Barbell Bench Squat (With chains)

QuadricepsBarbellIntermediate

The Barbell Bench Squat with chains enhances your squat by adding variable resistance. This exercise targets your lower body while engaging your core for stability.

  1. Set up a barbell on a squat rack at shoulder height.
  2. Attach chains to the barbell, ensuring they hang freely.
  3. Position yourself under the bar, resting it on your upper back.
  4. Unrack the bar and step back, positioning your feet shoulder-width apart.
  5. Lower your body into a squat, keeping your chest up and back straight.
  6. Drive through your heels to return to the starting position.

How to perform the Barbell Bench Squat (With chains)

  1. Set up. Set up in a stable, balanced starting position appropriate for the Barbell Bench Squat (With chains) using your barbell.
  2. Brace and execute. Brace your core, control the descent, and move through a full pain-free range of motion while emphasizing your quadriceps.
  3. Reset. Reverse the movement under control and reset between repetitions, keeping your form crisp on every rep.

Coaching cues

  • Move with intent — every rep should feel deliberate, not rushed.
  • Drive force through your quadriceps rather than momentum.
  • Keep your breathing steady: exhale on the hard part, inhale on the reset.

Common mistakes

  • Using too much weight and losing positional control.
  • Cutting the range of motion short and missing the target muscle.
  • Letting your spine round or hyperextend instead of staying neutral.

Detailed cues, common mistakes, and demonstration video are available in the Fitly app.

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