I know we are all used to having a good, reliable and strong squat rack at our gym, but let’s look at some of the alternatives, like squat stands. Maybe you would ask why searching for alternatives when you can just use a squat rack? OK, fair enough, but most of the gyms are not commercial and don’t have expensive leg workout equipment or any other related fitness equipment, for that matter. Some people have modest gym environment in their home or garage and having such big rack or cage construction simply won’t fit.

The reason why I’m considering such alternatives is because I was forced to find a temp gym since my old gym’s building was being reconstructed. Since new gym had no rack, but just a squat stand, I was presented with two options. Suck it up and neglect my heavy squat workout or actually be creative and do something to bridge this “rackless” period.

I thought of using squat stands that were already available in the gym but there was a problem. Since I almost always max on my squats they were not a good choice because they don’t have safety side catchers or holders or grabbers, if you will. So I was reluctant to try squatting with 500lbs without such security. So I browsed the web hoping for some ideas and reliable solutions. And behold the miracle, I found one and I wanted to share it with you guys. It’s nice, clean, cheap, and damn good solution!

C-93015W New York Barbells Safety Squat Stands ($99)

Buy New York Barbells Safety Stands

Height of the stands is adjustable, which can be useful not just for squats but also for bench press and deadlift. You can put them on either sides of bench to increase safety and prevent any possible disasters. Partial deadlifts can be done at any height since the stands are adjustable.

Top catch surface is 16″ (40.5cm) wide. Dimensions of the squat stands are 17″ x 20″ x 23.5″ to 35″ H. Weight is 39 pounds.

I haven’t used these stands myself, but I did order them. I have very good experience with New York Barbells and their products, so I have no doubt that this one will be just what the doctor ordered.

Valor Fitness BD-3 Squat Stands ($147)

Buy Valor Fitness Squat Stands

I also found this product to be very interesting for this purpose and also pretty cheap when compared to other similar solutions.

Main characteristic is a solid base with each base covering 400 square inches of surface, which is great if you have a limited workout space. Height of the posts as well as safety spotters on each of the posts is adjustable.

Both stands weigh just 48 pounds. Dimensions are 43 x 18 x 8 inches and 2.5 inches mouth opening for bar support. Upright posts are 36 inches and chrome back plates that catch the bar as lifter maneuvers back to stand are 5 inches.

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It is a fact that if you want to lose weight and keep it off you have to follow a healthy diet, perform cardio and weight lifting because this will improve your weight loss potential and will give you a better physical appearance. Skip either of these steps and you will fail.

I know that you are all aware of the fact that when your body makes a move it requires energy. If you do not have any energy to burn then your body will attack the fat cells in order to get some energy. These things happen in your body every day, even when you sleep your body needs a certain amount of energy. The most important aspect in weight loss is to establish from where your body will get this energy, from fat cells or from food.

Weight lifting helps your body accumulate more energy even when you are resting, which is turn creates a greater force for the body to burn fat cells.

Weight Loss vs. Fat Loss – Know the Difference

Another important advantage of weight training is that it will change your body’s composition. Cardio can be a beneficial factor for weight loss, but weight lifting is very important for fat loss. Fat loss is the most difficult part in the process to lose weight. If you manage to accelerate the fat burning process you will lose weight faster. For example if you are doing some cardio exercises you are going to lose weight but your body will look the same, and the reason is simple, you have not altered the ratio of body fat to muscle mass, you just look smaller and weight less. If you are doing a weight lifting training you can actually change your physical appearance, because your body fat will be gradually burned off and will be replaced with muscles.

Muscles are the Key

Muscles play a huge role in increasing your metabolism, which is the mechanism in your body that controls how fast or slow you will be able to lose weight. The more muscles you have the bigger is your metabolism. Indicative, a pound of muscles may help you burn about 10-20 calories a day, while a pound of fat burns only 5 calories. That means that any growth in your muscle tissues is going to help you burn more calories.

For some people weight lifting is scary, especially if you’ve never done it before. “The machines…the dumbbells…the people who seem to know what they’re doing…it’s enough to make anyone skip weight lifting altogether” – this is the general opinion of most people. These fears are not based on facts, you have to take your time, you have to follow a good weight training program slowly and your muscles will eventually grow. As your muscle strength increases you can increase the weights you work with and get even better results.

Importance of Leg Power

In order to squat heavy you need to have the leg power! Besides hips legs are the most crucial component of a big squat. But besides quadriceps (thighs), biceps femoris (hamstrings) and soleus (calves) there are other legs muscles that not only work to support these main strength producers but also to develop stability of your posture during the exercise. You have probably seen some big guys putting the weight on their back that they can’t handle just to exercise those deep hidden stabilizer muscles.

Depending on which technique you use for performing the deadlift (conventional or sumo), will define the level of recruitment of the leg muscles. Hamstrings are heavily used during a conventional deadlift, so having a strong posterior leg base is really important. In case your lower back is not one of your strong parts and you engage sumo deadlifting technique, your legs will be recruited much like during the squat.

Although legs don’t help you directly in the bench press, developing lower body strength will ultimately help you achieve more stable posture during any exercise and sport, including bench press.

Training Routines

There are many approaches to powerlifting training and you don’t have to know them all and right away, but you also don’t want to get into powerlifting without the basic knowledge of exercise techniques either. First learn the proper technique, at least for three basic powerlifting exercises and then try out the heavy weights.

I will not explain in detail how should a certain training plan look like, at last not for now, but what I will do is pinpoint some important rules.

1. Train Heavy! There is no reason why you shouldn’t go heavy. This is what breaks plateau, push the limits and set PRs. Training strong includes 1-5 repetitions per set. Number of sets should float anywhere between 5 and 10. Start with 5 reps per set and work your way down to a 1 rep sets. Note: Don’t max on every workout. Third or fourth training should be done using 85%-90% of your maximum single lifts.
2. Rest Long! After squat, bench press and deadlift workouts schedule a day of rest. If you don’t do it, you’re not doing it right. Strength is a cumulative category and it requires time to be built, so learn how to be patient!
3. Eat Plenty but Clean! There are two kinds of powerlifters: big heavy absolute category guys and all others. Both categories must be aware of what they eat. This includes a lot of protein for the muscles and carbohydrates to fuel the training. Although guys from absolute categories must obey this rule in difference to all other lifters they don’t have to watch out how much they eat. Absolute category is anywhere above 125kg, which means that they can balloon over 500 pounds and nobody would care because it’s legal on the competition.

If you are considering getting some workout equipment for powerlifting at home be sure to read some tips on buying a power rack and related leg workout equipment.

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There are basically three options that you are presented with when it comes to spending money on such stuff; buying new, buying used and building your own. Building and used usually cost the same, although both of them require some work. For the first you need to find someone who is selling his old stuff while making from scratch requires finding someone to do it for you if you don’t know how. If you’re on a budget, it’s best to build a squat rack. This is by far cheaper solution than buying a completely new squat rack.

What Exactly do You Need?

To build a squat rack or any other construction for exercising you need to know what you are doing. That includes having a plan about what material you will use, finding the necessary tools to actually do the job and of course blueprinting the whole shebang (calculating dimensions, spacing, etc).

One note about material; it’s best to build these constructions out of metal. It guarantees a long life and can be maintained very easily, which can’t be said for wood. I have seen quite a few people that made their constructions using wood. If you squat seriously that party won’t last long, trust me. My advice would definitely be to go with metal. You won’t need a lot of material. The most of it will go into assembling heavy side post.

Since metal requires welding, in case you never did this, don’t worry, there are plenty of services out there that do this and it’s not even that expensive. Just visit the nearest workshop with your blueprint and let them know about your plan. You can be surprised how cheap you can get by. I have built a few racks this way, each came out about $100 – $150.

Recently I came across a blog called Harry’s Mobile Welding. Apparently this guy offers services that I mentioned above. I never tried him myself, but as you will see on his blog, he has done plenty of metal power racks and has a lot of experience with gym equipment, especially intended for leg workout. His location is Clearwater, Florida. Maybe it’s not close to you but is definitely worth asking how much does he charge for such service.

Pros and Cons

Definite pro is lower price in oppose to out of the box fancy stuff. By making custom stuff you are risking some inexperienced person to do the welding, which can result in poorly measured and badly assembled angles of the construction. Although this rarely happens, be sure to double check his previous work.

Since my reasons to train are professional I do need some reliable equipment that can’t be custom made that easily. But I do recommend you to build a squat rack because this is one of the simplest things to make, even if you’re not that crafty. Roll your sleeves or hire somebody else to convert your ideas into reality.

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I was wondering if you felt the New York Barbell rack was sufficient to hold (and not move) a 6′4″ 200 pound man doing chinups…

Well, in this case the answer must be twofold. I weight around 180 lbs but I know and workout with really heavy guys, some are even well beyond 300 lbs. Our NY rack is holding up pretty well, even when doing some major explosive barbell bouncing during partial squats or deadlifts. Now, as for the chinups, I have never seen this power rack move, but I guess it depends on how exactly you perform them. I bet if you swing like crazy you would be able to move it back and forth. But, what’s the point with such technique anyway?

Nevertheless, this got me thinking about stability. I remembered a piece of equipment I used in the past for heavy good mornings and my lower back. This one was actually intended for squats with either narrow or wide (sumo) stance – New York Barbells C92565W Sumo Rack.

Rack Dimensions and Feature Description

Buy C92565W Sumo Rack Online!

Dimensions of this squat rack are: 52.5 inches x 48.5 inches x 66 inches of height. It weighs 112 lbs, which is pretty solid. There is 26 inches of distance between side posts which I believe is enough room to wiggle, even with leaning forward too much while squatting.

As always with New York Barbells, there are two strong self locking “J” hooks and solid steel 1 inch side catcher pins to grab the bar. This model is actually shorter than its brother C92563W, which may be more suitable for low ceiling rooms. Because of the wide base, extra wide end caps and short construction, swinging is reduced to a minimum.

Price: $320

Although this model may be a sturdy and stable enough solution, I think that higher price makes it less appropriate for normal budgets. As always, it depends on your goals. If for some reason you need a wider stance base for your squatting, then go for it. Set of Olympic plates would go great with it.

All in all, New York Barbells seems never to disappoint, at least not in my experience with their squat racks and related leg workout equipment.

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One clarification before I begin. Different names are used to describe family of similar products. Although they differ in few details, they all usually refer to same product. Those names include: power rack, squat stand, power cage, squat cage, etc.

How much the squat rack costs? Most often talked about aspect today is the price. No wonder with this present economy downturn. Therefore, I’ll do my best to reconcile the quality and wallet depth.

Heavy duty frames are imperative when it comes to strong and reliable training. Construction should be well balances and heavy to allow secure and safe workout. Usually good ones are counterbalanced at the bottom.

Stop holes/pins should be positioned with high frequency, with distance of no more than two inches between them. This increases variety of movement.

Safety side catchers are not present in every squat rack, but in my opinion they are a must when it comes to developing the ultimate power of the squat. Usually they add a little more to the price, because they require cage like construction, but they are worth every penny. They should be adjustable because that increases the possible range of motion, in oppose to fixed ones.

Champion Step Squat Rack (Price: $255)

Buy Champion Step Squat Rack Now!

Frame dimensions are 65 inches (depth) x 60 inches (height) x 48 inches (width). Heavy duty construction provides impressive stability. Pins are starting at the height of 28 inches (first one) and increase incrementally to the height of 60 inches (last one). There are 4 built in sidebars for storing weight plates.

You can perform squat and front squat, either full or partial range, military (standing shoulder) press, biceps curls, upright rows, good mornings, shrugs and a lot more exercises.

Note: Barbell and weights are not included in the price so you’ll need to purchase them separately.

Although not much versatile because of the fixed height this one stands out in his simplicity and construction strength.

Body Solid PowerLine PSS60X Squat Rack (Price: $155)

Buy PowerLine PSS60X Squat Rack Now!

Actually this is not a rack at all; this classic piece comes from a family of respectable squat stands. Dimensions of the frame are 30 inches (depth) x 37 inches (height) x 48 inches (width) x 51 lbs or 23 kg (weight). Bar support adjusts from 30 to 60 inches which gives plenty of height options. There is a 10 year warranty on the frame and 1 year on the rest of the parts, which is excellent. Construction is built out of 2 by 2 heavy-gauge steel bars. Wide base gives it enough stability even for using the heaviest of weights.

Possible movements are flat, incline, and decline bench presses (if you have an adjustable bench), squats, curls, upright rows, shoulder shrugs, calf raises, and a few others, just be creative in your workout.

It is much narrower than cage type structures so it takes a lot less space, which is useful if you plan to use it at home or garage. You’ll need around 10-20 minutes to put the parts together yourself, it is very easy.

A downside is that holes for height adjustment are 3 inches apart which slims your choice of options, especially with benching, which requires more subtle distances than squatting. Since this is a stand and not a squat rack or a cage you definitely need a spotter for monster squatting unless you have a death wish and try to do this with nobody around to catch the weight. A definite tip is to put it on the rubber mat or back end against a wall to prevent shifting, which can occur with such heavy poundage.

Note: Barbell with collars and weights are not calculated in the price. One reminder though; only bars with at least 45 inches of length between plates will fit on this stand, so be careful not to buy a shorter one than that. If you are in a hurry or on a tight budget you can always search for cheap barbells ($40) or plates ($0.7/lbs). Try Wal-Mart or something if you are that desperate.

All in all this is one tough cookie, which can satisfy even the most demanding appetites.

New York Barbells C92563W Power Rack (Price: $299)

Buy C92563W Power Rack Now!

Maybe not one of the pretties power racks but sure one with all features. Cage dimensions are 48.5 inches (depth) x 82.5 inches (height) x 48 inches (width) with 26 inches distance between posts. Strong construction weighs 152 lbs (69 kg). There are 28 holes for side catchers. There is 2 inch distance between them which is excellent for practicing partial movements. It has holder for Olympic weight plates, 2 strong “J” hooks, 1 inch round solid steel pins and chinning bar at the top of the cage which is deep knurled for secure grip.

Cool thing about this one is that you can install a whole bunch of add-ons. Some of them include: chinup bar with lots of different grips, lat machine with 200 lbs weight stack with triceps press down short bar.

This squat rack is actually my favorite piece of equipment because of its impressive range of powerlifting movements. I’ll just number a few: whole variety of squat, shoulder press and curl exercises, good morning, deadlift, partial or full and a bunch more of them. Check out his shorter cousin from New York Barbells made specifically for sumo stance squats.

Note: You will need to acquire plates and bar independently.

If neither of these options work for your budget I advise you to search for some cheap used squat racks.

If you have some questions feel free to leave a comment. I can even do a review of some squatting equipment at your wish. Contact me and I’ll be glad to post it here.

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I want to clear one thing from the start. From my experience, leg presses compared to squats don’t stand a chance when it comes to building the ultimate leg power. Therefore, if you plan on buying some leg equipment, squat rack should be the first of your choices, it should even have priority over leg press machine. Depending on your budget, there are some good ones that you can consider buying.

Two Types

There are two main types of leg press machines:

• 45 degree leg press where the weight is pushed diagonally upward with sled type movement.
• 90 degree or vertical leg press machine where the weight is pushed vertically upward with sled type movement.

Call me crazy but vertical version has one interesting advantage. When the weight pins you down to the floor you are unable to squiggle under the construction, which can often occur on 45 angled ones when the weight is too big and you are trying to struggle with it and thus cheat by raising yourself up the seat. But, 45 version inflicts less pressure on ankles and knees, and feels more natural to perform. That is why I prefer using it.

These machines are reliable and have high safety factor because of the included adjustable side brackets that will prevent the user from being trapped under the weight.

Leg Exercises

Actually, there is not a big variety of exercises that you can do on a leg press machine because of its predetermined weight path, but the ones that you can are important part of your leg workout and should not be neglected. Beside the intended leg exercise you can also perform calf presses, which can be a great addition to your main calf builders – standing calf raises. These can be done either with one leg or with both at the same time.

I always try to share advices on home gym with leg press type of equipment because I know there are a lot of people that prefer exercising at home. I myself am a gym rat; hence I usually dabble on some gym leg press.

Although I am a bigger fan of diagonal machines there is an excellent cheap Powerline vertical version from Body Solid. You can find it anywhere from $200 up to $250 which is suitable for many wallets. Although affordable, this can be too much for low budgets. In that case you can opt for used leg press machine. These can cost less than $100, depending on how much weight is included in the price.

If you have any other question or you want me to review a certain leg press machine that you want to buy, bump a comment and I’ll be happy to accommodate.

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Smith Machine – Squats Workout Alternative

The smith machine is a piece of equipment that is used in sport training purposes. It consists of a rack with barbell fixed on steel runners that can be moved only vertically. Construction is usually stabilized by counterbalanced piece at the bottom. Runners have pins on which you can hook the bar during the exercise. Safety pegs are often included at the bottom to prevent the barbell dropping on the floor and causing a serious injury. Pegs remove the need for spotters and increase the safety factor.

There are numerous benefits for beginners in sport of using the smith machine. Even the professional athletes can use it to improve form and technique of their special activities. There is a vast range of movements that you can perform on it. To name a few: shoulder press, shrugs, bench press, squats which are an excellent bonus to your leg workout routine.

The Philosophy of It

The smith machine squats are performed differently than using a standard squat rack or some of the squat stands. There is always a big hype amongst experts on whether to perform this squat because it takes the legs and thus the body through an unnatural range of motion, which may cause injuries. But, its fixed trajectory can be beneficial for beginners in a few ways. Since squat is a complex exercise and mastering the proper technique is hard, machine forces the untrained body to develop the feel for proper free weight squatting performance. Using this machine can also allow unstable lifters to lift more weight, which was confirmed by researchers at Drake University, Iowa. This leads to greater overloading of muscles and thus greater growth and power.

Downturn of the predetermined barbell path is that you don’t need to stabilize the weight, which results in poor development of stabilization skills. Therefore, lifting ability on it does not translate into free weight lifting ability. Given that stabilization skills are very important to develop, I recommend that you don’t use this movement as one of the main leg exercises in your routine, but only as a supplement to your leg exercise plan.

Manufacturers and Pricing

Now, let’s talk a little about manufacturers. You’ll have to excuse me, but I always hated those smith machine home gym – all in one combos where you have various functions stuffed together. I like my smiths served simple, and that’s the only way I roll. There is no harm in buying an expensive, for example, Marcy smith machine, Body Solid smith machine or a Weider smith machine, but my point is that for quality leg workout you don’t need all that hype.

Regarding the price, from my experience you don’t need to go over $250 for a new one. Everything above that is too much. Make sure that at least 225 lbs (100 kg) of weight comes with it. Other interesting option is to buy a used smith machine, in which case you can save money. 90% of the times used one may be a much better solution and a much cheaper one.

One more thing, when buying a smith machine make sure the construction is fairly stable. You don’t want to find this out later while squatting, believe me. You can check this by leaning on the machine from all sides. Good counterbalanced heavy duty smith machines should be pretty hard to move. Also, distance between lockout pins should be no more than 2 inches (5 cm). This ensures good movement efficiency. The rest of the details are less important so you don’t need to worry about them too much.

In a nutshell, that’s it. If you have some additional question don’t worry, I’ll be adding detailed reviews of some commercial apparatus soon. You are welcome anytime to drop a question.

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When reality comes into play naming conventions disappear while leaving the important differences amongst the names lost. In that case power rack is the same thing as squat rack, which is the same thing as power cage, which is then the same thing as squat cage. You can freely use these names interchangeably without hesitation. But, there are some slight differences amongst them, which are especially important to remember when buying one for yourself.

Where Exactly Lays the Difference?

Cage is built out of four strong vertical posts that have movable horizontal bar catchers on each side. The posts are linked at the top and at the bottom for additional strengthening of the construction. Racks in oppose to cages, usually, are comprised out of just one vertical post with additional bottom support for prevention of an accidental turn over caused by overloading and instability. Although they posses bar catchers, in difference to cages these are fixed at the average squat bottom position.

In general, such iron constructions are designed to ensure a safe and enhanced free weight workout. They can carry barbells of various kinds. In difference to usual stands, racks and cages are much safer because dropping the weight will result in it being caught by the side bar catchers. Also, there are no movement restrictions imposed by apparatus such as the Smith machine or a hack squat. Since squat racks are simpler they are considered the granddaddies of power racks.

Range of exercises that you can do on these apparatus’ is broad. Apart from full blown compound exercises like squat and military presses I like to do partial movements. Partial bench press, partial squat and partial deadlift is just some of the stuff I practice on these bad boys. Partial movements are excellent for using bigger weights in a safe way, while overloading the muscles for producing greater strength and growth.

Choose and Commit

Basically, one of these pieces of equipment will be more useful to you over the other depending on what you’re going to do with it. If you’re a full time squatting machine like I am, you don’t need anything more than a simple power rack to fit all of your needs. But in spite of my desire to have a clean single purpose machine, there are some useful non intrusive additions to the construction like built in pullups, chinups and dips bar. Unfortunately, when you try to compromise multiple machines in one the quality of each goes down the drain, which is sad but most of the time true. This is why “home gym” stuff is just a crap from beyond even if you are not that serious about getting in the zone with it.

Now you are equipped with some basic understanding of the power rack stuff. Go now and find one for yourself.

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If you are reading this, chances are that you either need some useful tip on where to buy cheap squat racks or you need some leg workout information, professional or for beginners. Lately I had a lot of people asking questions on both matters. Well, the good news is that you all are going to find something to your benefit.

For those of you, who are not new to this topic, please bare with me, while I explain some basics about squat racks because we have a lot of beginners reading this.

You Gotta Squat!

Since I have promised to devote most of the time and space of this site to talk about leg exercises and training machines I will begin with the squat. Well, not literally, at last not right now. Squat is, hands down, the king of all compound movements and strength builders. If done properly, it can make wonders for your overall physical performance, regardless of the goals. There are a lot of different techniques used, one being more useful than the other, depending on what did you set to achieve. I will try to explain each and every one in detail on this site.

To harness the power and strength that comes with squatting you need to use strong and reliable training equipment. Otherwise, you’ll be just shooting blanks. In oppose to squat stands, which are preferred standard for doing squats in almost every gym, you should use a squat rack or a power rack. Why? Believe me when I say that it has many benefits. For the sake of shortness, I’ll try to state just the obvious ones. First of all, safety is improved by far! Cage like construction of the rack will always take the hit in case your legs go mellow on you during exercise. Second, I always find myself emitting much more raw power than usually when using racks. Wanna know why? Because there is no fear of falling down with the loaded bar and possibility of an injury is reduced to a minimum. Without that worry in mind you can truly set the inner beast loose when doing your thing. Third benefit is definitely versatility. You can easily do dozens of additional exercises on it.

Shopping For One

Now let’s talk little about what prices to expect when buying squat racks online. Stands are usually cheaper than racks, that is a fact, but if you opt for them, you sacrifice a whole bunch of benefits and raise the need for much better exercise performing technique. Also, the truth is that quality ones make you dive into your wallet much deeper, and none of us want that. Then what to do? I promise you that it is possible to search and buy cheap squat racks online and this site is aimed to provide you with help in doing that.

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