Wrist Pain in the Front Squat

Andrew Stemler

Wrist pain hampering your front squat? Read this, do as your told.

Reducing Front Squat Wrist Pain

The front squat has to be one of the most crucial moves to master, its crucial as its the gateway to the Clean, possibly one of the best exercises in the world.

If you give Pat an olympic bar to hold, it settles in the right place (see the first photo) The bar rests on his anterior deltoids, his chest is big, and his elbows point forward. His fingers act as a type of safety catch and make sure the bar stays where it is supposed to. Well done. No pain, just hours of fun.

However, some people find the front squat is really painful and hurts their wrists. The best advise I can give is, continue to practise, and suck it up.

Possibly not helpful advice.

However here are some drills which may help increase wrist range of motion

Pray behind your back

Put your hand behind your back, and press your palms together (second photo)

Initially we found no correlation between those who could do this,and those who could hold the front squat position. We speculated that bicep size, shoulders, and back tightness could also be part of the answer, but a useful drill nevertheless.It makes you feel as if you are fighting back.

But we tested some people who could not hold the position, and here is a good example of what it can look like (third photo)

Poor flexibility in the wrists looks like this so we hunted for other drills

Waggle on all fours (aka The Fluffy Rug drill) Yes the drill that out sexes all other drills. Get on a fluffy rug, on all fours (fingers facing forward, or away from you), and rock your shoulders forward. Hold for time or gentle reps (this is now known as the fluffy rug drill).

To make this more challenging and target the right bit of the wrist, put your fingers up on a higher surface and push down with your fingers.

We also experimented with the Nisha Roll. This is where you hold the bar under your chin with your elbows below the bar, then open your hands and "drop" the bar onto your shoulders.

Tarek shows the start position for the Nisha Roll (below right)

Tarek attempts the finishing position of the Nisha Roll (below the other one)

Direct intervention, can help if applied nicely

Sometimes a bit of brute force can help, and you can push the bar down, you can push the elbows up, to get that last bit of flexibility, and a better front squat position push elbows up.

In training we found a multi station circuit to get the best results,

so pray for 10 seconds

fluffy rug for 10 to 15 rocks

5 Nisha rolls

then a 10 second attempt at front squat position hold (with someone lifting your elbows up)

We managed to get noticeable improvements within one session.

About the Author

Andrew is a little different to most of our team. He is older. He is also very aware of what it is to become More-Athletic. A sedentary chap in 1997, at age 37, he gave up a life devoted to cigarettes (a 100 a day habit) and began getting fit. Since then he has amassed a huge list of certifications, has embarked on a Sports Science Degree and has become London’s first level II CrossFit trainer. He’s a huge advocate of the CrossFit method, but still very much his own man. He is constantly studying and looking to improve coaching standards and is a great addition to the team. Although he does tend to wear a neck scarf that most people think doesn’t suit him. Check out CrossFit London at Crossfitlondonuk.com for more from Andrew and his team.