Key Takeaways
- Most men can front squat between 80 and 120 pounds.
- The front squat strength standards will differ from person to person depending on their biology.
- The front squat works exactly the same muscles as the back squat.
Most of us hate squatting, and most of us who do squat usually deeply dislike dropping down into a front squat. Why? Because they’re hard!
If that’s the case, they should be pretty good, right? Well, let’s first look at how much weight you should be able to front squat and how you compare against the rest…
But the quick answer to our main question is: you should be able to squat 80–120 pounds on average, though this varies based on your training history, genetics, and other factors.
How Much Should I Front Squat?
It’ll come as no surprise that most scientists don’t really care how much the average human can lift, let alone front squat. There’s no real money in it, and while sports development is worthy of research, the number of published papers looking at specific movements is slim.
So, let’s start with the more elite among us.
A study published in 2020 looked at the “Relationship Between Physical Characteristics and Maximal Strength in Men.” They specifically looked at powerlifters and football players.
Weight:
- Powerlifters: 83.2 ± 12.4 kg
- Football players: 111.8 ± 23.0 kg
Body Fat %:
- Powerlifters: 17.5 ± 6.7
- Football players: 19.6 ± 6.9
Squat:
- Powerlifters: 199.9 ± 32.8 kg
- Football players: 229.6 ± 29.8 kg
Squat Wilks (measurement of how well you squat based on your weight)
- Powerlifters: 134.4 ± 14.6
- Football players: 137.1 ± 12.3
So, as you can see, the strongest among us are squatting somewhere between 2.05 and 2.4 kg per kg of body weight. The strongest among us — Ray Orlando Williams — is squatting 2.99 kg per kg of body weight (490 kg at 164 kg). That’s a huge chunk of humans.
Here he is squatting 1080 pounds in 2019:
Taking that in mind and looking at some of the statistics you can find online (not really great citations), it’s estimated that the average man can front squat between 80 and 120 pounds.
But there are various factors that influence this, so let’s have a look at some of those now!
Front Squat Strength Standards: Factors
As mentioned, your strength training will be massively influenced by your own biology. Those who’ve been lifting weights for a very long time will know that the squat variation you choose will either make or break… you.
Ask someone with long femurs to squat ass-to-grass, and all you get is someone building muscle in their lower back. Ask someone with short femurs to do a deadlift, and they might struggle, while taller people have better leverages for pulling a deadlift.
So, which factors influence your front squat?
- Length of femur bones is probably the biggest factor you’ll come across. If you have longer femur bones (thigh bones), you’ll have a really hard time hitting depth without overloading your spinal erectors dramatically.
- Length of the tibia and fibula bones (the lower bones of the leg) is also going to influence the starting position of your squat until your final position. Longer lower limbs will make squatting (and most quad movements) a lot harder.
- Glute strength will be another huge factor when it comes to squatting. Your squat technique will depend on how strong your glutes are, and weak glutes will lead to you folding your upper back muscles and possible injury.
- Ankle mobility is a part of squatting that most people just forget about. Poor ankle mobility will rob you of depth, and doing so over and over can even lead to inflammation and possible injury.
- Your biological sex will obviously play a huge role, too. Men have more testosterone than females. Testosterone and dihydrotestosterone are linked to increased muscle mass. Men have more muscle than women, and they have a greater capacity to build more muscle mass as well.
- Other factors will also play a role, such as your body weight, how much you can lift (or are lifting), whether you’re using proper form, and how strong you are overall regarding your core and upper back.
Each of these will play a role in almost all of the squat variations — even the leg press, for that matter. Squat standards will say you need to hit depth and you need to be squatting with a certain squat technique, but if any of these are limiting factors, you’ll struggle.
How To Front Squat More Weight
By now, you’re probably asking how to squat more — particularly front squatting more. Well, firstly, let’s take a look at that study mentioned earlier on. In it, they found that the front squat and the back squat will target the same muscles, and the only difference was that you get similar activation with the front squat using less weight.
This means while you’d perhaps need 200 pounds on the back squat, you might only need 160 pounds on the front squat — remember why I said it was a lot harder?
So, how do we get it stronger?
Squat More
Basics. To get good at squatting, you need to squat more. That’s a no-brainer. Most people want a way around that or a ‘magic skill’ to do, but in the end, you need to be doing a lot of front squats to get better at them.
Get Your Glutes Stronger
As mentioned, the glutes are the make or break of your squat, and they’re the largest muscles in the body. Doing some isolation movements for your glutes will be essential to build a big ‘ol squat — front or back.
Build a Dense Core
The core is known as the ‘gearbox’ of the body, and any Olympic Weightlifting coach will tell you that a weak core will just lead to poor squat technique. Worst case scenario, it might even lead to injuries.
Do Other Exercises, Too
Doing squat alternatives — like the Bulgarian split squat, the Goblet squat, and the box squat — might all help you build muscle and technique for the front squat as well.
And lastly, build muscle mass!
Front Squat Training Program
Here’s a quick program you can follow to improve your own squat standards. This program is specifically designed to increase the front squat, so you’ll be training the legs a lot.
Workout Program
Monday: Heavy Squats, Shoulders, and Core
- Front Squat: 1 x 5, 1 x 5, 1 x 3
- Bulgarian Split Squats: 3 x 15
- Seated Hamstring Curl: 2 x 10 – 15
- Adductor Machine: 3 x 8 – 12
- Smith Machine Overhead Press: 3 x 6 – 15
- Lateral Raises: 3 x 10 – 15
- Weighted Plank: 2 x To Failure
Tuesday: Back and Biceps
- Assisted Pull-Ups: 3 x 15
- Dumbbell Rows: 3 x 12 – 15
- Chest-Supported Upper Back Row: 4 x 8 – 15
- Dumbbell Curls: 2 x 10
- Barbell Curls: 2 x 5 (3/1 Tempo)
Wednesday: Off
Thursday: Heavy Deadlifts and Light Squats
- Deadlifts: 1 x 8, 1 x 5, 2 x 3
- High Bar Squat: 3 x 15
- Leg Extensions: 3 x 8
- Glute Side Raises: 3 x 12 – 15
- Leg Raises: 2 x To Failure
Thursday: Off
Saturday: Chest, Triceps, and Side Delts
- Incline Barbell Bench Press: 3 x 10
- Flat Dumbbell Flye: 2 x 12 – 15
- Weighted Dips: 3 x 8
- Skullcrushers: 3 x 8 x 15
- Single-Arm Overhead Tricep Extensions: 3 x 12 – 15
- Lateral Raises: 3 x 12 – 15
Sunday: Off
Diet Plan
As always, you also need to be following the correct diet. Simply put, you cannot out-train a bad diet.
Here are a few tips to get you going:
- Eat slightly more calories than your maintenance (which you can calculate here), around 200 – 300 more.
- Eat at least 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight.
- Split the remainder of your calories between carbs and fats.
You can also opt to use a few supplements like creatine, whey protein, and pre-workout, which might give you a slight edge and get you closer to your goals a wee bit faster.
Front Vs. Back Squat – Which Should You Do?
If you’re experienced in the strength world, you’ll know that the back squat is the unit of measure for leg strength (along with the deadlift).
But why is this?
It all comes down to mobility. The back squat requires far less mobility in the shoulders and back compared to the front squat. This means that while the front squat is a viable option to measure strength, it certainly isn’t optimal.
Have you seen the strongest men on the planet? Mobile isn’t exactly a word that springs to mind. How boring would it be if you rocked up to a squatting competition and the results were simply, “The fourth strongest guy won only because he was the only one who could actually get under the bar?”
The back squat is then the preferred squat to use if you’re actually a strength athlete. You can still use the front squat as an accessory exercise, and, in fact, most do.
Unless you’re a strength athlete, you shouldn’t place one above the other. Both are great tools for building muscle mass and strength. And doing both would not only allow you to progress on all fronts, but it might also show you if you have shortcomings in your body (like an iffy glute).
Because one needs less weight to stimulate the same muscles (and the same amount), you can use the front squat when you’re trying to improve recovery or when you’re taking a ‘chill week’ — otherwise known as a deload week.
How Much Should I Front Squat?
As mentioned in the beginning, your strength will be based on more factors than just how much muscle mass you have. Bone length, core stability, and mental drive will all make a huge difference, and you might not even know it.
Typically, we estimate men should be able to front squat somewhere between 80 and 120 pounds, but even if you’re slightly under, just assess why and fix it. That’s what strength training is all about, after all.
Nine times out of ten, it’s more than just ‘getting stronger.’