WhatWorksWhat.
Quads

Hack Squat

Pure quad load - no balance, no back, just legs.

Complexity · Lowhypertrophybeginner+Selectorized machine
Check Your Form
  • Glutes
  • Quads
  • Quads - Deep quad
  • Quads - Outer quad
  • Middle quad
  • Outer quad
  • Inner quad (teardrop)
  • Deep quad

PrimarySecondary

What it hits

Parts of the target muscle.

  • Middle quad

    Not hit

    Rectus femoris - crosses hip, best hit when hip is extended (sissy squat, leg ext).

  • Outer quad

    Hit

    Vastus lateralis - outer sweep.

  • Inner quad (teardrop)

    Not hit

    Vastus medialis - pops with full depth.

  • Deep quad

    Hit

    Vastus intermedius - underneath, always involved.

The movement

Get it right, not roughly right.

Optimal form

2:20· Colossus Fitness

How To PROPERLY Hack Squat With Proper Form

Bottom (parallel)

Lockout

Shoulders under the pads, feet shoulder-width and slightly forward. Lower until thighs are well past parallel. Drive up by extending the knees, no hip thrust.

Common mistakes

  • Feet too far forward - turns into a quad-only seated press.
  • Coming out of the bottom by hip-thrusting through the pads.

Where you should feel it

Pure quad load - no balance, no back, just legs.

Injury risk · 3/10

Variations

Same movement, moved emphasis.

Ranked by how directly each variation still trains quads. 80%+ means the target barely changes. Below 60%, the emphasis has meaningfully shifted — useful for variety, but less precise for the specific part. The label calls it at a glance.

  • Single-leg hack squat

    One leg.

    100% on target

    On target

    Same target, minor adjustment.

  • Reverse hack squat

    Facing the pad.

    95% on target

    On target

    More glute.

Compare with another exercise

Cool-down

Worked it. Walk it back down.

A couple of minutes here pays back in soreness avoided tomorrow. Browse the full library.

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