Exercise Profile
- Target Muscle Group
- Exercise TypeStrength
- Equipment RequiredOther
- MechanicsCompound
- Force TypePush
- Experience LevelIntermediate
- Secondary Muscles
Abs, Adductors, Calves, Glutes, Hamstrings, Lower Back
Target Muscle Group
Quads
Belt Squat Overview
The belt squat is a squat variation and an exercise used to target the muscles of the legs.
The belt used during the belt squat centralizes the weight used for the exercise and equally distributes across the muscles being targeted.
The belt squat also increases the range of motion of the squat and provides a slightly longer time under tension than its more traditional counterparts.
Belt Squat Instructions
- Set up in a standing position with your feet roughly shoulder width apart and your toes slightly turned out.
- Attach the belt to the desired rung on the belt squat machine.
- Take a deep breath and descend by bending your knees and sitting straight down.
- Once your thighs reach parallel with the floor, reverse the movement by bracing your abs and driving your feet into the floor.
- Drive back to the starting position and repeat for the desired number of repetitions.
Belt Squat Tips
- If you don’t have access to a belt squat machine, attach a cable or plates to a dip belt and stand on two benches.
- If you struggle with hitting depth while squatting and you sense a sort of “pinching” in the front of the hip capsule then you may want to incorporate more squatting variations with an anterior load (counterbalanced squat, front squat, safety bar squat, etc.) as this will help to increase core recruitment and keep your pelvis neutral.
- Toe angle is highly individual - experiment to see what feels best for you. Some may need a larger toe flare than others but if your toe flare exceeds 15-20 degrees then there may be an ankle mobility issue which needs to be addressed.
- Drive through the whole foot - you want 3 points of contact: big toe, little toe, and heel.
- Imagine you’re trying to drop your back pockets straight towards your heels. Down, not back.
- Some forward translation of the knees over the toes is alright provided that the knees don’t deviate excessively inward or outward. Those with longer femurs will have to allow their knees to come farther forward if they want to remain upright.
- Don’t push the knees out excessively but ensure they track roughly over or slightly outside the 2nd toe.
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