The Squat is one of the three exercises in the strength sport of powerlifting, beside deadlifts and benchpress, mainly strengthening your leg and buttock muscles. And Hack Squat and Squat are two of the most effective variations of it.
There are many controversial opinions between professionals as well as gymers about which one is more beneficial. Unfortunately, if you look for a round on several gym blogs, you will surely be in disorder because there’s definitely no right or wrong answer to this question.
More...
Hack Squat - https://www.muscleandperformance.com
The only solution is a complete comparison between Squats with Hack Squats so that you can choose the more suitable exercise for your workouts. This confrontation includes the differences in muscles targeted, pros and cons and how-to-do.
Before entering the showdown, let’s have a brief overview on two types of squats in order to discriminate them without mistakes.
These squats are usually performed with a barbell kept on the upper-back shoulders to move up and down your core. The hack squats are executed on a machine tilted 45 degrees to the floor by using your legs to move the weight held on your shoulders.
Squats are a full body exercise which targets primarily the muscles of thighs, hips and buttock, quadriceps and hamstrings as well as the muscles in the lower back. They also help trainees build up abdominal muscles and develop core strength.
Squat
Hack Squat - strengthsensei.com
On the other hand, Hack squats are a multi-jointed exercise mainly training the quadriceps muscles on the front of your thigh and the gluteus maximus.
The hack squats is a superb workout if you are faced with unbalanced problem of your leg muscles, thanks to its supportive equipment. The hack machine provides you the balance and stability to protect your lower back from injuries, which the freestanding squat rack cannot.
Moreover, it permits trainees to adopt a smaller stance while making the motions without the tension in imbalance.
Another variation of the hack squat is the split squat, which puts less strain on the back and more on the glutes and hams.
However, your posture isn’t natural as your body is fixed based on the structure of the machine. With that said, your back is moved in a sloping position instead of vertically, your head and neck may be forced into a narrow space some machines have.
Squats are a whole body workout since this exercise tones up not only your quads, hamstrings, and calves but also your biceps, triceps and chest. Therefore, your body is totally trained to burn off calories and decrease body fat.
But ...
There are also many variations of hack squats you can practice such as: barbell hack squats, hack squats with Smith machine. And about these of back squats, front squats, Sumo squats or overhead squats are also ideal alternatives to challenge yourself.
Don’t forget to consider carefully related your gymnastic goals!
As mentioned at the beginning, it is really difficult to find out an exact answer for this showdown since it significantly depends on your physiques, exercise goals and efforts.
These superlative squat exercises have their different pros and cons, so the key strategy is how to take advantage of the benefits and minimize the weaknesses to obtain the achievement expected.
If you want to read more about squats then we here at Fitness Purity have you covered! Take a look at:
The benefits of Front Squats vs Back Squats, and how to do them correctly - This article is essential info for those wanting to venture into the land of front squats. We discuss the form and common beginner mistakes, as well as pros and cons of both exercises before determining which one would be added in your fitness journey.
Should You Use Knee Sleeves for Squats? We review the five best options and explain when you need to switch to a knee wrap instead.
Thanks for reading, and before you go, please leave a comment below to discuss which one is your favorite.
Get a bubble butt and thick thighs – Big Gains Made Easy
Kinobody Workout Review – Will it make you a superhero?
Athlean-X Review – Is Jeff’s program really worth it?
Your Ultimate Guide to Occlusion Training via Blood Flow Restriction