Barbell Overhead Split Squat
A step-by-step form guide from the Ægir Iron exercise library: how to do the lift, what to watch for, and the muscles it trains.
- Equipment
- Barbell
This is a technical lift, best learned under a coach’s eye before loading heavy.
HOW TO PERFORM
- Press or jerk the bar overhead with a wide grip and lock the arms, with the bar over the back of the head.
- Step into a long split stance, front foot flat and back heel raised.
- Keep the torso upright and lower straight down until the back knee is just off the floor, holding the bar still overhead.
- Drive up through the front heel, finish the reps, then swap legs.
FORM TIPS
- Keep the bar stacked over the shoulders and hips. If it drifts forward as you lower, push the head through the arms and stay tall.
TARGET MUSCLES
Primary
- Quads
- Glutes
Secondary
- Abs
- Traps
- Lower Back
- Adductors
- Shoulders
- Obliques
- Hamstrings
Log it in Ægir Iron to track your PRs and estimated 1RM, and to see the sets each muscle gets every week. Free for individual lifters.