Overhead squat CrossFit workouts are a great way to test and improve your core strength, mobility, strength and ability to lift and breathe in a fatigued state.
As Greg Glassman explains:
“the overhead squat is the ultimate core exercise, the heart of the snatch, and peerless in developing effective athletic movement. This demanding exercise reveals every lack of mobility without mercy.”
If you can’t execute a rock-solid air squat, then there’s no point in trying to progress to an overhead squat.
Make sure you have a solid squat foundation first, then try a couple of OH squats with a training bar as you will likely discover additional mobility issues. The Overhead Squat requires excellent flexibility in the:
- Shoulders
- Hips
- Hamstrings
- Glutes
- Adductors
It’s unlikely that you are highly mobile in all of these areas—which is why the overhead squat is often avoided by so many athletes.
You MUST invest the time into sufficiently mobilizing the above muscle groups in order to externally rotate your hips and become comfortable squatting with the bar overhead.
Overhead Squat CrossFit Workouts
How many of these overhead squat CrossFit workouts have you tried?
3 REP MAX OVERHEAD SQUAT
For load. 7 Minute time cap.
- Athlete must find a 3RM overhead squat
Notes
For safety reasons, the barbell must be dropped to the floor in front of the athlete at the end of each rep. No lowering barbells onto the shoulders will be allowed. Athletes will be responsible for cleaning the weight or stripping weight off of the barbell to get it back on the rack; judges will not assist.
DAN
4 rounds for load and time
- 21 overhead squats
- 400m run
Notes
Athlete selects the weight for overhead squats. Score is load and time as pounds per second (ex: 135/13:05 = 135/785 = .172 lbs/sec).