Overhead Squat

The overhead squat is a barbell squat in which you hold the bar overhead with locked arms while you squat down and stand back up. It builds leg strength like any squat, but it also demands shoulder stability, a strong midsection, and good balance.

Start with your feet about shoulder-width apart, or wherever you usually feel strongest in a squat. Take the bar with a wide grip so that when it is overhead, your arms are vertical or slightly behind your ears. Elbows stay locked, armpits face forward, and the bar sits over the middle of your feet. Brace your core and keep your chest tall before you begin.

Initiate the squat by pushing your hips back and bending your knees at the same time. Keep the bar directly over your feet as you descend, not drifting forward. Squat as low as you can control while keeping your heels down and your back neutral. Drive through your whole foot to stand, finishing with your hips and knees fully extended and the bar still stable overhead.

Take a breath in and brace your stomach, sides, and lower back before you start each rep. Hold that pressure on the way down and either exhale slowly as you stand or reset at the top. If overhead squatting with a barbell is too much, start with a PVC pipe or empty barbell, or practice a goblet squat to build squat depth and core control. To make it harder, add small weight increases only if you can keep the bar stacked over your feet with no forward drift or heel lift.

Fault: The bar drifts forward in front of your body. Fix: Actively pull the bar apart and push your head through your arms so the bar stays over your mid-foot from start to finish.

Fault: Your heels rise off the floor or your chest collapses at the bottom. Fix: Widen your stance slightly, turn your toes out a little, and focus on sitting between your thighs while keeping your core braced.

Fault: Your elbows bend or your shoulders shrug up during the squat. Fix: Lock your elbows hard and turn your armpits forward before you descend; if you cannot hold the position, lower the weight or use a PVC pipe until the position feels solid.

Fault: Your lower back rounds or your pelvis tucks under at the bottom. Fix: Only squat as deep as you can while keeping a neutral spine; pause slightly higher and build depth over time with practice and mobility work.