What’s the KING of all lifts? It’s an age-old question. One camp will argue it’s the back squat.
The other camp will argue it’s the deadlift. You can certainly make compelling arguments for
both lifts, but ultimately there’s no right answer. Most will base their decision on whichever lift
they can lift the most weight. So let’s save the debate and just agree they are both great lifts
and that it’s simply a matter of personal preference.
Since we’ve established that both the Squat and Deadlift are the two KINGS, let me introduce to
you the Trap Bar Squat (TBS). The TBS essentially combines the best elements of both the
squat and deadlift into one extremely “high value for time” exercise. In my opinion, the TBS is
one of the single most effective lifts to improve both strength and hypertrophy that most lifters
never try.
If you want one of the most uncomfortable low back pumps of your life, the TBS will do it. In fact,
it will blow up your entire posterior chain by effectively targeting your hamstrings, glutes, spinal
erectors, and traps. What I love about the TBS and what makes it so effective is that you’re
basically engaging every muscle in your entire body (save for the pecs and triceps) and is one
of my favorite exercises to promote total body anabolism.
Due to the larger range motion and increased demand placed on the legs, the TBS is
significantly more taxing than a conventional straight bar deadlift from the floor.
If you want to make any exercise more challenging and effective, find a way to incorporate the
body’s largest muscle group: the legs. Think of the TBS as a squatting deadlift.
Treat the TBS like any other form of deadlift, instead of trying to pull the weight up, think of
pushing your feet through the floor to lift the weight. However, this will be even easier and more
natural with the TBS as the starting position is basically a squat position.
Application: While there are no hard and fast programming rules for the TBS, I prefer to use it as
the main compound lift for my workout and have found it to be a great stand alone exercise. In
fact, I’ve done numerous workouts where I’ve done high rep heavy TBS and it’s so fatiguing that
it will be the only exercise I can do in the training session. The TBS is a great lift to train for
moderate to advanced level lifters and especially for lifters whose primary goal is to put on
muscle. It can be a great alternative to conventional straight bar deadlifts and I often use it in my
own training during accumulation blocks where the main focus is hypertrophy.
Programming: Because of the increased range of motion and the leverage of the TBS, I’ve
found it to be much more effective to train in the 8-10 rep range. You’re likely never going to be
able to use as much weight for the TBS compared to your back squat or deadlift, and anytime
you’re performing TBS around your true 75-80% of your 1RM deadlift, technique starts to decay.
I recommend using the most weight possible for at least 8 clean reps while controlling the
eccentric portion of the lift. Here’s one of my favorite ways to program the TBS:

For this cycle, use weights (%’s) based off of your most recent 1RM conventional deadlift:
Week 1: 5 sets of 8 reps @45%
Week 2: 5 sets of 8 reps @50%
Week 3: 5 sets of 8 reps @55%
Week 4: 3-5 sets of 8 reps @60%
Week 5: 3-5 sets of 8 reps @65%
Week 6: 3-5 sets of 8 reps @70%
*Aim to use a 2-3 second eccentric back to the ground each rep if you can
*rest 3-5 minutes between sets or until your heart rate settles
I guarantee after this 6-week block of TBS, you will see some solid size and strength gains and
hopefully be better prepared to reach a new 1 rep max deadlift.