I partially tore my rotator cuff in both shoulders years ago so I am unable to hold a bar behind my upper back due to flexibility.
Are there any exercises or stretching I can do to get me to comfortably hold the bar behind my neck/back?
tagging in @FlatsFarmer as he usually has some good advice on stretching and mobility.
Is there any reason why you feel you need to resolve this and squat using a regular bar ? Do you plan to compete in a sport that required this ?
If not an SSB (safety squat bar) will give you all of the benefits with none of the shoulder issues.
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Not really a need but a wish. I use the Rouge hip belt squat machine in my gym and love it. Just miss the back squat.
The body will adapt to the demands you place it under. Cuff tears heal over time as well. There’s not reason why you can’t slowly regain the strength and ROM to back squat again, and the process to get there is pretty simple:
- Start light
- Build volume over time
- Add a bit of weight
- Repeat, slowly
Don’t expect squats to feel perfect straight away, and don’t be discouraged if progress is slow. You’ll be able to get there 
Some people will find extra mobility work useful. @flatsfarmer is all over that
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In your situation I’d probably do them super light as @j4gga2 said above. Work up slowly. There are plenty of other exercises you can use for these muscle groups so don’t worry about having to use such a light weight until you can get some ROM back in your shoulder joint. Whilst doing this also spend some time intensely learning various shoulder mobility routines that you can add to your workouts.
A friend of mine used straps as a makeshift safety bar squat until he felt comfortable to completely remove them. He was also seeing a physio to help with his shoulder during this time though.
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Thank…problem is I don’t have the ROM to even hold a broom stick behind my head. I have to hold it as wide as my arms can reach and that only gets the broom stick behind my neck.
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Thanks, I’ll definitely have to give this a try.
I guess I would start with this move from Wendler.
"On my chin-up bar, I hung a sled strap that has two looped ends. Through these looped ends, I hung a 45-pound barbell.
I grabbed the barbell with a narrow grip, flexed my triceps, and walked forward until the barbell was overhead. I pulled the barbell overhead and squeezed my traps and held it there for a few seconds before slowly returning to the starting position, making sure to keep the triceps flexed and arms locked.
On week 5, I did this 1-2 times per day for sets of 5 to 10 reps. On week 6, I did the same routine, but once I got to the top I’d lower the barbell (as if I was lowering a press) until I felt pain. At that point, I’d press the barbell back up into the straps and hold it. I did sets of 5 reps of this modified press. Again, I’d do the modified press 1-2 times per day for 1-3 sets of 5 reps."
And then something like Serratus Wall Slides
You’ll have to rebuild the Shoulder Blade Protraction motion in your shoulders, to get your elbows up under the bar.
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No additional advice, just offering some “dittos”: @j4gga2 and @FlatsFarmer are, hands-down, my go-to’s here; the former for athletic programming, the latter for all things that just need fixing.
My own personal default lies along the lines of @simo74: if I can’t do the thing I want, I just find a way to get the effect I want. I love the SSB. When I do back squat (my wife started working at a gym that doesn’t have an SSB, for instance), I now take my thumbs and pinkies off the bar. I forget who told me to do that (maybe the aforementioned Flats), but that made a world of difference. Maybe something to try as you work your way back. I also keep the bar really high.
Are you doing any pressing? You may not be because of the injury. If you are, though, reordering my days so squats come before pressing helped a lot. Squats irritate my shoulders, but they don’t stay tight for days after; pressing keeps them angry so they get even more cranky if I try to squat after.
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Thanks so much @FlatsFarmer I’ll also give this a try.
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Thanks as well @TrainForPain. I am able to do any type of pressing with little or no pain. The smallest hand adjustment makes a huge difference.
I’m just not able to get a bar behind my neck for back squats.
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Good luck man!
I agree with the other guys that there are a lot of cool bars these days that are way easier on your shoulders than the straight bar.
If your gym is tricked out enough to have a belt squat, you might have a Cambered Bar or a Bow Bar or something cool laying around.
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Some mobility stuff will almost definitely be a big help then
If I were in your position, I’d start with a super wide grip on the barbell and practice sets of 3-5 for 10-15 minutes. It will feel dog 
at first, but as you warm-up, your range will slowly improve
Over time, try to bring your grip narrower
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Thanks again everyone for the great suggestions.
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Have you ever tried these? I love the SSB, and don’t currently have one at the gym, but this version looks unwieldy. I’ll still give it my own shot, but I’m also curious your experience?
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I can’t say I have, no. The garage gym circles on youtube seem to have all kinds of homemade contraptions for mimicking the SSB. This T-Nation uploaded video came up in my recommended not long after linking to that original vid. The T-Nation seal of approval is always welcome. I’ll be interested to see how you get on!
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Thank you, sir!
That much forward lean defeats much of the value, in my opinion, but I do see how it at least lets him drop his elbows down and forward.
Also, I rarely, rarely, say this, but that gentleman in particular actually tends to reduce a concept’s credibility for me. Different strokes, and I am but a single opinion.
I didn’t mean to ask your opinion and then shoot it down - sorry if it came off that way!
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I feel like a lot of folks forget that a SSB is a CAMBERED bar with handles: not a barbell with handles. That camber is really pretty crucial to a SSB being an SSB.
This is more akin to Dave Drapper’s “Top Squat”
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Great point. I got to use a spider bar a couple times, which is basically just a much longer drop on the camber and longer handles; it’s the SSB-est SSB and it’s all about the camber.
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No worries, it didn’t come across that way at all.
I wasn’t actually suggesting it as a replacement for a SSB anyway, but as a way to continue squatting with a bar on your back until mobility returns. I would be incredibly surprised if anyone uses this method to push any serious weight. Obviously it’s not close enough to the real thing. As a way to continue squatting during rehab? I feel it can work well.
When I couldn’t squat for a period I actually stood on 2-3 plates and did deep trap bar squats. The OP was asking how he can comfortably hold a bar on his back though.
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