The Hatfield Squat: Combining the Benefits of Free Weights and Machine Training

Powerlifting is a sport of many federations and classifications. As such, lots of lifters can claim to hold world records. In fact, hardly a month goes past without one record or another being broken.

However, one of the most important records in powerlifting was set way back in 1987 when Fred “Dr. Squat” Hatfield became the first person to squat over 1000 pounds in an official competition.

Despite being 45 years old and weighing only 255 pounds, Hatfield squatted an astounding 1008 pounds. Two months later, Dr. Squat bettered his own world record by lifting 1014 pounds. This, at the time, was the heaviest weight squatted irrespective of body weight.

Hatfield, a former US Marine, went on to become a leading expert in strength and conditioning. He was the co-founder and president of the International Sports Sciences Association (ISSA), an organization which certifies fitness trainers from around the world.

In addition, Hatfield coached many top athletes and bodybuilders including boxer Evander Holyfield and Mr. Olympia winner Lee Haney.

Fred Hatfield sadly died of cancer in 2017, but he left a lasting imprint on powerlifting and fitness.

Author of numerous research papers and training and nutrition books, he also invented what has since become known as the Hatfield squat. This exercise undoubtedly played a part in Dr. Squat’s incredible powerlifting feats.

As a veteran personal trainer and former powerlifter, I’m a longtime fan of Fred Hatfield and have many of his books. So, it’s my pleasure to explain how to do the Hatfield squat and integrate this classic exercise into your strength and bodybuilding workouts.

Hatfield Squat Exercise Guide

 

The Hatfield squat builds muscle and strength by allowing you to train with heavier loads or do more reps than usual, leading to bigger, faster gains.

Muscles generate force in three different ways – as they shorten (concentric contractions), as they lengthen (eccentric contractions), and statically (isometric contractions). However, you are stronger eccentrically than you are concentrically, meaning you can lower more weight than you can lift.

Research suggests that eccentric contractions are a critical factor in building muscle and strength (1). As such, emphasizing the lowering part of an exercise, as with Hatfield squats, should enhance your gains.

Also, you are only as strong as your squat sticking point, which usually occurs at the midpoint of your range of motion. This is where the levers are longest, and your muscles are at their most inefficient. So, while you may be able to half-squat 250 pounds, your best full-squat weight will probably be significantly less.

The Hatfield squat addresses both these factors, making every rep you perform potentially more effective.

How to Do Hatfield Squats

To do Hatfield squats, you will need:

• A safety squat bar(SSB)
• A power rack
• A support handle set to around waist height

Steps:

1. Place your safety squat bar in a power rack set to just below shoulder height.
2. Duck under the bar and rest it across your shoulders/upper back.
3. Unrack the bar, step back, and adopt your preferred squat stance.
4. Lightly grip your handrails, brace your core, and lift your chest.
5. Without using your arms, descend smoothly into a deep squat. Keep your torso relatively upright and allow your knees to travel forward to maximally engage your quads.
6. Using your arms for assistance, drive your feet into the floor and stand back up.
7. Reset your core and repeat.
8. Increase how much you use your arms as your set progresses and your legs start to tire more.

Advantages and Benefits of the Hatfield Squat

Does the Hatfield squat deserve a place on your workouts? I think so! But don’t just take my word for it; consider these advantages and benefits and decide for yourself.

Overcome Your Squatting Plateaus

As a former powerlifter, I know how frustrating squatting plateaus can be. Try as you might, you simply cannot improve your one-repetition maximum or pump out even just one more rep.

Hatfield squats are one of the best ways to overcome squat stagnation. They expose your muscles to supramaximal loads during the eccentric part of the lift, leading to new strength increases and renewed progress.

Build More Muscle

Most sets of squats fail because you are unable to overcome your sticking point. While your muscles are fatigued at this juncture, you have not fully exhausted all the available muscle fibers. As such, stopping your set now means it won’t be as productive as it could have been.

Using your arms for assistance as your legs start to tire means you can extend your set beyond your usual failure point. This increase in muscle tension and metabolic stress should lead to enhanced hypertrophy (muscle growth).

In short, Hatfield squats allow you to self-spot, enjoying all the benefits of forced reps even if you train alone.

Better Squatting Technique

Despite being a workout staple, squats are a tricky exercise that some people fail to master. Badly performed squats can cause injuries, and poor form will limit how much weight you can lift.

The combination of a safety squat bar and assistance from the arms means that Hatfield squats feel more stable than conventional barbell squats. They also promote a naturally upright torso and proper knee-over-toe tracking.

As such, Hatfield squats are a great way to perfect your squatting form, and regular squats will feel much more manageable if and when you reintroduce them to your workouts.

Increased Safety

Squats are an awesome exercise. In fact, I often tell my PT clients that a workout without squats is barely a workout at all! That said, squats can also be dangerous, especially when training with heavy weights.

Getting stuck at the bottom of a rep – which powerlifters call being stapled – can cause serious injuries. That’s why you should always do heavy squats in a power rack. Even then, squats can be risky, especially if your form breaks down.

Having your arms for assistance means you can provide mid-rep assistance and maintain proper form even as your muscles begin to tire. You can also use your arms to help you keep your torso more upright, taking stress off your lower back.

Hatfield Squat Drawbacks and Disadvantages

Hatfield squats are a mostly safe and effective exercise. However, there are a couple of cons to consider before you add them to your next leg workout.

Equipment Requirements

You’ll need a safety squat bar and power rack with suitable handles to do Hatfield squats. While this should be no problem if you train in a well-equipped gym, you may not have everything you need if you train at home or in a garage gym. As such, Hatfield squats may be impractical for some exercisers.

That said, there are some home-friendly Hatfield squat variations toward the end of this article. Try ’em – I think you’ll like ’em!

Increased Overload

The ability to lift more weight or do more reps is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it means you can expose your muscles to more stress than usual, resulting in bigger, faster gains.

However, it also means more load on your bones and joints, potentially increasing wear and tear and your risk of injury. You’ll also probably experience more post-workout soreness. Some lifters may find that they need longer to recover after an intense Hatfield squat workout.

So, resist the temptation to use too much weight too soon. Introduce this exercise gradually, increasing your weights in small, manageable increments.  

Related: The ‘Microloading’ Method: How Adding Just 100 Grams Per Week Transformed My Lifts

How to Use Hatfield Squats in Your Workouts

There are two main ways to use Hatfield squats, and the best method depends on your training goals.

For Strength

To build strength with Hatfield squats, you should keep your reps low (1-5 per set) and load the bar with slightly more weight than you can usually handle. How much more depends on your experience, but 2.5 to 5 percent is a good place to start for most lifters.

Descend slowly and smoothly into each rep to maximize eccentric overload, and then use your arms just enough to get up through your sticking point.

Rest 3-5 minutes between sets and do 4-6 sets in total.

Gradually add weight as you get stronger, but never at the expense of proper form or needing to use your arms to control your descent. If your arms are working harder than your legs, you are not doing Hatfield squats correctly.

For Hypertrophy (Muscle Building)

To increase muscle mass with Hatfield squats, perform 3-5 sets of 8-15 reps using the same or slightly more weight than you can usually handle. However, end your sets with a few arm-assisted forced reps to expose your muscles to more tension and metabolic stress. This will result in greater hypertrophy.

Rest 1-2 minutes between sets, and either add more weight or reps to subsequent workouts to maintain your progress.

Hatfield Squat Variations and Alternatives

There are several Hatfield squat variations and alternatives you can use to make your lower body workouts more varied and effective:

Hatfield Box Squat

Box squats are one of the best ways to ensure that you descend to the same depth each rep. A popular powerlifting assistance exercise, box squats also break up the eccentric/concentric cycle, forcing you to work harder to drive up and out of “the hole.” As such, Hatfield box squats are a fantastic strength and power exercise.

Single-Leg Hatfield Squats

This is an excellent option for home exercisers, as it means you don’t need heavy weights, a power rack, or a safety squat bar. Simply do single-leg squats and use your arms for assistance on the ascent. This is a great way to introduce single-leg squats to your workouts. However, try to use your arms less and less over time so you get stronger.

Hatfield Bulgarian Split Squat

Bulgarian split squats are an excellent muscular endurance/hypertrophy exercise. However, because of issues with balance and stability, they’re not usually a good exercise for building maximal strength.

One way to change this is to do Hatfield-style Bulgarian split squats. This exercise provides all the overload you need to build strength one leg at a time. However, balance and stability are no longer something you need to worry about.

Hatfield Good Mornings

Good mornings are an excellent glute, hamstring, and lower back exercise. Yet, done with very heavy weights, they can also be dangerous. Using your arms for stability and assistance makes them a little safer and also means you’ll be able to use heavier loads. It also means you can overload the eccentric portion of the lift, further boosting strength and muscle gains.

Conclusion

Some of the most effective strength and bodybuilding exercises are named after the person who invented them. Examples include:

• Hack squats (George Hackenschmidt)
• Yates rows (Dorian Yates)
• Arnold presses (Arnold Schwarzenegger)
• Pendlay rows (Glen Pendlay)
• Zottman curls (George Zottman)

And now you can add another exercise to this elite list – the Hatfield Squat.

Hatfield squats are one of the most effective ways to overload your legs – either with more weight than you can usually handle or more reps. As such, it’s an excellent exercise for building muscle or strength – it all depends on how you program it.

So, if you are stuck in a leg training rut, maybe it’s time to try Hatfield squats. Invented by arguably one of the best squatters in history, this exercise could be the key to building the leg strength and muscle mass you’ve always dreamed of.

References:

1. Roig M, O’Brien K, Kirk G, Murray R, McKinnon P, Shadgan B, Reid WD. The effects of eccentric versus concentric resistance training on muscle strength and mass in healthy adults: a systematic review with meta-analysis. Br J Sports Med. 2009 Aug;43(8):556-68. doi: 10.1136/bjsm.2008.051417. Epub 2008 Nov 3. PMID: 18981046.

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