Is the barbell or dumbbell split squat better?

The barbell lets you load the movement far more heavily because your grip no longer limits the weight. Dumbbells are easier to set up and to drop if you lose your balance, so they suit lighter work and newer lifters. Many programs use both.

What is the difference between a split squat and a lunge?

In a split squat your feet stay planted for the whole set and you move straight up and down, while in a lunge such as the Barbell Lunge you step into and out of the stance on every rep. Staying planted makes the split squat easier to balance and easier to load.

How long should my stance be?

Start with the feet about one leg length apart, so the front heel stays flat and the back knee can reach just above the floor. A study of barbell split squats in 20 physically active young men found that lengthening the stance from half a leg length to 1.2 leg lengths raised the peak hip extension load by about 15% and lowered the peak knee extension load by about 10%.

Should my back knee touch the floor?

Lower until the back knee hovers just above the floor, or lightly touches a pad if you use one as a depth target. Dropping onto the floor under a loaded bar bruises the knee and takes tension off the legs.

Can it replace the back squat?

It can stand in for it when heavy two-legged squatting is not an option, since each leg works hard with a much lighter bar on your back. It trains a different, single-leg skill, though, so a lifter who wants a bigger back squat still needs to practice the Barbell Squat.

Barbell Split Squat

What Is the Barbell Split Squat?

Barbell Split Squat is a compound exercise that primarily targets the quads and glutes and also works the adductors, hamstrings and the muscles that hold the trunk upright. It is an intermediate-level movement performed in a fixed split stance with a barbell resting across the upper back, and both feet stay planted for the whole set.

The split squat is the most stable member of the lunge family, and carrying the load on your back instead of in your hands takes grip out of the equation. That makes this version the one to reach for when single-leg work needs to get heavy, well past the dumbbells most people can hold. Training each leg on its own also shows up side-to-side differences in strength and control that a two-legged squat can hide.

In strength programs it usually follows the main squat or deadlift as an accessory lift, and it is a staple in athletic programs because running, jumping and changing direction all happen with one foot ahead of the other. Most lifters use it for sets of about 6 to 12 reps per leg.

The front leg does most of the work, with the quads straightening the knee and the glutes and adductors extending the hip. A longer stance shifts more of the effort toward the hip, while a shorter one keeps it on the quads. The back leg is not just along for the ride: it holds you steady on the ball of the foot while the front of its hip is stretched. Compared with the Barbell Lunge, you never step in or out of the stance, so balance is easier and the load can go higher.

It suits lifters who are comfortable with the Dumbbell Split Squat and with holding a bar on their back in the Barbell Squat. If balance under a bar is the problem, build up with the dumbbell version first, since dumbbells can simply be dropped if you lose your footing.

Muscles Worked

MuscleActivation

Gluteus Maximus: Primary
Vastus Lateralis: Primary
Vastus Medialis: Primary
Adductor Magnus: High
Rectus Femoris: High
Biceps Femoris: Medium
Erector Spinae: Medium
Gluteus Medius: Medium
External Oblique: Low
Soleus: Low

Instructions

Set the bar in a squat rack at about upper-chest height and set the safety arms just below where the bar will sit at the bottom of a rep.
Step under the bar and rest it across the muscles of your upper back, gripping it just outside your shoulders with your elbows pointing down.
Stand up to lift the bar off the hooks and take two small steps back, feet hip-width apart.
Step one foot forward about one leg length, keeping the feet hip-width apart side to side.
Plant the front foot flat, pointing forward, and rise onto the ball of the back foot with the back heel lifted.
Brace your core, lift your chest and keep your torso tall under the bar.
Bend both knees and lower straight down until the back knee is just above the floor and the front thigh is about parallel to it.
Keep the front heel down and the front knee tracking over the middle toes as you lower.
Push through the whole front foot to stand back up, keeping both feet in place.
Finish all reps on one leg, step the feet together, then step the other foot forward and match the reps before walking the bar back into the rack.

Common Mistakes

Tightrope stance
Lining the feet up one behind the other makes the bar sway side to side, so keep them about hip-width apart as if standing on two train tracks.
Stance too short
A cramped stance lifts the front heel and pushes the knee far forward, so lengthen it until the front heel stays flat at the bottom.
Bar on the neck
Resting the bar on the bony top of the spine is painful and unstable, so set it on the muscles of the upper back with the elbows pointing down.
Front knee caving inward
Letting the knee drift toward the midline stresses the inside of the knee, so keep it tracking over the middle toes.
Dropping onto the back knee
Crashing the back knee into the floor or bouncing off it bruises the knee and takes tension off the legs, so lower under control until it hovers just above the floor.
Torso tipping forward
Letting the chest drop under the bar shifts load to the lower back and pulls you off balance, so keep the chest up and the torso tall.

Injuries

Barbell Split Squat is a medium risk exercise when performed with proper technique. The front knee takes most of the strain, and the bar on your back adds a hazard the dumbbell version does not have: if you lose your balance, you cannot simply let the weight go.

A stance that is too short lifts the front heel and drives the knee far forward, which loads the front of the knee, and a front knee that caves inward stresses its inner side. Dropping hard onto the back knee bruises it, and tipping the chest forward or overarching to stay upright can pinch the lower back. A bar set too high on the neck presses on the spine instead of resting on the upper back muscles.

Set up in a squat rack with the safety arms just below where the bar sits at the bottom of a rep, and keep the feet hip-width apart so the stance does not wobble. Start light while the stance and balance settle. If balance or the bar is the problem, regress to the Dumbbell Split Squat, and progress by adding load, slowing the descent or moving to a rear-foot-elevated version such as the Dumbbell Bulgarian Split Squat.

Stop if you feel sharp pain in either knee, pain at the front of the knee that builds with each rep, a pinch deep in the hip or pain in the lower back. Rack the bar and rest if your balance starts to go before the set is over.

Overview

Primary Focus: Quads and glutes
Equipment: Barbell
Modality: Strength
Difficulty: Intermediate

Alternative Exercises

Other Names for the Barbell Split Squat

The Barbell Split Squat is also known as:

Barbell Static Lunge
Barbell Stationary Lunge

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Is the barbell or dumbbell split squat better?: The barbell lets you load the movement far more heavily because your grip no longer limits the weight. Dumbbells are easier to set up and to drop if you lose your balance, so they suit lighter work and newer lifters. Many programs use both.
Q: What is the difference between a split squat and a lunge?: In a split squat your feet stay planted for the whole set and you move straight up and down, while in a lunge such as the Barbell Lunge you step into and out of the stance on every rep. Staying planted makes the split squat easier to balance and easier to load.
Q: How long should my stance be?: Start with the feet about one leg length apart, so the front heel stays flat and the back knee can reach just above the floor. A study of barbell split squats in 20 physically active young men found that lengthening the stance from half a leg length to 1.2 leg lengths raised the peak hip extension load by about 15% and lowered the peak knee extension load by about 10%.
Q: Should my back knee touch the floor?: Lower until the back knee hovers just above the floor, or lightly touches a pad if you use one as a depth target. Dropping onto the floor under a loaded bar bruises the knee and takes tension off the legs.
Q: Can it replace the back squat?: It can stand in for it when heavy two-legged squatting is not an option, since each leg works hard with a much lighter bar on your back. It trains a different, single-leg skill, though, so a lifter who wants a bigger back squat still needs to practice the Barbell Squat.