Piecing two puzzle pieces together to PB your Squat

  • Post category:Fitness

This article will focus on how we can combine two training benefits (PAP & Accommodating Resistance) for a significant increase in back squat performance

Before we can see how these two elements fit together it’s important to understand both puzzle pieces.

1 Enter Post Activation Potentiation (PAP), the first puzzle piece

PAP refers to a short – term improvement in the performance of an exercise as a result of a conditioning exercise performed previously

For example, performing a movement that causes an acute excitation in the neuromuscular system (such as a heavy back squat) can cause performance improvements in other movements like a sprint or a box jump

PAP can also occur on the same exercise, squat 100kg then work up to 200kg then deload to 100kg again. The second set of 100kg will feel infinitely lighter. This is due to the increased activation of the neuromuscular system from the previous heavier sets.

In contact sports, we’ll train our teams to feel ‘tired’ in warm up before resting them a while before they go onto the field. The time between their last warm up set and their run on the field is their recovery period, by the time they’re taking contact their systems are primed to perform.

For this particular article, we’ll be discussing a sequence of exercises you can use to ‘PAP your Back Squat’.

2, 3 Enter Resistance Bands, a piece of simple but effective training equipment that allows us to enjoy what is called ‘accommodating resistance’. The second puzzle piece.

The term “accommodating resistance” is commonly used when discussing band-resistance training. Accommodating resistance allows for the resistance to increase in biomechanically advantageous positions as the muscle is capable of exerting greater force in those positions.

Basically, as the athlete moves into stronger positions, the weight gets heavier, as the athlete moves into weaker positions, the weight decreases.

For example: As you stand up during the squat, the band stretches and tension increases (weight). As you squat down, the band shortens and tension decreases.

In layman’s terms,bands on a squat helps to teach a more explosive drive out the bottom of the squat (see where we’re going with this?)

The Sequence

Exercise Sets Reps Rest
Band Sumo Stance Squat 2 20 1 min
Band Close Stance Squat 2 20 1 min
Band Squat 2 20 1 min
Band Good Morning 2 20 1 min

*100%  effort on every rep is required

*Finish the first exercise before moving onto the next

*By varying our squat stance we make sure to have ‘primed’ our most important muscles to fire.

Putting it together

You’re going to run the band exercises before your next heavy squat workout. The bands will teach your body to fire out of the hole faster than ever (accommodating resistance) the effects of which you will enjoy the whole workout, causing an increase in

Be prepared to enjoy a PB.

Thank us later.


  1. https://www.scienceforsport.com/post-activation-potentiation/
  2. https://www.scienceforsport.com/chain-resistance-training/
  3. https://www.scienceforsport.com/elastic-resistance-training/