Adapting on the fly was key to Dorian Yates‘ success as a bodybuilder, and that mentality hasn’t changed in retirement. In a YouTube video from May 16, 2026, the bodybuilding legend explained why he favors the hack squat over barbell squats. In addition, he called the Smith machine squat an effective alternative.
In the 1990s, Yates cemented his all-time great résumé, defeating mainstays of the Men’s Open, including Shawn Ray, Flex Wheeler, and Kevin Levrone. Before calling it a career, “The Shadow” earned six Mr. Olympia titles and managed to retire on top, a feat rarely seen in today’s era.
Despite injuries, Yates has remained active beyond the stage, with a renewed focus on mobility and longevity. He reintroduced Pilates into his routine and boasts a shredded six-pack at 64. While leg training looks different from his prime, Yates still approaches it with intensity and precision.
Dorian Yates Reveals Why He Favors the Hack Squat over Barbell Squats in Retirement
In the video, Yates highlighted that the hack squat allows for more depth than a traditional barbell squat.
“The squat or the free squat, barbell squat, it’s a compound exercise, obviously, where you’re using the spinal muscles, glutes, quads, hamstrings, and you’re probably hitting parallel or maybe a bit below, but with a hack squat, we can go absolutely extreme depth, lower stance, and especially for you, because when you squat you’re quite wide.”
He added that narrow stance hack squats build the medialis and vastus, whereas a wider stance taxes the adductors more.
“So when you’re going hack squat, and you’re narrow, and you’re going right down to the bottom. So a bit more emphasis on the medialis and close together on the vastus, where if you’re out here, you’re using adductors a lot more because you’re using your inner thigh and glutes more.”
Yates suffered an injury from free squatting and admitted that Smith machine squats have been an effective alternative:
“So I see it as distinctively different exercises. The only ones I would alternate is like the second exercise, which is a compound exercise.
Free squat, leg press, or possibly a squat on a Smith machine. As you all know, I got injured doing free squats, so I kind of had to look for an alternative. The Smith machine was a good one for me,” shared Dorian Yates.
Yates has long sworn by a less-is-more training philosophy. He trains with weights just twice a week, but makes each set count. Still sporting conditioned legs in retirement, his squat preferences appear to have paid off.
