The Hatfield squat might be one of the best variation you have ever heard of. It’s named after Dr. Hatfield, aka. “Dr. Squat”,” you possibly can guess it’s an efficient exercise, and it’s. While you wish a minimal amount of special equipment, if you will have it, the Hatfield squat will almost actually develop into a part of your regular rotation. We love this exercise and so we’re breaking down the Hatfield squat so you possibly can start benefiting from it too.
What Is The Hatfield Squat?
The Hatfield squat is a squat variation that uses a security squat bar and a set of handles. The protection squat bar allows the load to rest on the lifter’s shoulders giving them the flexibility to carry on to a set of handles. Ultimately, this enables the lifter to make use of their upper body to help with the squat.
It’s unique set-up gives it a big selection of advantages including:
- Less stress on the back
- Increase training volume
- Allow for overloading
- Improve or learn squat form
- Goal the quadriceps
We’ll get into these details further below. But first, let’s take a look at who the “Hatfield” is of the Hatfield squat.
Who Is Dr. Hatfield?
The Hatfield Squat is known as after the elite, record-setting powerlifter Dr. James Hatfield. And by “record-setting,” we mean he broke literal barriers in powerlifting and athletics and played an intricate part in driving the game of powerlifting and human performance.
A few of his accolades include:
- PhD in Sports Science
- Co-Founder Of International Sports Sciences Association (ISSA)
- 2 IPF World Powerlifting Championships (1983 & 1986)
- World Record Squat @ 1014lbs (1987)
Dr. Hatfield has some insane squat numbers, but his other lifts were huge, too. Collectively, his best lifts include:
- Squat: 1014lbs
- Bench: 523lbs
- Deadlift: 766lbs
- Snatch: 275lbs
- Clean & Jerk: 369lbs
Now, there tends to be some confusion about him being the primary to squat over 1,000 lbs. While he was certainly one of the primary, Lee Moran is credited with the primary official 1000lb+ squat, which was performed a couple of months earlier. As well as, at the least one other lifter, Waddington, had a 1000lb+ squat earlier, nevertheless it was done in a casual environment.
Nevertheless, what was special about Dr. Hatfield was he performed his 1000lb+ squat at a lightweight weight (relative) of 255 lbs and the age of 45!
You possibly can try a video of him here squating 1,008lbs!
Why Did Dr. Hatfield Use The Hatfield Squat?
So why did Dr. Hatfield create the Hatfield squat? Well, there have been quite a couple of reasons, including;
- Overload the squat
- Mitigate fatigue
- Save stress on the back
The first reason is that the Hatfield squat allowed him to make use of similar biomechanics to the barbell back squat in a safer and fewer fatiguing manner.
Using the protection bar and handles, the Hatfield squat allowed Dr. Squat to extend more volume, including heavy volume, on his entire lower body. At the identical time, it saved his back from stress and possible injury.
He typically used the off-season to effectively construct training volume and prepare his body for peak performance later within the season.
How To Perform The Hatfield Squat
So, let’s undergo the way you will perform the Hatfield squat. The main difference occurs in the final set-up while the actual squat uses a comparatively similar movement pattern.
By way of the biomechanics of the squat, it differs barely as a result of the protection squat bar which allows a significantly more erect torso. This takes stress off the back, mitigates hip flexion, increases depth and transfers activation to the quadriceps.
Equipment Needed
- Safety Squat Bar
- Barbell
- Rack
- Two sets of J-hooks
1. Set Up the Safety Squat Bar or Barbell
- The Hatfield squat’s set-up is exclusive and sets it aside from other squats.
- First, arrange the protection squat bar on a set of J-hooks at the conventional height for a squat, slightly below shoulder level.
- You may then need to establish the barbell on the second pair of J-hooks barely above waist level. Make sure the bar is secure, as you’ll grab it along with your hands for support.
2. Unracking The Bar
- Once arrange, you may first get under the protection squat bar and grab the handlebars.
- Standing along with your feet barely wider than hip-width apart, drive up and unrack the bar.
- Take 1-2 steps back and stabilize yourself.
- You may now let go of the protection squat bar handles and grab the opposite barbell.
3. Initiate the Squat
- You may then squat as normal.
- Take a deep breath and tighten your core.
- Begin the squat by pushing your hips back as you bend your knees and lower your torso.
- Keep your chest upright by pulling your shoulder blades together and fascinating your lats.
- As you descend, maintain an upright torso. Because you’re using the protection squat bar, this can be more pronounced than in a barbell squat.
- Use the handles for support, but try not to tug on them an excessive amount of.
- Descend until you reach the underside of the squat. Most individuals can lower the Hatfield squat while keeping good form.
4. Ascent
- Push your feet into the bottom, specializing in driving through your heels while keeping your chest lifted and core tight.
- Use the handles to assist maintain posture as you come up. This permits you to deal with your legs.
- You can even use your arms to assist propel yourself up if needed or when performing overload squats.
Advantages Of The Hatfield Squat
Above, we discussed why Dr. Hatfield used the Hatfield squat. All of those advantages are 100% valid and definitely apply to us as well. Along with those advantages, listed here are other reasons it is advisable to use the Hatfield Squat.
Increase Muscle Hypertrophy
Most squats fail because lifters hit their sticking point, where they will now not overcome the resistance. At this point, your muscles are drained but have not fully exhausted all available muscle fibers. Stopping the set here means cutting it short and missing out on potential gains.
You possibly can extend the set beyond your typical failure point by utilizing your arms for assistance as your legs begin to tire. This helps increase muscle tension and metabolic stress, key drivers of hypertrophy (muscle growth). Constructing muscle relies on accumulating volume, working through a full range of motion, and pushing sets near failure.
The Hatfield squat is a wonderful alternative for achieving these hypertrophy goals. It permits you to:
- Increase the load (more volume) since you should utilize your arms for balance.
- Maintain a full range of motion more easily, due to the reduced balance demands.
- Push through sticking points by helping yourself lift when your legs tire.
In brief, the Hatfield squat enables self-spotting, supplying you with the advantages of forced reps even when you’re training alone. This permits for more productive sets and maximizes muscle growth.
Increase Quadricep Involvement
The barbell back squat goes to hit all the lower body. Nevertheless, as a result of the barbell placement lower on the back, more hip flexion occurs to maintain the load over the ankles. Ultimately, this requires greater involvement of the hip extensors on the posterior of the body.
Training the back side is unquestionably not a foul thing. In truth, developing the glutes and hamstrings is crucial for health and performance and is a critical a part of your overall training.
That said, it is usually a very good idea to rotate major quad-dominant exercises. The protection squat bar allows this in an enormous way since it permits you to load the exercise with heavier loads and more volume while the quads are the foremost movers.
Increase Squat Form And Depth
The Hatfield squat is a fantastic variation to enhance your overall squat form and depth.
The mixture of the protection squat bar and arm assistance makes the Hatfield squat significantly more stable than traditional barbell squats. As you possibly can hold onto a barbell or handles, a lifter can reach optimal depths while keeping good form.
Further, the protection squat bar promotes a more upright torso (study), which naturally allows a lifter to hit deeper depths as a result of less hip flexion.
Due to these advantages, Hatfield squats are a superb option to improve your squatting form. While you return to regular squats in your workouts, you will probably find them way more manageable and your technique more solid.
Overload The Squat
The Hatfield Squat might be used as an overload exercise for skilled lifters. Overloading, on this context, means using heavier weights than you’ll often with the barbell squat.
The important thing difference that enables overloading with the Hatfield squat is that it provides more stability and balance to supply force. Moreover, the handles or safety bar allows a lifter to consider driving up while keeping good form. Further, you possibly can also use the handles to help in standing up from the underside position.
Due to these aspects—reduced balance requirements and the flexibility to leverage the arms for support—lifters can often lift more weight within the Hatfield squat than in the normal back squat.
Bear in mind that when only using the protection squat bar in isolation (without handles), lifters can generally lift more weight with the back squat (but there’s all the time variation between lifters) (study).
Train Around Back Injuries Or Rehab Your Back
Many lifters who use the protection squat bar report that it helps reduce discomfort of their back. This is probably going since the bar’s design encourages a more upright torso than the normal back squat.
The effect is much more pronounced with the Hatfield squat. By utilizing the handles for extra balance, lifters can maintain a good more vertical torso angle than with the protection bar squat.
Consequently, the Hatfield squat is a wonderful variation for reducing stress on the lower back while still allowing for heavy loading, making it a fantastic option for those looking to attenuate lower-back strain during squatting.
How To Program The Hatfield Squat
The Hatfield squat is a singular squat variation that basically has no comparison. Perhaps the belt squat comes the closest when it comes to function however the Hatfield squat resembles the back squat more because the load is placed on the shoulders.
Regardless, while you possibly can technically use any rep scheme with the Hatfield squat, its primary profit is to permit more volume meaning it’s used with lighter weights and better reps – that is assuming you are not using it due to injuries.
Now, it’s also possible to use it to overload the muscles as well. Some people find that using the Hatfield squat with heavier loads helps prepare them to back squat the identical load.
Either way, the Hatfield squat is often utilized in two manners:
- As a second primary squat exercise (i.e. Back squat on Mondays and Hatfield squats on Thursdays)
- As an adjunct movement after the back squat with high reps
After we say “high reps” we mean that some people prefer to use the Hatfield squat when performing 20 rep sets. This could rely on your needs but a standard use is to perform these ultra-high rep.
Final Say On The Hatfield Squat
When you’ve never tried the Hatfield squat, we strongly encourage you to try. From personal experiences, it’s probably the most comfortable exercises we’ve ever done. That is true even when performing lifting heavy loads. It’s almost like using a leg press as a result of the increased stability of the handles except it’s a free weight exercise. It’s smooth, sturdy and powerful thus constructing muscle mass, strength and confidence.
Related: Back Squat Workout Program
