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The safety bar doesn't get the respect it deserves. It's often seen as a tool for people with injuries, when in reality it's one of the most valuable pieces of equipment in the whole gym. Use it to improve your lower body strength and add mass to your thighs and glutes.
This special bar has three big advantages, which I want to cover in this article. I'll also show you three exercises to try out, which are among my favourites as a personal trainer in Zurich:
1 – It takes pressure off your shoulders
If you've spent a lot of time bench pressing and squatting, you know that the combined effect puts heavy strain on your shoulders. And even though the back squat isn't an upper body exercise, you still bring your shoulder joints into a position to support the bar and then apply tension to stabilise the weight. That puts a lot of stress on the front and top of your shoulders.
If you don't have enough upper body mobility to do a back squat, your rotator cuff, labrum and biceps tendon pay a high price for your lack of flexibility. And that's exactly what can lead to an injury and lost training time in the long run.
The safety bar solves this problem. It lets you expose your shoulders to less stress, especially when training with high volume. It also removes upper body mobility as a barrier to performing higher-intensity squats. Meanwhile, you can still bench press and do overhead presses pain-free.
2 – It perfects your squats
As you gain experience as a bodybuilder, you still need to make sure you don't forget your quad-dominant training. Focusing early on developing your posterior chain is great, but the more advanced you get, the more it needs to be balanced out with quad-dominant exercises.
To target your quads, your lifts need to put you in a position with a more angled shin, so your knee shifts forward relative to your ankle. That should happen together with a more upright torso, so you're essentially bringing your shoulders over your hips.
This position is hard to achieve with weight on your back. Usually we use front squats for this, since loading the bar at the front requires a more upright posture and keeps you from tipping over.
The problem with front squats is that you can't use nearly as much weight as when the bar is on your back. The safety bar solves this problem by splitting the difference in horizontal displacement between the front and back squat position. This gives you the best of both worlds: an upright torso and the ability to actually load up on weight.
3 – It's practical for tall lifters
Tall lifters often struggle to perform squats correctly. That can come from having to control a longer spine and limbs, or from not being able to use ideal leverage. Tall people usually struggle with squats.
At first, tall lifters feel a bit wobbly when they pick up the safety bar. But once they get used to it, the higher bar position and distributed weight help them stand more upright and better position their hips, spine and upper back.
The 3 toughest exercises with the safety bar
Here I've picked three exercises that are guaranteed to be the toughest you'll do this week. Each one will challenge your body in a different way: muscular endurance, single-leg strength and bilateral strength.
Tempo safety bar squats
This might be the toughest quad-dominant exercise you'll ever do. Instead of lifting weights quickly, you slow down and control the tempo of your lift, even if that turns your 400-pound squat into a 150-pound squat.
Tempo squats stimulate hypertrophy in your slow-twitch, type I fibres, which are often neglected.
Use noticeably less weight than you'd normally use for your squat. Set a timer for 40 to 60 seconds and keep constant tension in your lower body by pulling yourself down, never pausing once during the lift.
Throughout the whole minute, count 3 seconds up and 3 seconds down, and you'll feel a squat burn like never before.
Safety bar front squats
This variation helps those who can't do front squats with a regular barbell. The weight in front forces you to brace your core harder and is a great option for anyone who struggles to control anterior pelvic tilt and lower back extension during squats.
Safety bar Bulgarian split squats
If you never get sore after a lower body session, try this exercise, you're guaranteed to feel it the next day. Using the safety bar for Bulgarian split squats lets you load more weight than you could ever manage with dumbbells.
This lets your thighs, glutes, adductors and quads go through a bigger range of motion than with traditional split squats. Adding the safety bar demands more from your upper back, and the extensor muscles in your chest stabilise the bar on your back.
Strength, mass and a long lifting career
The safety bar shouldn't be the only equipment you use, but it shouldn't be missing either. It's great for adding variety to your training program and making standard lower body lifts less monotonous. Plus, the safety bar can save your lifting career by keeping your shoulders healthy while you add mass and strength to your lower body.
Don't have the headspace for the details of an efficient workout, no motivation, or no time for that much training?
Then I have the right solution for you, with measurable and visible results and minimal time investment. You can sign up here for a free consultation: https://lnkd.in/dQ97pFm