The Best Power Rack Exercises & Workouts, Period

If you were to list out the best weight lifting equipment for home workouts, the power rack would sit right at the top. For garage and globo gyms alike, power racks are a must-have. And with the release of the REP® Altitude™ series power rack, we thought you might need a handy guide on how to maximize your gains.

Here are some of our favorite power rack exercises, plus pro tips for each move. You’ll also find a full-body workout you can do entirely in the rack—making the Altitude™ rack your one-stop shop for muscle and strength.

Best Power Rack Exercises

First things first, let’s define terms. Power racks and squat racks are not the same thing, though both are among the best equipment for home workouts. A squat rack is a steel structure with fixed hooks or pegs in which to place a barbell; you can place the bar at different heights, but it’s really only designed for squats.

An all-in-one power rack contains four pillars. You lift inside the frame, and the hooks in which the bar sits are adjustable. You can place them low, for rows, or high, for squats, and just about everything in-between. 

A good power rack, like the Altitude™, is also customizable—it comes with accessories for pull-ups, dips, and even some cable exercises as well. 

With that in mind, our list of viable power rack exercises expands quite a bit. We aren’t just limited to squat and overhead presses here. 

Back Squat

The back squat is, rightfully, considered the king of all exercises. If you were stranded on a deserted island, somehow with nothing but the Altitude™ power rack, you’d squat—and make plenty of gains in the process. 

Power rack and squat rack form is key to target your quads, glutes, core, and teach full-body coordination as well. To work out in a power rack and not do some variation of squat is to leave gains on the table, period. 

How To Use a Power Rack for Squats

• Set up the power rack hooks such that the bar is sitting right around the height of your collarbones.
• Step under the bar and place it on your traps, grab it with a narrow but comfortable grip, and unrack it by taking two small steps backward.
• Place your feet in a comfortable stance, somewhere between hip and shoulder-width apart, with your feet turned out at an angle that feels natural.
• Inhale, brace your core, and squat down by bending your knees and hips simultaneously, sinking as deep as you comfortably can.

Muscles worked: Quadriceps, glutes, abdominals, obliques.

Rack Pull

Rack pulls are more than partial deadlifts. You’re meant to do them in a power rack, with the bar elevated to around knee height. By removing the bottom half of the exercise, where most people are weakest, you can work with heavier weights and build tremendous lockout strength.

Rack pulls smash your traps, core, lower back, and glutes. The higher you set the bar on the safeties, the more you can pull, but doing so lessens your range of motion. Start with the bar right around knee height and customize from there. 

How To Use a Power Rack for Rack Pulls

• Set the safeties in the rack such that the barbell sits around knee level, then load up heavy weight.
• Stand close to the bar with your standard deadlift stance and take a hinged position, lower back tight and core braced.
• Push into the floor and stand up, holding for a moment before slowly lowering the bar back to the safeties. Don’t let gravity do the work.

Muscles worked: Lower back, traps, forearms, abdominals, glutes.

Romanian Deadlift

Remove the safeties and you have all the range of motion you need to thrash your posterior chain with the Romanian deadlift. RDLs, which start from a standing position and require you to hinge until the bar passes your knees, make for a great coupling with squats in a power rack-focused workout.

How To Use a Power Rack for Romanian Deadlifts

• Set the bar in the hooks such that it’s between knee and groin height, then unrack it with a narrow, overhand grip.
• Step back and stand with your feet under your hips, then unlock your knees, pushing your butt backward, allowing the bar to glide down your thighs until it passes your knees.
• Reverse the motion, standing up by contracting your posterior chain.

Muscles worked: Hamstrings, glutes, lower back, abdominals, grip.

Inverted Row

Cards on the table, power racks are mainly designed for lower-body exercises. That said, with a bit of creativity, you can get one heck of an upper body session in. Power racks give you access to moves like the inverted row, which you can’t do with many other pieces of gym equipment. 

Why? To perform inverted rows, you need a stable, horizontal bar that’s only a few feet off the ground. Squat racks don’t have pegs that low, and on the bench press, well, the bench is in the way. 

How To Use a Power Rack for Inverted Rows

• Set a barbell in the rack around the height of your mid-thigh; the higher it is, the easier the movement is, due to having a more vertical body position.
• Lie under the bar on your back with your legs straight, reach up, and grab the bar.
• Using your back, pull yourself off the ground toward the bar while keeping your legs and hips rigidly locked

Muscles worked: Lats, rhomboids, traps, biceps.

More Versatility, More Gains: What You Can Do With the Altitude™ Rack

We designed the Altitude™ with one goal in mind—taking the guesswork out of designing a home, or commercial, gym. Like all REP offerings, the Altitude™ rack is designed with practicality. We want you to be able to perform any exercise you can think of without needing a dozen different unique machines.

To that end, the various accessories and upgrades available with the Altitude™ power rack allow you to perform:

• Low and high cable rows
• Pull-ups and dips
• Bench and overhead presses
• Rack pulls and pin squats

And you can even modify the Altitude™ rack to function like a Smith machine with the right attachment, providing a smooth, safety-minded barbell training experience. 

Full-Body Power Rack Workout Plan

The best power rack in the world is only as useful as the workouts you perform in it. Luckily, with the Altitude™ rack, your options are endless. If you’re looking for a full-body, functional workout you can complete entirely in the rack, look no further:

• Back Squat: 3 x 5

• Romanian Deadlift or Rack Pull: 2 x 6 

• Inverted Row or Lat Pulldown: 2 x 10-12

• Barbell Curl superset with JM Press: 2 x 10-12

Power Rack Etiquette & Best Practices

The best part of having a power rack in your home gym is never having to clean up your weights—the worst part is nobody will ever clean up your weights. Good gym etiquette extends past the boundaries of commercial facilities; you should be just as diligent at home, especially if you picked up the Altitude™ rack on your own dime.

Here are some things to keep in mind:

• Use a horsehair brush to wipe chalk off your barbell after use, and wipe down handles and other contact surfaces afterward if they’re chalky or sweaty.
• Don’t leave plates on the bar in the rack, as the idle weight may cause the bar to warp over time. 
• Ensure that the rack is set up with plenty of overhead clearance, plus space on either side to accommodate any and all accessories or attachments.

Takeaway

The Altitude™ rack is our most comprehensive power rack yet. If you’re in the market for a single piece of equipment that goes the distance and provides everything you need for comprehensive, full-body training, you can’t go wrong with the Altitude™.

But the beauty of the power rack isn’t limited to its manufacturer (even if we’re certain our craftsmanship is the best in the business). Power racks allow you to hit all major muscle groups through practical, straightforward strength training. It’s the Swiss army knife of training tech. 

FAQs

What’s the difference between a power rack vs. squat rack?

Power racks have four pillars, forming a “cage” with adjustable hooks that allow you to perform just about any barbell exercise. Squat racks, as the name implies, are designed mainly for squats and certain other movements like overhead presses. 

Can I use a power rack for different types of strength training exercises?

Absolutely. You can use the power rack to perform all of the major barbell exercises; squats, deadlifts, rows, and presses. Your options expand further if you have a customizable rig like the Altitude™ rack, which provides attachments for cable and even Smith machine movements as well. 

What are some beginner-friendly rack exercises for legs?

Power racks are fantastic tools for learning the basics of free-weight lower-body exercises. You can conveniently perform back or front squats for your quads, and loaded hinge movements like Romanian deadlifts or rack pulls for your posterior chain. 

Are power racks good for home gyms?

Absolutely. Power racks are one of the most economical purchases you can make for a home gym, since their customizability affords you access to so many compound exercises at once. 

Jake Dickson holds a B.S. degree in Exercise Science and is a NASM-CPT. As a health & wellness writer, Jake focuses on making fitness practical and accessible for any audience. Off the clock, you can find Jake at the gym or unwinding by the beach.

This article was reviewed by Rosie Borchert, NASM-CPT, for accuracy.