Squat Jerk

How to do the Squat Jerk

1. Standing with the weight racked on the front of the shoulders, begin with the dip. With your feet directly under your hips, flex the knees without moving the hips backward. Go down only slightly, and reverse direction as powerfully as possible. Drive through the heels create as much speed and force as possible, and be sure to move your head out of the way as the bar leaves the shoulders.
2. At this moment as the feet leave the floor, the feet must be placed into the receiving position as quickly as possible. In the brief moment the feet are not actively driving against the platform, the athlete"s effort to push the bar up will drive them down. The feet should move forcefully to just outside the hips, turned out as necessary. Receive the bar with your body in a full squat and the arms fully extended overhead.
3. Keeping the bar aligned over the front of the heels, your head and chest up, drive throught heels of the feet to move to a standing position. Carefully return the weight to floor.

Muscles worked

Role	Muscles
Primary	quads
Secondary	calves, glutes, hamstrings, shoulders, triceps
Equipment	barbell
Difficulty	expert
Type	compound

No barbell? Train the same muscles with these

Ordered by how likely you are to own the 6 options.

Bodyweight Walking Lunge Bodyweight Freehand Jump Squat Bodyweight Bodyweight Squat Bodyweight Squats - With Bands Resistance Bands Dumbbell Lunges Dumbbell Dumbbell Rear Lunge Dumbbell

Easier than the Squat Jerk

Same movement pattern, lower entry difficulty — work up from here.

Goblet Squat beginner · Kettlebell Barbell Squat beginner · Barbell Barbell Walking Lunge beginner · Barbell

Superset the Squat Jerk with

Opposing hamstrings work — alternate sets without extra rest.

Power Clean hamstrings Romanian Deadlift hamstrings Snatch Pull hamstrings Stiff-Legged Barbell Deadlift hamstrings

Common questions

What muscles does the Squat Jerk work?

The Squat Jerk primarily works the quads, with the calves, glutes, hamstrings, shoulders, and triceps as secondary movers. Goblet Squat, Kettlebell Pistol Squat, and One-Arm Overhead Kettlebell Squats train the same muscle, across 9 equipment types.

What equipment do you need for the Squat Jerk?

A Barbell. Without a barbell, Bodyweight Walking Lunge, Freehand Jump Squat, and Bodyweight Squat train the same muscle, and 27 of the catalogue's options for this muscle need no equipment.

Is the Squat Jerk suitable for beginners?

It is rated expert. Start with Goblet Squat, Barbell Squat, and Barbell Walking Lunge and work up.

Where should the Squat Jerk go in a workout?

Early — the Squat Jerk is compound, working 6 muscle groups, so run it first or second while you are fresh, then superset Power Clean and Romanian Deadlift later.

Similar exercises

Goblet Squat Kettlebell Kettlebell Pistol Squat Kettlebell One-Arm Overhead Kettlebell Squats Kettlebell Barbell Full Squat Barbell Barbell Lunge Barbell Barbell Squat Barbell