Just had to sound off real quick. Just started doing box squats today. Just got back from the gym. This is what has been missing in my routine for the past 5 years. And I’ve been doing this thing for 5 years. Enough said, do box squats. Props to Westside for the article.
Right on! And another benefit, in my opinion, is that you are less likely to get hurt doing box squats than regular or ass-to-the-ground squats.
I also just started box squats. First day was Friday. I’m a believer. They feel great. You can really EXPLODE off the box and drive hard. It seems much easier to keep from leaning forward coming out of the hole. Also nails the hammies much more.
Did you guys build your own boxes or did you improvise with the equipment in the gym? Because my gym doesn’t have a box, but I’d love to give these a shot.
i built one. fairly easy to do. build a low one and you can add 45 pound plates or plywood, mats, etc to make it higher.
you’ll enjoy your box squats even more when you start using bands for extra resistance.
Wait…wait…wait. I’m pretty sure I know what box squats are, can someone confirm though??
I used one of those steppers with stages for my box. Seems strong enough right now and it’s convenient. Eventually I’ll build one.
Video:
http://www.bootydown.com/freaks/images/darinsboxsquat.rm
Article by Louie Simmons:
Read “Squatting from Head to Toe” by Dave Tate here at T-mag if you don’t know what they are.
What do your splits/routines look like when incorporating box squats. I’m thinking of going back to the Poliquin 5 day rolling(legs,chest&back,arms) type routine. I feel that if I tried to incorporate them into a King type protocol of ham/quad splits my legs may get overtrained quickly. Whaddya think?
I love the box squat. I wish I had been doing them for the 20+ years I have been lifting. Excellent for building strength, for dialing in proper form, and for additional work on the hams/glutes. I have lower back issues that prevent me from doing deadlifts and front squats, but adding BB hack squats and box squats has brought new life to my legs day. I like using the 1-6 principle with box squats, but I prefer using more of a 2-8 rep scheme. I don’t feel a single heavy lift sets the stage well enough for the lighter additional sets, and I like those to be in the 6-8 range. Anyhow, thanks to T for continuing to share such great advice, and for the T community who continues to share their valuable experiences for others to learn from.
Dubs you can still split up the quads and hams on different days and do box squats on hip/ham day and pick another type of squat such as front squat to do on quad dom. day. Westside guys sometimes squat twice a week with extremely heavy weights as well as doing many extra workouts (sled dragging, reverse hyper, glute ham) with no problem and o-lifters squat about every day with no problem. If you do the box squat correctly it doesnt have much of any effect on the quadriceps so if you’re worried about overtraining quads they will still be fresh for your quad hypertrophy workouts. To give you an idea a couple of years ago I had a case quadriceps tendonitis so bad in my knee at one point I couldn’t even do a one legged leg extension with 30 lbs or bend down into a regular squat more then 6 inches due to the pain but I could box squat with no problem at all. If you’re concerned with overtraining your posterior chain other then the lower back I have never heard of anyone overtraining glutes/hams although I suppose it could happen. Ironically the glutes and hams being a fast twitch muscle group tend to respond very well to a high frequency of training.
I use a large size plastic beer cooler. It seems to be just the right height for me.