent squat variations, so experiment with whichever you don’t typically use.

A variation from Olympic lifting, the overhead squat is exactly what it sounds like: performing a squat while holding a weight overhead. These are typically done with a wide grip, as that’s the position you’ll use to stand up after a successful snatch. You can also do them with a pair of dumbbells or kettlebells, which adds the challenge of stabilizing two separate weights.

If you’re looking for a squat variation that targets your quads even more than usual, try Platz squats. Stand with your heels elevated on a plate (yes, even if you normally train in heeled shoes), adopt a narrow stance, and position the barbell in the high-bar position. Get ready to feel the burn.

These simple squat variations are often overlooked but can make the exercise more challenging, allowing you to use lighter weights. For this reason, they’re frequently included in powerlifting routines to reduce workout intensity. (After all, you can’t overload the bar when you know the squats will be done in slow motion.) Pauses and tempos are also beneficial for improving balance and positioning.

Tempo squats are usually written with numbers to indicate how many seconds to spend during each part of the movement. A 3-0-3 tempo squat means you’ll take three seconds to reach the bottom, spend zero seconds paused at the bottom, and then take three long seconds to stand back up.

When someone is accused of “quarter squatting,” it’s often seen as an insult, implying they’re not reaching full depth. However, quarter squats are a valid training method. You only descend a quarter of the way (or sometimes halfway, depending on the variation). This allows you to load the bar heavier than in a full squat, giving your muscles more work in the upper range of motion.

Quarter squats are often used in sports that involve jumping and sprinting, which makes sense, as you don’t drop into a full squat when you jump; you bend your legs slightly, similar to a quarter squat range of motion. My coach recently replaced some of my full squats with quarter squats, and I’ve noticed a significant strength improvement in my legs. I’m convinced.

I’ve excluded lunges and step-ups from this list, even though they target similar muscles to squats. However, I’m making space for the Bulgarian split squat, also known as the rear-foot-elevated split squat. These can be a bit tricky to set up since you need either a weight on your back (or in your hands) and one foot elevated on a bench behind you. But they’re incredibly effective: your adductors, abductors, hamstrings, and quads all engage simultaneously, as well as your core to keep you steady. These are my go-to exercise when I’m stuck at a hotel gym with limited weights.

Zerchers are often overlooked but definitely worth exploring. They may be a bit harsh on your elbows initially, but with time, you’ll get used to it. (I personally prefer to wear a hoodie over my elbows, and I add knee sleeves on top for more comfort.) The bar is positioned in front of you, like in a front squat, but this positioning lets you hinge forward rather than remain fully upright. This makes them function similarly to a low-bar front squat. If you find yourself in a gym with only a barbell and no rack, Zerchers are the ideal squat variation to load heavy weight without the need to clean or Steinborn the bar into position.