Hack Squat

Muscles worked by the Hack Squat

Primary

GlutesGluteus MaximusQuadsQuadriceps Femoris

Secondary

CalvesGastrocnemiusHamstringsHamstring Muscles

Also called: glute, glutes, gluteus maximus, buttocks, butt, quad.

Equipment

Hack Squat Machine

Also called: hack squat, angled squat, reverse leg press, plate-loaded hack squat, v-squat, v squat.

How to do the Hack Squat

1. Load the hack squat machine and step on, positioning your back and shoulders against the pads.
2. Place your feet shoulder-width on the platform with toes turned out slightly.
3. Unlock the safety handles and lower the sled by bending at the knees and hips.
4. Descend until your thighs are at least parallel to the platform.
5. Drive through your heels to extend the legs and push the sled back to the start.
6. Re-engage the safety handles after your final rep.

Form tips

• Keep your lower back pressed against the pad throughout the movement.
• Placing the feet higher on the platform shifts emphasis to the glutes and hamstrings.
• Control the descent; do not bounce out of the bottom position.

At a glance

Hack Squat in German & Spanish

Descriptions, instructions and tips ship in all three languages in the JSON.

Related exercises

• Barbell Back Squat
• Bodyweight Squat
• Box Squat
• Bulgarian Split Squat
• Dumbbell Front Squat
• Dumbbell Split Squat
• Front Squat
• Goblet Squat

Exercise data (JSON)

The record below is exactly what exercises.json ships for this exercise — names, descriptions, instructions and tips in English, German and Spanish.

{
  "id": "hack-squat",
  "name_en": "Hack Squat",
  "name_de": "Hack Squat",
  "name_es": "Hack Squat",
  "description_en": "A compound lower-body machine exercise on the hack squat sled, targeting the quadriceps through a guided squat pattern.",
  "description_de": "Eine geführte Kniebeuge an der Hack-Squat-Maschine, die vor allem den Quadrizeps durch eine kontrollierte Bewegung auf dem Schlitten belastet.",
  "description_es": "Un ejercicio guiado en la máquina hack squat que trabaja principalmente los cuádriceps mediante un patrón de sentadilla controlado sobre el trineo.",
  "category": "strength",
  "force_type": "push",
  "mechanic": "compound",
  "difficulty": "intermediate",
  "equipment": "hack_squat",
  "body_part": "upper_legs",
  "primary_muscles": [
    "gluteus_maximus",
    "quadriceps"
  ],
  "secondary_muscles": [
    "gastrocnemius",
    "hamstrings"
  ],
  "goals": [
    "hypertrophy",
    "strength"
  ],
  "tags": [
    "lower_back_safe",
    "shoulder_safe",
    "no_axial_load"
  ],
  "variation_group": "squat",
  "is_unilateral": false,
  "is_bodyweight": false,
  "instructions_en": [
    "Load the hack squat machine and step on, positioning your back and shoulders against the pads.",
    "Place your feet shoulder-width on the platform with toes turned out slightly.",
    "Unlock the safety handles and lower the sled by bending at the knees and hips.",
    "Descend until your thighs are at least parallel to the platform.",
    "Drive through your heels to extend the legs and push the sled back to the start.",
    "Re-engage the safety handles after your final rep."
  ],
  "instructions_de": [
    "Lade die Hack-Squat-Maschine und steige ein, Rücken und Schultern gegen die Polsterung.",
    "Stelle die Füße schulterbreit auf der Plattform auf, Zehen leicht nach außen.",
    "Löse die Sicherheitsgriffe und senke den Schlitten durch Beugen von Knien und Hüften.",
    "Steige ab, bis die Oberschenkel mindestens parallel zur Plattform sind.",
    "Drücke mit den Fersen, um die Beine zu strecken und den Schlitten zurückzuschieben.",
    "Raste die Sicherheitsgriffe nach der letzten Wiederholung wieder ein."
  ],
  "instructions_es": [
    "Carga la máquina hack squat y colócate con la espalda y los hombros contra los almohadillados.",
    "Sitúa los pies a la anchura de los hombros sobre la plataforma con los pies ligeramente girados hacia fuera.",
    "Suelta los asideros de seguridad y baja el trineo flexionando rodillas y caderas.",
    "Desciende hasta que los muslos estén al menos paralelos a la plataforma.",
    "Empuja con los talones para extender las piernas y devolver el trineo a la posición inicial.",
    "Vuelve a enganchar los asideros de seguridad al terminar la serie."
  ],
  "tips_en": [
    "Keep your lower back pressed against the pad throughout the movement.",
    "Placing the feet higher on the platform shifts emphasis to the glutes and hamstrings.",
    "Control the descent; do not bounce out of the bottom position."
  ],
  "tips_de": [
    "Halte den unteren Rücken während der gesamten Bewegung gegen die Polsterung gedrückt.",
    "Eine höhere Fußposition auf der Plattform verlagert den Fokus auf Gesäß und hintere Oberschenkel.",
    "Kontrolliere die Absenkphase; nicht aus der Tiefe herausspringen."
  ],
  "tips_es": [
    "Mantén la zona lumbar pegada al almohadillado durante todo el movimiento.",
    "Colocar los pies más arriba en la plataforma desplaza el énfasis hacia glúteos e isquiotibiales.",
    "Controla la bajada; no te impulses desde el punto más bajo."
  ],
  "met": 6.0,
  "images": {
    "flat": {
      "start": "images/flat/hack-squat-start.webp",
      "peak": "images/flat/hack-squat-peak.webp"
    }
  }
}

Fetch just this exercise

const { exercises } = await fetch(
  "https://exercise-dataset.com/exercises.json"
).then(r => r.json());
const ex = exercises.find(e => e.id === "hack-squat");

Free for personal and commercial in-app use with attribution (“Exercise data by RepDB”) — see the license and ready-made attribution snippets. Redistributing the data as a dataset or API is not permitted.