What Exercise Is Effective for Increasing Squats?

Squats are the first event in powerlifting competitions, an effective lower-body exercise and a good test of lower-body strength. While squats by themselves are a good way to build strength, there are a number of exercises you can perform to improve your squatting performance. These exercises are often labeled as supplementary, or assistance exercises. Select one or more of these exercises and perform them on non-squatting days to increase your squatting power.

  1. Deadlifts

    • Deadlifts are an effective way to strengthen your lower back, glutes and hamstrings. If you tend to fall forward in the squat or have a tendency to round your lower back, deadlifts can help eliminate this problem by strengthening the muscles that are the weak links in the kinetic chain. Deadlifts are not just a good back exercise -- they are also the third lift contested in powerlifting events. The Romanian deadlift, a variation of the regular deadlift, is also an effective squat assistance exercise.

    Bottom-Up Squats

    • If you struggle to stand up out of the bottom position of the squat. known as "getting out of the hole," bottom-up squats may be the solution. Bottom up squats begin from a dead stop. With training, this move will increase your starting strength and help you come out of the hole stronger and more powerfully. Using a squat rack, set the bar so you are in a deep squat position when shouldering the bar. Stand up explosively, then squat back down and rest the bar in the starting position. Pause a second and let the bar come to a complete stop on the squat rack's support pins. Drive up into another rep and repeat for three to five repetitions.

    Leg Press

    • The leg press uses similar muscle and joint actions as squatting, but without the usual lower-back involvement. This leaves you free to focus on working your legs hard without having to worry about balancing a barbell across your back. Because of the simpler and supported movement of leg presses, you can use heavier than normal weights and develop plenty of extra leg strength, which will only help your squat performance.

    Single-Leg Squats

    • Many exercisers have one leg that is stronger than the other. While not uncommon, a significant left-to-right strength imbalance, or vice-versa, can hurt your squat performance. If one leg is stronger than the other, your weight can shift sideways, which is not good for your spine; you may even find that your weak leg actually holds back your squatting. To remedy strength imbalances, perform single-leg exercises such as the single-leg squat. Work both legs equally so your weak leg gains strength and catches up with your strong leg. This may take many weeks of training, but once your legs are equally developed, your squat performance should increase.