Liftworthy
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Liftworthy

Every exercise ranked by research, by lifters and by results. Find what’s S-tier for your goal, then train it.

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Explore/Quads

Hack Squat

MachineCompoundEasy to learn
Front
Back
Primary Secondary

Works

Quads

Also glutes, adductors

You need

Hack squat

How to do itPictures · 3 steps
Back padPlatform
1Start
Back padPlatform
2Bottom
Main musclesAlso working
  1. 1Feet low-to-mid on the platform
  2. 2Lower until thighs pass parallel
  3. 3Drive through the whole foot

Most common mistake

Feet placed high and short range: easy reps, little quad.

Watch a demo

Good for

  • Ranked #1 for quads and #2 for cycling
  • Keeps the work on the target muscle
  • Loads the muscle while it’s stretched
  • Easy to keep adding weight

Compare with

vs Pendulum Squatvs Safety Bar Squatvs Heels-Elevated Goblet Squat
A
For cycling
#2 of 16
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Research
79
Scored by hand
Results
Soon
From the app
How lifters rate itBe the first
S
A
B
C
D
F
Why research scores it 79
TransferExcellent
Injury protectionGood
PracticalityStrong

Heavy, stable leg strength like the leg press, without balance to manage.

Research behind these criteria

  • Transfer: Seitz et al., 2014 · Markovic, 2007 · Blagrove et al., 2018 · Rønnestad & Mujika, 2014
  • Injury protection: Lauersen et al., 2014 · van Dyk et al., 2019 · Harøy et al., 2019 · Webster & Hewett, 2018
How scores work

Machine taken? Swap to

  • ABulgarian Split SquatDumbbell
  • ATrap Bar DeadliftBarbell
  • AStep-UpDumbbell
  • ALeg PressMachine

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280