Thread: 20 rep squats

One set of 20 reps, 3 days a week? Do you put any weight on the bar when you do these squats? No warm-ups?
I love 20 rep squats but I don't get the logic of your routine.

ha ha...its a proper routine just look it up in google, or....getlifting.info » The 20 Rep Squat Program
thats from gazhole's site

Yeah im not in much favor of this routine...dont get me wrong squats are great..but there are other things that should be accounted for muscle confusion: like switching either the type of squats you do, adjusting the weight on the bar each workout day, how many reps you do with heavier weight. And what about Deadlifts, power cleans, thrusters? You should incorporate these into your workouts as well.

OK, I get it. It's a bodybuilder mass routine.

So what are the questions?

well the question is in the first post not sure how to set out the other exercises

i really need someone like gaz or someone with experience of this routine to comment

Originally Posted by Vpower

Yeah im not in much favor of this routine...dont get me wrong squats are great..but there are other things that should be accounted for muscle confusion: like switching either the type of squats you do, adjusting the weight on the bar each workout day, how many reps you do with heavier weight. And what about Deadlifts, power cleans, thrusters? You should incorporate these into your workouts as well.

I do agree with you regarding muscle confusion; however, one has to stick to a certain routine for few weeks at least, or until he or she stops seeing gains.

I would rest as needed, as least one day in between with this program but if you aren't feeling recovered just wait another day. I would drop the isolation movements such as bicep curls and hamstring curls your going to get enough of a workout with the compound movements doing this routine. And at first you might be too exhausted to do anything other than the 20 rep squats, if so just do pullovers and go home.

the main reason im doing this program is less for the leg progression and more for the effect it has on overall growth, i need my upper body to grow as well

Pretty much the same advice as i gave you in the other thread.

Do your squats, do your pullovers, do one or two exercises for the rest of your body, go home. Keep the accessory around three sets. Rep range is up to you really. 10 reps is fine. So long as you do exercises to cover the rest of the body you'll be grand.

and this will give good overall growth even though its not massive volume for the other bodyparts?

hhhmm i gave it a go today, not sure im quite ready for the full 20 squats, im pretty new to squats i dont think my technique is that great, so instead im going to do a few sets of heavy squats (well heavy for me) with minimal rest between sets, so its sort of rest paused but with longer rest periods at the beginning of each workout, im guessing squats in general release GH and test so it will be similar, then once ive got better technique and am stronger i may try the full 20.

Originally Posted by dteller1

hhhmm i gave it a go today, not sure im quite ready for the full 20 squats, im pretty new to squats i dont think my technique is that great, so instead im going to do a few sets of heavy squats (well heavy for me) with minimal rest between sets, so its sort of rest paused but with longer rest periods at the beginning of each workout, im guessing squats in general release GH and test so it will be similar, then once ive got better technique and am stronger i may try the full 20.

Stick with the 20 rep squats just lower the weight,you can pause after 10 just don't put the weight down than do 5,pause don't put the weight down than do the last 5.Stop only if you throw up or pass out !you have to get your mind right ,think about growing while your in the pain zone.I do this work out for 3 weeks 2 times a year.I do 225 for 20 reps for 5 sets,its a killer but you do grow!Go deep in the hole with great form this is a must do not wear a belt or you might pass out fron compressing your abs to much.No pain no gain,it's so true!

the thing im more worried about is injuring myself as i dont think my form is great, ive never really done squats before, i was using 60kg and could do about 8 then had to stop, but i only stopped racked the bar for 20 seconds or so then did another few etc, i will try and do it without racking. my legs KILL today ha ha. im doing the squats and then on day 1 doing chest, day 3 doing back and day 5 doing accessory and shoulder. day 2,4,6 and 7 im resting. more than anything i need to eat more!!!

If you are worried your form isn't good you need to get that down first. Doing 10 squats with bad form is not much safer than 20. Don't worry about the weight til you are sure you won't get hurt. What's the point of trying to get stronger if you are just going to have to take 6 weeks off from an injury.

thats why im not doing the all out 20, my form is ok until i get tired so i can do say 10 with quite good form but it then starts to get sloppy when i start to struggle, so i may instead of doing 20 reps, just do a few shorter sets at the start of each workout, a squat is a squat and its still going to produce some good levels of gh and test but without the risk of injury until ive done squatting a bit more and maybe in a few months i'll try the full 20

so i dropped the weight to 50kg, i managed the full 20! it wasn't that bad so i think next time i will try 55kg.

If your form sucks you need to be doing 6 reps or fewer and be doing them 3-4 times per week.

nah my form was ok once i dropped the weight, straight back no curving etc, i think its ok, think i just went in with the weight too high

I was expecting to see a routine a bit more intense that that..lol


I done a 20 rep program with squats at once and had great results. I was working with a dear friend of mine of whom is a IFBB. At the time my legs were making very slow progress and almost seem to of stalled.

Him and I re-evaluated and made up some bullshit program that worked.

Here is what it consisted of:

1. Squats
barx20
135x20
225x20
275x20
315xfail
365xfail
405xfail
455xfail
495xfail
**when I would hit a set of 6-8 I would stop squats

2. Stiff Leg
315x4x10-15

3. Leg Press
4 x 10-12

4. :eg Curls Super set with Leg Ext
7 x10

5. Calves
just thrash them!

DONE

The legs responsed DRAMATICALLY! But it was very brutal..lots of throwing up on the squats and pain

according to every other 20 rep squat routine ive read anywhere you should only do 1 set of 20 reps, if you can do more than that it wasn;t the right weight, if that worked for you thats cool but there is absolutely no way i could do more than 1 set of 20, plus im not using the routine just to build my legs, im using the routine to firstly build my legs but also for the anabolic response squatting provides to build the rest of my body up as well. when you were doing your above routine, were you using gear?